Sharing Web Resources - Part 2

This week's assignment called us to return to our chosen resource from earlier in the class. In the first two weeks of the class, I had chosen to focus on the Save the Children organization. In this week's post, I will revisit this topic and this organization as I feel it is imperative we all learn from this organization. It is inspiring!

After spending the past few weeks exploring the website for Save the Children organization, I have come to think that the most important and informative section of the website is the "Latest News" section. This section keeps me up to date on the major issues and trends taking place world wide in the lives of the children. This is a key component to my ongoing professional development in that we must be culturally and linguistically aware of our surroundings in order to best help our children in the ever-changing demographics of this country. Over the past few weeks, I have been completely overwhelmed with the events taking place in Syria and the responses that the Save the Children organization are sharing from actual Syrian children dealing with these events. I have been drawn to this organization's site, as well as their Facebook page, checking for updates and attempting to find ways to help. 

While I have come to think of the "Latest News" section as being the most important and informative, it can also be controversial at times, depending on the topics being discussed. In addition, another controversial piece of this website is the variety of links asking for support, donations, etc. Some may be offended by the requests for support but I feel as though this was another eye opening experience to see how badly these children need our support! This is a wonderful resource on this organization's website. There are so many ways to make a difference, by purchasing something for a child or group of children in another country, donating to a country to help the children in that area for some specific purpose, and even the opportunity to be a sponsor for the organization itself. 

In addition to subscribing to the newsletter and checking the website often for updates, I followed the organization through social media outlets like Facebook to receive more updates on current issues and trends around the world. As mentioned before, I was greatly interested in the issues in Syria and the children being impacted. The Save the Children Facebook page provided more in depth updates and opportunities to show support. This also has helped to open my eyes to the variety of professionals who are also following and supporting this organization. People from all over the world, from all walks of life and all career paths have shown their support for this organization and the efforts they make to help the children. It has further helped me to appreciate this week's topic of a variety of professionals from various fields in their support of this field of education. 

The Save the Children organization continues to prove a valid and helpful resource. I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to further research this wonderful organization and support it. It continues to provide me with updated issues and trends around the world children are facing on a daily basis. It helps me to keep things in perspective in my own life, as well as in my career and in terms of my role in each child's life that I work with daily. I am pleased to report that this Master's Degree program has provided me with the opportunity to build my library of resources to stay up to date in the field of education and fulfill my goal of being a lifelong learner. The Save the Children organization has definitely been added to the top of such a list. 

Until next time…

-A

Getting to Know Your International Contacts - Part 1

This week's blog entry calls for us to discuss our adventures in contacting other education professionals internationally, introducing our new acquaintance, sharing what we have learned from them thus far, and so on. This has been one of the most challenging assignments I have had to date with this Master's program. In an attempt to establish contact with an international professional, I had e-mailed 12 different representatives from countries all over the world. After two weeks, I have still heard nothing in response. Luckily, one of my colleagues in my district, our ELL teacher, shared a contact with me. She often Skypes with a Kindergarten teacher in Mexico that she established contact with via Facebook two years ago. Her contact was willing to e-mail me and discuss various things so I was happy to establish my first contact! I am still in the process of working on my next contact, as I have reached out to someone in Ghana (also connected via a colleague from my district) and two teachers who teach abroad (relatives of my best friend's new husband) and am awaiting a reply from them within the next few days.

The contact I was able to establish is a Kindergarten teacher in Mexico. Her name is Myrella Gomez. She is such a positive and enthusiastic educator who I am happy to have made contact with. We have planned on possibly Skyping with our classes this spring for Cinco de Mayo, since I have a few students who have family from Mexico and she would like them to see how this is celebrated in Mexico. I am looking forward to this opportunity! She has explained that she teaches her students the English language as part of her daily schedule, as well. I am curious to see her response about this week's topic of poverty as I have not received response just yet. She explained this is a busy week and would get back to me by the weekend. I will gladly post an update when it comes in. :)

Being able to establish contact with educators from all over the world is an exciting experience for me. Myrella is providing me with insight to a culture I am very curious about as I have had several students with Mexican heritage over the past three years in my district. She is helping me brush up on my Spanish skills, as well, which is always helpful! I am curious to see if Mexico and other countries have similar issues and trends in the field of early childhood education, such as poverty becoming a more important issue or changing demographics and diversity being a new trend. If so, how will they handle it compared to our country? I am anxiously awaiting Myrella's response.

The topic of poverty this week has opened my eyes and my heart. I live and work in a town that is now a mix of middle class and low-income families. I see students coming into my classroom daily, hungry, tired, and stressed. I worry and want to reach out and help these children and families but was unsure how. My district began a Village Shoppe to help these needy families. This week's resources have provided me with information, knowledge, resources, and confidence to make a change in the lives of these children, however small that may be, even just within my own classroom. The brief information that I received from Myrella on the topic shows me that poverty is a concern in Mexico, as well. As mentioned in the multimedia presentation in the first week of class, for many families in Mexico the husband/father works to provide for the family only. The extended family is then a close-knit bunch who share whatever it is they do have and make the most of their time together. While it seems poverty is a concern, family is important and helps get through the difficult times. Culture plays a huge role in this difference between the two countries, which Myrella helped to confirm for me.

I am hopeful to receive additional e-mails with information on the topic in regards to Mexico, as well as either Ghana or elsewhere, to update this posting within the next few days. I am extremely curious to learn more about these countries in terms of their cultures, education systems, and the issues and trends impacting children in education as compared to what we discuss and face here in the United States.

Returning soon with an update. Until then….

-Ashley

Sharing Web Resources

Week 2 is fully underway in the Issues and Trends course I am currently enrolled in. This week we were asked to examine closely the organization we chose to follow and learn more about. I had mentioned last week there were two organizations that had caught my eye but this week I would like to focus on the Save the Children Organization.

Save the Children is an organization created to help children worldwide survive the stressors of daily life they are facing and cannot control themselves. As stated on the website, "Save the children gives children in the United States and around the world what every child deserves - a healthy start, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm, especially when disaster strikes. We advocate and achieve lasting change for millions of children. We save children's lives," (Save the Children, 2014). This organization's webpage has a multitude of resources and current events taking place around the world that impact children. It details the countries it works in, their goals and accomplishments, their campaigns, their programs, and much more. It provides current events and articles taking place throughout the world and allows people to connect and be involved via the website and social media institutions, such as Facebook and Twitter. The organization can be found at this website address: http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Official_Site.htm.

While there are many issues taking place worldwide that are of grave concern for the well being of our children, there was one in particular that caught my eye and touched my heart in such a way I felt I had to share. In an article from the Save the Children Newsroom posted on December 13, 2013, they discuss how "the decline in education for Syrian children has been the sharpest and most rapid in the history of the region," (Uenuma, 2013, p. 1). Due to the warring state that Syria is currently in, children are unable to attend schools due to fear, physical inability to go due to buildings being destroyed or otherwise utilized, etc. Uenuma (2013) explains further how nearly 3 million children were forced to leave their education behind in the primary grades "as fighting has destroyed classrooms, left children too terrified to go to school, or seen families flee the country," (p. 1). Even more disheartening was reading that "between 500,000-600,000 Syrian refugee children are out of school," (Uenuma, 2013, p. 1). These poor children and families are living in fear for their lives, some even illegally crossing borders into neighboring countries to flee the bloodshed only to find they cannot be welcomed there due to overcrowding or tensions between regions. For an area within this region to have 97% attendance in 2011 to drop drastically to 6% is an astonishing fact. Uenuma (2013) explains, "Syria was a regional leader in education enrollment before the conflict, yet in less than three years the sharpest regression in education of anywhere in the region occurred with dire consequences for the future," (p. 1). Even for the families who are still remaining in Syria and dealing with the continuous bloodshed and strife their children are without education as parents are fearful to send them to school in such conditions with such events continuously taking place in their country and one cannot blame them. Uenuma (2013) speaks for the Save the Children and Unicef organizations listing ways action could be taken now to reverse this intense decline and slide downward, listing the following examples:

                    "- Protection of education infrastructure inside Syria - including ending the use of schools
                      for military purposes, declaring schools as zones of peace, and holding accountable those
                      parties to the conflict who violate the protection of schools.
                      - Doubling of international investment for education in host countries to expand and
                      improve learning spaces, recruit additional teachers and slash the costs of getting children
                      into classrooms.
                      - Innovative approaches to overcome education needs of Syrian refugee children through
                      such as transferrable certification for refugee students.
                      - Scaling up proven models such as home-based learning, non-formal learning centers
                      and child-friendly spaces that provide psychosocial support for children," (p. 1).

Ultimately, this article moved me to tears, fearful for the children and families in this region and thankful we do not face these circumstances on a daily basis here, but most importantly, left me wanting to find a way to help. By following and supporting this organization, making donations, or purchasing gifts for children around the world to help their specific needs and struggles, I can help to make a difference in the health, education, and life of these children. So can you. Please take the time to peruse the Save the Children organization's website. I promise you will feel the same passion as I did, left wanting to make a difference and treasure the precious moments we spend safely here with our children we are lucky enough to work with. Then again, maybe it is just me. I am a big time softy and have a huge heart, which can be a blessing and a curse; regardless, I know to follow my heart when it is the right thing to do and I hope you would too. :)

Until next week….

-A


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References:

Save the Children Federation, Inc. (2014). Save the Children. Retrieved from http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6115947/k.8D6E/Official_Site.htm.

Uenuma, F. (13 December 2013). Decline in education for Syrian children "worst and fastest in region's history. Retrieved from http://www.savethechildren.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=8rKLIXMGIpI4E&b=8486803&ct=13500437.

Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

Hello and welcome back one and all! I am embarking on my latest challenge, entering my fourth class of my Master's Degree Program at Walden University entitled Issues & Trends in the Early Childhood Field. In our first week of class, we had a two part blog assignment to complete, as you will see below.

Part 1: Establishing Professional Contacts:

Part 1 of this week's blog assignment required us to establish contact with an international colleague in the field of education or child representation. There were two different websites provided for us to attempt to establish such contacts. Throughout the week, I have attempted to e-mail 9 different professionals from various countries around the world. Unfortunately, it is Saturday and I have still not received a response from any of the professionals I have attempted to contact. I am hopeful I will be able to establish contact and build a rapport with at least two of the professionals I reached out to in order to become more aware of various countries educational systems, beliefs, cultures, languages, and so much more. I think this is a great way to network in the field of education, as well as a great way to better understand our ever-changing diverse population in the United States. At this point, I have contacted representatives from various organizations in the following countries: Ireland, Philippines, Germany, Turkey, Jamaica, Pakistan, and Singapore. I have reached out to two different professionals in Turkey and Ireland, as I am hopeful to establish contact with them and learn more about these countries. The reason I am so interested in Ireland is because it is part of my heritage from both sides of my family and a place in which I have always, always wanted to travel to and learn more about. Turkey, on the other hand, strikes my interest in a different way. My district is the home to several Turkish families who have immigrated to the United States from Turkey, settling in my town. Over the past two years I have been lucky enough to work with two or three students from this country/culture and learn some simple parts of the language and culture. This year I have 5 or 6 students who hail from this region and celebrate this culture. It would mean so much to me if I could learn more about this residence and understand their language, culture, beliefs, and more. :) I have not given up hope yet; I am still attempting to complete the first option for Assignment 1 Part 1. If within the next few days I do not hear back from any of these professionals, I will be forced to complete the alternative assignment.


Part 2: Expanding Resources:

For Part 2 of this assignment in week 1, we had to research and study a variety of organizations in the United States and around the world and choose just one to focus on. Since quite a few of these organizations were new to me or caught my eye, I spent some time researching each that I seemed interested in. I have narrowed it down to two organizations in which I signed up to receive e-newsletters from to stay informed and learn more about the organizations: Save the Children and ACEI (Association for Children International). I had very brief experiences with these two organizations in prior classes and have been hoping for another chance to learn more about them so that is how I ultimately made my decision. I will focus on one of them in the upcoming weeks of this class, but still would like to learn more about both for my own educational knowledge and interest. I think this week has been jam packed with rich resources to explore and discover. These resources will be meaningful, helpful, and come in very handy to have in our toolbox over the next few weeks of this course, as well as in our educational careers in the early childhood field.


Until next week...