EDUC - 6162-6: EFFECTIVE PROGRAMS AND PRACTICES - FINAL BLOG ASSIGNMENT

Even though I have hosted many international exchange students, been a regional manager for international exchange students, and currently still am an area representative for international exchange students in my little corner of the world, this course was still full of information I feel can only be obtained from a collaborative learning community in which we are currently involved in.  Each individual has contributed in some way to the learning process these last eight weeks and I would like to thank everyone for all their advice, suggestions, and solutions that they shared.

The privilege I had by being welcomed into the professional lives of two international contacts this past eight weeks has definitely opened my eyes to further understanding about the early childhood field of education outside of the US.

Consequences of learning about the international early childhood field (both for professional and personal development) are, but not limited to:

- Strengthening my knowledge and practice in regards to culturally responsive and individually appropriate practice. 

- A greater respect that each students and their family have a culture that is to be valued and affirmed; allow students and families to fully participate in the educational process by keeping communication open in both directions.

- Was given an opportunity to reflect on my own definition of diversity and educate myself in any areas in which I needed more information.  As well as continuing to periodically reflect.

- Broadening my network of peers in the early childhood field.

One of the goals I have set for myself is to grow my own program, as well as become more involved in the community, in order to advocate for other high quality early childhood education programs, childcares, etc…  In an ideal world, it would be easy to have a classroom which can meet the needs of the increasingly changing demographics in the classroom.  Until then, the best teaching practices are those that consider all learners in a classroom setting which pays close attention to the differences inherent to academic, cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic diversity (Santamaria, 2009).

Once again, thank you to all my classmates, Dr. Longo and my new international contacts for all their help, advice, and suggestions this past eight weeks. I look forward to continuing our collaborative learning community in the future. The best of luck to everyone in their future endeavors!

Reference

Santamaria, L. J. (2009). Culturally Responsive Differentiated Instruction: Narrowing Gaps between Best Pedagogical Practices Benefiting All Learners. Teachers College Record, 111(1), 214-247.

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR INTERNATIONAL CONTACTS CON'T

First I wanted to share some good news I received in my email today.  The announcement read:

“BOSTON - Friday, December 16, 2011:  The Patrick-Murray Administration today announced that Massachusetts is one of nine grant award winners in President Obama's Early Learning Challenge (ELC) competition and will receive significant funding over the next four years to expand high quality early education services and close achievement gaps in education.

Massachusetts is eligible for $50 million under the ELC and the U.S. Department of Education will announce final grant amounts to each winner in the coming days. Other winners of the ELC competition include California, Delaware, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and the state of Washington. 

Today’s announcement demonstrates our place as a national leader in education reform and achievement, said Governor Deval Patrick.  These resources will help us reach kids at an early age, before achievement gaps form, to ensure they are prepared for lifelong success in school and beyond.””

It was really nice to see some positive news about funding for a change.   

Now for this week’s assigned posting. . . . . .

In the last seven weeks of correspondence with Siddig from Pakistan, I have discovered a person with a lot of the same goals as myself.  He is currently a social worker, but his master degree is in Economics since his parents did not feel that a career in social work was worthy of a good future.  He went ahead and did as they wished but his heart has stayed with the children who are in need of his assistance. 

His future goal is to do what he can for the children of his country.  He is very interested in the psychological aspects pertaining to children and their early learning as well.  During our correspondence he has stated that Pakistan will be the best place for my true cause of helping children as the situation there with the government run schools is not very positive.  The more I look into the link understand (as previously posted - www.cfr.org) he suggested to me, the more I really understand how great his challenge is going to be.  I look forward to keeping our communication open for many years to come.

EXPLORING OUR WEB RESOURCES

For this posting I decided to look even further into the website for Early Childhood Australia:  The Australian Early Childhood Advocacy Organization (http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/) that I had previously posted as one of my new resources.  The link I chose to investigate further was the QIAS/QA support link.  This link allows you to choose further information on family day care, long day care, or outside school hours care.  Since I am in the family child care business, I chose to delve further into the family day care link.  I find it to be really interesting to find out what standards different countries have in common and which ones sound like great ideas to implement in our own country.

For this website I compared the Quality Assurance (QA) systems which are an initiative of the Australian Government whose aim is to ensure that children in care have stimulating, positive experiences and interactions.  I liken this system to the QRIS system I am currently working with in my own state.

The link gives other links such as:  www.ncac.gov.au – This is for the National Childcare Accreditation Council who is responsible for the implementation and administration of the Quality Assurance (QA) systems for family day care, outside school hours care and long day care across Australia.  I could be mistaken but I compare this agency to NAEYC (naeyc.org). (Another organization I spend a lot of time using as a major resource for my studies.)

There is also a free copy of Early Childhood Australia’s latest book catalogue, which contains quality-assured early childhood books.  Books on this list must meet the following criteria:  is in the best interests of children; is evidence-based; is appropriately inclusive; uses accessible language; addresses the appropriate age range; is dated and authored; is referenced where appropriate; is attractively designed and presented; and clearly acknowledges any commercial interests and/or biases.  The list of titles is extensive and I found a lot of interesting titles on specific issues that I have never seen before in print.  I would highly recommend viewing this list if anyone likes to read extensively about issues, including, but not limited to understanding excellence and equity in early childhood care.  Some of the titles are a bit pricey but I hope to be able to find the titles I would like to read here in the United States.

The more I follow links and view this website, the more information I find that is so helpful for my resource file.  I highly recommend spending some time looking around this website if this type of content is of interest to any educators and/or parents.

Reference

August 2011 Catalogue Page 1 - Early Childhood Australia Catalogue. (n.d.). Home - Early Childhood Australia. Retrieved December 09, 2011, from http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/shop/results.cfm?category=33

GETTING TO KNOW MY INTERNATIONAL CONTACTS

First I need to once again thank Siddig Barech from Pakistan for keeping the line of communication open with me during these last weeks.  I gain so much information about global issues/trends from our conversations.  Beside email we have chatted quite a few times on Facebook about many issues/trends.

When I first brought the topic of the issues of equity/inequity in the early childhood field he did not quite understand my views but was willing to allow me to explain and I in turn allowed him to explain what his thoughts are.  As educators we are aware that there is a definite global inequity but it really brings it home when you actually are corresponding with an individual who lives these inequities.  During our conversation Siddig told me that he wished I could visit Pakistan for a week and see for myself what the government schools are like.  He further explained that it might change my views on a child-centered curriculum as he sees the need for a system of strict standards with no give.

He said that such ideas, such as what I expressed, might never be known in Pakistan for those who are not considered in an elite group with wealth.  He stated that about 99% of their teachers or about 1% of the schools are run by any International standards.  He went on to state that their curriculum is about 64 years old and is practiced in most of the disciplines.  He also said that the arts and history varies a lot but is still practiced.  Our conversation brought to light how easy it is to misconstrue what one person is saying.  In this instance one of his concerns was that I saw no value in history or the arts.  It was nice to talk it out and end up on the same page so to speak.

I also asked if Siddig knew of any websites that I could go on to find out further information about the Pakistan government schools.  He told me that I could search on Google under educational system of Pakistan.  Of course being the type of person who loves to research, I did just that.  The website I chose to further research was http://www.cfr.org.  This was a real eye opener for me.  If anyone is interested in viewing this website for further information, I would highly recommend it even though the information was from 2009; I feel it is still relevant.

Reference

Pakistan's education system and links to extremism. (2009). Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved from http://www.cfr.org/pakistan/pakistans-education-system-links-extremism/p20364

SHARING WEB RESOURCES CON'T

For this posting I decided to look further into the organization Early Childhood Australia:  The Australian Early Childhood Advocacy Organization (http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/) that I had previously posted as one of my new resources.

I began to look through previous articles in the website’s “Every Child magazine” and found a great article on titled “Cultural Competence – Ensuring Individuality is Integral to Equity, Fairness and Social Justice.”  I felt this article was relevant to my current professional development because it gives great information on the need to recognize the strengths of diverse knowledge, languages, cultures and ways of becoming involved in a positive way into our communities from the viewpoint from another country.  This information also was helpful as it does add to my understanding of unintentional consequences when children are defined as commodities in the views of economists with the concern of CORE standards.

This article shows the need to remember and embrace the diversity of the children, their families and their communities.  The information is there about the need for quality early childhood education and care but also for the need to promote positive relationships with and between children, families, educators and their communities.

I found nothing on this website to be controversial in my beliefs of EEC but I am sure the more I explore the website, the more I will read about other new insights about issues and trends in the early childhood field of education.  I highly recommend this website as it is a wealth of information.  Especially for those like me who like to read and research everything of interest to them.

Reference

Cultural competence - ensuring individuality is integral to equity, fairness and social justice - Early Childhood Australia. (n.d.). Home - Early Childhood Australia. Retrieved November 26, 2011, from http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/every_child_magazine/every_child_index/cultural_competence_ensuring_individuality_is_integral_to_equity_fairness_and_social_justice.html

INTRODUCTION TO MY NEW INTERNATIONAL CONTACTS

First I have to thank Farah S. Kamal who is from Karachi, Pakistan.  She is the Executive Director for iEARN in Karachi, Pakistan (www.iearnpk.org).  I am honored to have had Farah’s assistance in finding willing participants to correspond with for this course and in the future.  I became acquaintances with Farah indirectly while hosting and working with exchange students from Pakistan.

I also want to thank my friend, Greg Wright, who helped put me in contact with Paula Gray from Perth, Australia.  Greg was host father to one of her sons about five or so years ago and I was the area representative for the host family and student.

The first individual who has volunteered his time is Siddig Barech.  Siddig is a social worker and has been working as a Research Associate/Master Trainer and Monitoring/Evaluation Officer for the last three years in particular to the Early Childhood Education field as well as dealing with marginalized and children who are considered to be “at risk”.

Siddig also shared some of his experience and observation concerning poverty and malnutrition.  He stated that, in his opinion, poverty/malnutrition has caused multi-dimensional effects on the children’s learning/education/thoughts/personality development.  He has a lot more to say and I learned a great deal from just this one conversation and look forward to learning more.

Paula Gray has offered to assist me while we try and find someone willing to help in the field of early childhood education in Australia.  Paula is retired from the Department of Education and is currently spending time traveling with her husband.  Their next trip is to Alaska. 

Even though we are still in the beginning stage of communication, I am already appreciating the contact with others who feel the same way as I do about ECE and working with children who are considered to be “at risk”.  I have always been interested in learning about other countries and their views but have never had the opportunity to reach out to those in a professional context in the ECE field.

I have done some research in the past about the effects of poverty and low-income on families who need quality child care in order to hold down a job but have not done a lot of research, until now, on the effects regarding ECE.

From a child care research view, the increased use of child care by individuals who are unrelated to the family is increasing each year.  This increase is largely due to the changes in the social and economic fabric of the United States.  One of the challenges with the increased need for child care services is finding quality as well as affordable child care.  This is especially true for individuals who are single parents and are financially in a low-income bracket.  The importance of finding quality day care for children is that it offers the potential for positive psychological development for the children and their families (ajp.psychologyonline.org).

New insights I have gained from this week so far are, but not limited to, the estimated number of individuals and families who are considered to be at or below the poverty level; how many aspects of our lives and those of our families are affected by poverty (either directly or indirectly in many ways).  I tend to get carried away when I research so I will not post all I have found in this forum.

References

Day care for early preschool children: implications for the child and
       family. American Psychiatric Association Task Force on Day Care
       for Pre- School Children -- 150 (8): 1281 -- Am J Psychiatry.
       (n.d.). The American Journal of Psychiatry. Retrieved
       November 15, 2011, from
       http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/150/8/1281

SHARING WEB RESOURCES

My personal opinion is that I can never have too many resources at my disposal whether it be needing answers to questions I may have, doing research for a class or work, or even just because the resource is interesting.  As I stated in my post from November 3, 2011, I have been a member of NAEYC for many, many years so I decided I wanted to expand to a few organizations which are based outside of the United States.  I chose the following organizations:

Early Childhood Australia:  The Australian Early Childhood Advocacy Organization

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/

Their mission is to advocate ensuring quality, social justice and equity in all issues relating to the education and care of children from birth to eight years.  This includes:  The rights of children; leadership; excellence; respect; courage; honesty; openness; collaboration; diversity; justice; and social inclusion of children.

This organization drew my attention since they stand for how I personally like to work and advocate for children.  I also subscribed to their newsletter - Early Childhood Australia VOICE…voice for young children.

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/pdf/voice/Voice1104_screen.pdf

I highly recommend looking at this newsletter as it contains so much information about a variety of issues from a number of countries.  Learning about early childhood education from another country’s view is just so interesting to me.  I also find it to be a significant factor to understand others’ views for, but not limited to, bringing in diversity into my own program; and keeping my own knowledge level growing in a very diverse way.

Save the Children

http://www.savethechildren.org

Save the Children is the world's leading independent organization for children. Their vision is a world in which every child attains the right to survival, protection, development and participation. Their mission is to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children and to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives.

This organization drew my attention since they seem to share the same goal I have, but in a much larger scale.  One of the program areas that caught my attention was their program for education and child development.  One of the examples was early childhood development in Mali.  This area is of interest to me since I firmly believe each and every child has the right to an education and the right to reach their full potential regardless of their race, where they live, or abilities.

I signed up for their email news updates in order to receive the latest from the field as well as stories about the girls and boys participating in their education and health programs. I will also receive reports about, but not limited to, their relief workers who feed babies struggling during hunger crises, protect children caught in the cross-fire of unrest, provide health care for AIDS orphans, teach troubled youth to read, and defend girls from exploitation.

UPDATE TO EXPANDING OUR RESOURCES

I am happy to say that despite no response to the dozens and dozens of emails and inquires sent all over the world to pre-schools and other organizations, my friends have come through for me with many individuals from Pakistan and Australia who are willing to assist me.  It is going to be very interesting to hear their perspectives on issues and trends in the ECE field.  I hope these relationships continue beyond the course, as learning other individuals perspectives who work in the field in some capacity is priceless.

Thank you again to everyone who have given me this wonderful opportunity!

EXPANDING OUR RESOURCES

“To create a program that revels in family

involvement, teachers must offer many high-quality,

meaningful, family learning experiences that not only

attract family members but also hold their hearts.”

                                                                                               ~ NAEYC

Welcome everyone to our new class, Issues and Trends in the Early Childhood Field).  I look forward to learning with all of you during this next eight weeks (and hopefully in future classes as well). 

When I first read the assignment for the class to locate and contact two early childhood professionals outside of the United States, I thought it would not be all that difficult.  Surprisingly it has been so far (though I am holding out hope that I will be able to do this). 

I started off with the resource list that was given to us and emailed every contact contained in them.  As of this posting, I have yet to hear anything back from any of the inquiries I had sent.  While waiting to hear back from those individuals, I contacted my exchange students I hosted since 2005.  Unfortunately, none of them know of anyone in their perspective countries who works with children.  I then posted a request on my Facebook for assistance.  I received two replies from friends who said they would ask people they know in other countries for some contact information.  I have yet to hear back but am hopeful that someone will come through with either a resource or receive a reply back from my emails.  I also contacted many, many individuals which I have met during my time as a licensed home child care educator.  Many of these individuals are sending out requests for me and I am, once again, hopeful I will hear from one of the sources.

The second part of the assignment for the class involved expanding our resources in the early childhood field of education.  I have been a member of NAEYC for many, many years so I decided I wanted to expand to a few organizations based outside of the US.  I chose Early Childhood Australia:  The Australian Early Childhood Advocacy Organization.  I also signed up for their newsletter.  I also chose Save the Children.  I also signed up for their email updates and eNewsletter.  I chose these websites/organizations since they were two that I am unfamiliar with at this time.  I also like to choose resources which fit into what I need when I need to be well informed or do research.

I wish everyone a great eight weeks!  I am sure we will each come away from this class with a much larger knowledge base. 

MY SUPPORTS

I have found as I grow older (age in years not in spirit) the various supports in my life change.  These supports can be social/emotional in nature; practical; physical or just daily things needed to help with the multiple of hats I wear each day (as so many of us do).  These supports also can change minute by minute; daily; etc… all dependent on how the day is going.

An example of social/emotional supports would be when I need to vent or ask advice and know that my friends and family are there for me.  The best example of this would be when my husband passed away in a motor vehicle accident.  It seemed as if everyone we knew came out to lend their support in some way or form.  These are also the same individuals which I know I can still count on for support no matter what is happening.

Examples of practical supports/physical supports on a daily basis can range anywhere from my day planner; computer working correctly; support from my peers; hoping I get paid by all the parents for the weeks’ childcare so I can pay my own bills; to support from my children such as taking the air conditioners out, etc…; my grocery list; and curriculum plans for the week.

There are plenty more supports in which I receive/need/or supply to others on a daily basis but these were a few examples of them.  When I imagine having all my supports taken away, it is not a pleasant thought at all.  Life would definitely be much harder if the supports I have come to rely on just disappeared.  I will admit that I am spoiled by technology and extremely fortunate to have great children and friends which allow me to keep my little part of the world on a pretty even level for the most part.  Though these supports may not be needed each day, it is always great to know they are here when they are needed.

So a great big THANK YOU for all the supports I have in my life!



MY CONNECTION TO PLAY

“Play is the highest expression of

human development in childhood,

for it alone is the free expression of

what is in a child’s soul.”

                                                                   ~ Fredrick Froebel

I found this quote quite a few years ago in one of my favorite books, titled Tumbling Over the Edge – A Rant for Child’s Play, written by Bev Bos and Jenny Chapman.  I refer to this quote quite often in my course assignments over the years as it sums up my philosophy of early childhood education and the importance of play in a child’s development.

As a child care provider, comments have been made repeatedly over the last twenty-two years such as “You don’t work, you play all day.” or “One day you will need to get a real job.”  I,  in turn, educate them on how lucky I am to have had the opportunity to play for the last twenty-two years while operating a licensed family child care program.

Reference

Bos, B. J., & Chapman, J. (2005). Tumbling over the edge: a rant for children's play. Roseville, CA: Turn the Page Press.

"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief

from serious learning. But for children play is

serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood."

                                                                   ~ Fred Rogers

Play, according to developmentalists, is the most productive and enjoyable activity in which children undertake.  Play is considered universal since it is apparent in every part of the world and has been for thousands of years (Berger, 2009). 

Child-initiated play lays the foundations of learning.  Through play, children learn to interact with others, to recognize and solve problems, and to feel the sense of mastery that results.  Basically, play helps children make sense of and find their own place in the physical and social world (Alliance for Childhood, 2005).

Play is closely linked to children’s intellectual, social, emotional, and physical progress.  Decades of research has demonstrated that active childhood play boosts healthy development across a broad spectrum of critical areas.  The benefits are so impressive that every day of childhood should be a day for play (Alliance for Childhood, 2005).

References

Berger, K. S. (2009). In The developing person through childhood. New York: Worth.

Alliance for Childhood, C. D. (2005). Time for play, every day: It's Fun – and fundamental. Alliance for Childhood.

Thinking back to when I was younger, I remember there not really being a choice – if it was sunny out – we were outside for the day involved in some type of activity with our friends during the school vacation times.  We were each called in for lunch and snacks and then off we went again until dinner time.  When we were in school this was the case as well once homework was completed.  Of course, this was in the 70’s when there was not 100’s of television stations, computers, Internet, cell phones, or video game systems.  I remember on days when the weather was not good and we were inside making tents, forts, playing school with all my dolls, or just relaxing and reading.  I remember puddle jumping in the rain when the weather was warm enough and being outside in the snow building snowmen, snow forts, and making snow angels. We were encouraged to use our imaginations to their fullest potential.  Each of our friends homes were also like our homes and we all took turns going from house to house depending on what we were doing that particular day.

The difference I see today is that children are not allowed to just be children.  Play has now become a structured activity coordinated to provide the ultimate education for the children.  I take a lot of criticism for allowing the children to have at least two parts of the day when they can just play.  They have their choices of what they want to do and as long as they are safe and happy, the toys, books, blankets, pillows, etc. are there for them.  I make sure I limit movies and television as well.  I believe with all the technology that is now available as well as all the toys that are out there, it is our job as educators, parents, guardians, etc… to make sure there is a healthy balance for the children.

Relationship Reflection

Social contact is a very essential part of human development and has direct effects on our health and emotional well-being.  Each relationship/partnership for me is very different.  Each of these relationships is different because of the role I play in each of the relationships.  As most of us do, I wear many hats (i.e. mom, sister, friend, aunt, advocate, child care provider, Miss Robin to the children I take care of).  The list is quite extensive.

To my own children I am mom.  I am also mom to most of the exchange students I have hosted over the years. In regards to my sister’s children, I am “Auntie the greatest aunt in the world.”  Some relationships take longer to develop, others are pretty much instantaneous.  I have so many positive relationships that I do not know where I would even begin.  I do believe that each relationship is unique and the older I get the more I understand the special aspects of each relationship/partnership. 

Each of my relationships is based on different bonds with each specific individual.  Some bonds are stronger than others but the bonds are there just the same.  By understanding these differences, it makes me a more effective early childhood professional.

The memory that really seems to belong under this heading is an incident after my husband was killed.  We were in the middle of remodeling the kitchen, dining room, and hallway of our home.  We had just finished plastering two days prior to his accident and all of our friends and even those I did not know all came to help finish the job.  In some ways I think it was a blessing for them as it gave them something to do while grieving.  I always tell people that I may have lost my husband but I gained about 500 of the best big/little brothers and sisters I could ever ask for.  During this time the courts decided that I needed to prove myself capable of finishing raising our three children.  When the lawyer the courts appointed came out to the house and was looking over all my receipts (I had to prove where all monies had been spent since the day of the accident) he looked at the Home Depot, etc… receipts and asked why there were so many and I explained the situation.  He then asked me where the receipts were for the contractor and other workers.  I told him there were none because all the work was completed by friends.  He looked at me and said no one has friends that good.  I replied “Yes I do, and I am very lucky to have them all.”  In one way that conversation saddened me as it made me realize even though I was grieving, how lucky in so many ways I still was.  Here was this lawyer who could not even imagine having friends as great as mine.

Favorite Child Development Quote

". . . if we trust the capacity of the human individual for developing his own potential, then we can permit him the opportunity to choose his own way in his learning."

~ Carl R. Rogers

This quote is one of my favorites because it brings to light that each person is an individual with their own way of learning.  This does not make any one method right or wrong, it just gives everyone the opportunity to choose their own way in which they learn best regardless of abilities.

Testing for Intelligence

Since the beginning of my educational journey in the summer of 2005, I was made aware of the ongoing debate which involved finding the most effective method to measure children’s minds and abilities.  As a licensed day care owner/provider part of my job is to complete assessments and evaluations on the children in my care.  The areas that are required to be covered are:  communication; gross motor; fine motor; problem solving; personal-social; as well as social-emotional.  I agree that these areas should be assessed (especially at the ages I work with); since any sign of needed help means assistance will be given sooner rather than later.  Often times, I see nothing being done until the child(ren) enter into the public/private school system.

The most frequent forms of assessment used with students with learning disabilities, according to Heward (2006), are:  standardized tests; criterion-referenced tests; informal reading inventories; curriculum-based measurement; and direct daily measurement. (Heward, 2006). 

Standardized intelligence and achievement tests are widely used with children with learning disabilities.  This is because, according to Heward (2006), a discrepancy between intellectual ability and achievement is the primary factor in determining eligibility for special education services (Heward, 2006).  I personally do not like standardized tests.  In my state we have the MCAS tests and every student regardless of their abilities/disabilities have to take these tests at specific times in order to be eligible for graduation.  One reason I do not like standardized tests is because students with diverse backgrounds and skill levels are expected to answer questions that are more or less written for the white, abled majority.  English language learners take tests in English before they have been able to master the language.  Special education students take the same tests as all the other children (receiving few of the accommodations usually provided to them as part of their IEPs (Individualized Education Plans) (standardizedtests.pro.com. org).

Criterion-referenced tests differ from norm-referenced tests since a child’s score on a criterion-referenced test is compared with a predetermined criterion rather than with normed scores of other students (Heward, 2006).  These tests are helpful in identifying the specific skills the child has already learned and the skills that require further instruction (Heward, 2006).

Informal reading inventories usually consist of a series of progressively more difficult sentences and paragraphs that a student is asked to read aloud.  Direct observation/recording aspects of the child’s reading skills (i.e. mispronounced vowels, consonants, omissions, reversals, substitutions, and comprehension) the teacher can determine the level of reading material that is most suitable for the child as well as the specific reading skills that require remediation (Heward, 2006).

Curriculum-based measurement involves frequent assessment of a child’s progress in learning the objectives that make up the curriculum in which the child is participating in (Heward, 2006).

Direct daily measurement basically means observing and recording a child’s performance on the specific skill being taught each day as it is taught.  One advantage to this method is that it gives information about the child’s performance on the skill under instruction.  Another advantage is this information is available on a continuous basis so that the teacher/instructor can modify instruction in accordance with changing/unchanging performance (Heward, 2006).

An example of how performance testing is done in other areas of the world is the Primary Schools Baseline Assessment (PIP-BLA).  This example is discussed in an article by Helen Wildy and Irene Styles (2011) and Western Australia is the region discussed.  The PIPS BLA was developed by the CEM Center and is administered within the first six weeks of a child starting compulsory education on an individual basis.  The test takes approximately 20 minutes per child.  The content is based on areas of children’s development which have been shown to be the best predictors of later success or difficulty at school (Tymms, et., al., (2004).

References

2002, M. (n.d.). Standardized Tests - ProCon.org.

     Retrieved August 06, 2011, from

     http://standardizedtests.procon.org/#pro_con

Heward, W. L. (2006). Exceptional children: an introduction to

     special education. Upper Saddle River, NJ:

     Pearson Education/Merrill/Prentice Hall.

Tymms, P., Merrell, C., & Jones, P. (2004). Using baseline assessment

     data to make international comparisons. British Educational Research

     Journal, 30(5), 673-689. doi:10.1080/0141192042000234647

Wildy, H., & Styles, I. (2011). Measuring What High-achieving

     Students Know and Can Do on Entry to School: PIPS 2002-2008.

     Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 36(2), 51.

Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

In the past, chaos in children’s lives reflected large-scale as well as economic upheavals in American society.  A child’s home was usually viewed as a safe haven for them in a world that was considered harsh and chaotic.  Today, however, much of the world may be a safer place for children (meaning the benefits from better health and government safety net).  These benefits, however, may be offset by increasing chaos brought about by marital instability and lack of regularity in the home.  Moreover, chaos in the child’s home may have less to do with economic shocks or other society-wide economic transformations than with the growing freedom of choice (both good and bad) that parents have concerning issues such as marriage, childbearing, and work, as well as how their choices affect their children’s lives (Lichter, et., al., 2010).

Environmental chaos typically refers to disruptions in multiple domains, which include but are not limited to, sensory overload, physical crowding, and routine family life.  When routines are diminished in frequency and family life is disorganized, questions about how the group works together collectively to promote and sustain healthy development are raised (Fiese & Winter).

In my own case my sister and I never knew what we were going to walk into after school or after being out with friends.  From the age of approximately eleven our home was in constant chaos with arguments as the normal environment we lived in.  Once our parents divorced, there were other circumstances that are still very painful to recount that I know had negative repercussions on our development in many areas.  I chose to use babysitting on an almost constant basis in order to totally avoid being in my home except to sleep.  Unfortunately, due to the stress involved with our household my grades began to slip and I needed to get them back up in a hurry or I would not be permitted to babysit any longer.  Sadly, at this time, this is the reason I chose to work even harder at school work.  I believe I still have residual effects from my childhood that will more than likely never fully be put to rest. 

References

Lichter, D. T., & Wethington, E. (2010). Chaos and the diverging fortunes of American children: A historical perspective. In G. W. Evans, T. D. Wachs, G. W. Evans, T. D. Wachs (Eds.), Chaos and its influence on children's development: An ecological perspective (pp. 15-32). Washington, DC US: American Psychological Association. doi:10.1037/12057-002

Research Study - Growing Pains: The Impact of Disaster-Related and Daily Stressors on the Psychological and Psychosocial FUntioning of Youth in Sri Lanka

Developmental psychology, supported by nearly four decades of research, has shown that children’s development is influenced by multiple factors at multiple levels.  These range from intrapersonal variables (both biological and psychological) to factors operating at the level of the family, community, and society (Ferando, et., al., 2010). 

In an effort to understand the impact of stressful events and contexts (parental divorce and poverty) on children’s emotional, cognitive, and social well-being, researchers have begun to look to identify and understand mediating and moderating factors at multiple levels of influence that might explain or influence the relation between stressors and children’s mental health (Ferando., et., al., 2010).

Daily stressors may mediate the relation between exposure to disaster-related stressors and psychological and psychosocial distress among youth in disaster-affected countries (Ferando, et., al., 2010).  In this study a sample of 427 Sri Lankan Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim youth with a mean age of 14.5 years) completed a survey with measures of exposure to disaster-related stressors and daily stressors, psychological distress (which included posttraumatic stress, depression, and anxiety), and psychosocial distress.  The results of the study indicated that daily stressors significantly mediated relations between war and tsunani-related stressors and psychological and psychosocial distress.  Some of the daily stressors which were not directly related to disaster also predicted functioning.  Therefore, these results seem to point to the need for policies and interventions that focus on reducing proximal daily stressors that are salient to Sri Lankan youth exposed to disasters (Ferando, et., al., 2010).

The above-mentioned research study was really interesting to read and I would recommend it to anyone who would like to learn more about this type of stressors.

References

Fernando, G., Miller, K., & Berger, D. (2010). Growing pains: the impact of disaster-related and daily stressors on the psychological and psychosocial functioning of youth in Sri Lanka. Child Development, 81(4), 1192-1210.

Fiese B, Winter M. The dynamics of family chaos and its relation to children's socioemotional well-being. Chaos and its influence on children's development: An ecological perspective [e-book]. Washington, DC US: American Psychological Association; 2010:49-66. Available from: PsycINFO, Ipswich, MA. Accessed July 23, 2011.