“You
can discover more about a person in
an hour of play than in a year of conversation.”
~ Plato (BrainyQuote.com)
~ Plato (BrainyQuote.com)
For this week’s blog assignment
(sadly our last one as a group) we were asked to share our thoughts on
completing our program and on the value of our colleagues’ input and support throughout
our journey. We also were asked to post
at least three deeply felt learnings from our chosen program; one long-term
goal; and a farewell message to our instructor and colleagues.
I chose the specialty of Early
Childhood Education Public Policy and Advocacy as it fits into my life and
goals so completely. One thing I learned
was a new respect for what a community can do once they partner up with each
other with like minds. I also learned
how to form a successful community of practice.
This information is and will continue to be a great tool as I continue
to work towards my goals.
I also learned a new respect for
the importance of knowing the historical context and of doing research before
trying to advocate. I have always loved
to do research but I found an even greater view of its importance during the
last twenty-months. Understanding the
history of our chosen issues is extremely important. This insight to the past allows us the
insight of why we are the way we are.
Also, knowing the history of issues also allows us to learn from past
mistakes which in turn allow us to make improvements which may work much better
in solving specific issues.
Third, as I reflect back, as a
licensed child care educator since June, 1990, I have seen many changes in both
the licensing standards and regulations as well as what is expected of the
child care field professionally. I have
also learned how important it is to view situations from a variety of
viewpoints as well as being a neutral third-party when it is needed. It is very important to keep our minds open
in order to learn a greater variety of tools which can be used personally,
professionally, and in a local context (Lemire, December, 2011).
When
suggesting policy changes as well as introducing a new curriculum into an early
childhood educational program and/or a set of ideas into the lives of the
children educator’s serve, it is important to be aware of the intended as well
as the unintended consequences these changes may bring (Lemire, December, 2011). In order to accomplish this awareness it is
important to look at the issues and trends from a variety of awareness
viewpoints. By doing this, we as
educators, will see how our decisions may affect us personally, professionally,
and locally (Lemire, December, 2011).
Further understanding of tools such
as awareness viewpoints are beneficial in many situations including, but not
limited to, situations working with families, when conducting research, and
when advocating. Becoming aware of
factors such as the importance of respecting that each student and their family
have a culture that is to be valued and affirmed; allowing students and
families to fully participate in the educational process – keep communication
open in both directions; reflection periodically on our own definition of
diversity and educating ourselves in any areas in which we, as educators, need
more information in, are also very important (Salend, 2008 & Lemire,
December, 2011).
The issue related to the field of
early childhood education which I am interested in influencing is advocating
for play to be part of a well-rounded curriculum in a high-quality educational
setting. As a licensed home child care
provider for the past twenty-three years, as well as a foster parent for the
state of Massachusetts, I have seen too many children who have never been
allowed to just be children. These
children, for the most part, have missed out on a terrific developmental
opportunity which may never be regained due to no fault of their own.
In an educational world full of regimentation, memorization,
worksheets, closed ended projects and a variety of standardized testing, when
did we lose focus in regards to the importance of play in a child’s
development? In order to positively
impact early childhood education, children and their families by advocating for
play to be recognized as a vital part of a well-rounded curriculum in a
high-quality educational setting, I will:
1. Continue to
run an affordable, high-quality educational child care program from my
state-licensed home child care.
2. Form a
community of practice which will focus on mentoring other educators on the importance of play in early childhood
development and learning (i.e. workshops, create educational materials,
personally speak to other educators).
3. Bring
the importance of play in regards to a child’s development to the attention of
policy makers (i.e. those who are developing the curriculum regulations for
early childhood educators).
As
stated above, in an educational world full of regimentation, memorization,
worksheets, closed ended projects and a variety of standardized testing, when
did we lose focus in regards to the importance of play in a child’s
development? With these thoughts in
mind, my chosen challenge is mentoring and advocating for play to be part of a
well-rounded curriculum in a high-quality educational setting. This would be my first step in changing
regulations in my state which effect children and their development. I believe in beginning small and then working
up to my ultimate goal in the distant future which is seeing universal
standards put in place for all early child hood educational programs state to
state. I believe each child regardless
of their race, socio-economic level, religion and abilities. In order to
accomplish this goal, I believe it will have to be accomplished one regulation
change at a time. This is a doable goal
but it will take time and a lot of effort from many individuals to see it
through.
It
is hard to believe that we are at the end of this particular educational
journey. I am so happy but saddened at
the same time. I am happy that I have reached
my goal of earning my second Master of Science.
I am saddened because I will be saying good bye to all of you whom I
have worked with over this past twenty months.
I wish each and every one of you (students and instructors alike) all
the best in your future advocacy goals.
I know each of you are great advocates and will continue to grow as you
face more challenges with your chosen future goals. If anyone would like to keep in touch I am on
Facebook. Just look for Robin Lemire and
some sort of Winnie-the-Pooh photo and you will find me. So I end this post with my heartfelt thanks
for all the shared wisdom; opinions; praise; and helpful comments over the last
twenty weeks. I think we all made a
great community partnership in our own way and I wish everyone the best!
References
Lemire, R. A.
(2011, December 25). Issues and trends in the early childhood field
[Major assessment ePortfolio]. North
Oxford, Massachusetts.
Salend, S. J. (2008). Creating inclusive classrooms:
effective and reflective practices. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Merrill
Prentice Hall.
