When I Think of Research...

First of all, I would like to thank my colleagues for an enlightening eight weeks. I have enjoyed reading your blogs and discussion posts. From them, I have learned to ponder the novel elicited from profound questions, be uplifted by words of encouragement, and gain modern insight from fresh philosophies. Good luck to you all!

This course has taken me above my familiar world as a teacher to a next step of putting my values, beliefs, and philosophies to the test. It feels great to be on the path to formulating my viewpoints into something that can be proven or disproven.

My ideas about doing research have become a little more grounded. At this point, research does not seem so far distance nor unreachable.

The lessons learned are many. Where do I begin? I have learned that there are many decisions to make and that those decisions need to be well thought out and requisite to what we would like to see in the end result of our research. I have become clearer on terms that I have heard but never really understood within their context. I have learned that what I had envisioned for my project in the beginning is not what I now perceive, and I know that those ideas and designs may change as many times as need be to have a meaningful research path. I have learned to be even more flexible than I have ever been.

Beginning challenges were aligned with understanding quantitative, qualitative, mixed method, triangulation, and other important terms and the direction they claim for research. I loved the application part 1 papers, as they supported my understanding and helped me make changes to my simulation study so I could continue on a correct path.

My perceptions about being an early childhood professional have not really changed. I still believe that true professionals are committed to causes that they see as beneficial for children and families. However, I do realize that it takes even more dedication than I ever anticipated; grandiose studying from books, from scholarly articles, and continued listening and pondering from other early childhood professionals.

European Early Childhood Education Reserach Journal

I visited the EECERA (European Early Childhood Education Research Association) site.  I was able to easily navigate and find many and varied research topics.  Back research articles could be viewed via “Full Text” or “PDF Download”. 

A few of the topics I reviewed are listed below:

Balancing between Heritage and Host Languages in Bilingual Kindergarten: Viewpoints of Russian Speaking immigrant parents in Germany and Israel. 

Play, Drawing, and Writing:  A Case Study of Korean – Canadian children

Chinese and German Teacher’s Conceptions of Play and Learning and Children’s Play Behavior

Playing and Learning in Another Language:  Language Revitalisation Programme

Sharing Attention and Activities among Toddlers

All were very interesting.  However, I found one article in their 2011 journal that made reference to children participation in research.  The article was titled Children’s Perspectives and Participation in Research by Deborah Harcourt and Johanna Einarsdottir.  Since this issue deals with a particular area of research I took additional time to fully engage in what it had to say.  The article takes into account settings of children in Sweden, Iceland, Italy, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, and Australia and the outcomes of involving and listening to children during research.  The conclusions showed that social context and primary caregivers and adults are key factors in the lives of children.  Also of importance to the research arena is the fact that children are competent to be part of research projects and that their opinions and understandings are vital to really knowing them as dynamic individuals.

The site outlined some dos and don’ts for getting published, how to get your research read along with other helpful research points.  Also listed were current and past conferences, how to become a member, the history, their “Aims”, and a current link to their partnership with, The Korea Institute of Child Care and Education. 

References

European Early Childhood Education Research Association (EECERA): This international early childhood organization publishes a well respected journal. All back issues are accessible from this site and are fully searchable without charge.http://www.eecera.org/journal/

Harcourt, D. & Einarsdottir, J. (2011). Special Issue: Children's perspectives and participation in reserach. European Early Childhood Education Reserach Journal, 19(3), 301-307. Retrieved from EECERA website, http://www.eecera.org/journal/

An Uplifting Article about the Benefits of Early Head Start for Children and Families

I can still remember the many families that I came to know as a home visitor and family educator for Early Head Start (EHS) prior to 2006. Deep down, I always felt that EHS was a wonderful program that provided many avenues of betterment for families with young children.

Not too long ago, I ran across an article explaining the results of a study on the benefits of EHS. This national study was conducted by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., and Columbia University’s Center for Children and Families in conjunction with Early Head Start Research Consortium. The study clearly showed that EHS had a positive influence on children’s (three-year-olds) cognitive, language, and social emotional development. It was also reported that the parents of those EHS children scored higher than the control group in aspects of home environment, parenting behavior, self-sufficiency, and benefits proved better for EHS fathers.

I am not surprised. I watched many single EHS mothers gain in confidence as they took part in their child’s development. I also believe that part of that improvement came from knowing that someone cared about them and their child and I believe that supporting the relationships between the parent and child is primary factor for such improvement.

I will never forget my years with EHS and I will always be thankful for the opportunity to grow as I strived to lift others.


Reference:

Administration for Children and Families. (2006). Early head start benefits children and families: Early head start research and evaluation project. Retrieved from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/ehs/ehs_resrch/reports/dissemination/research_briefs/research_brief_overall.pdf

My Topic for Simulation: English Language Learners (ELL)

I have spent many years working with ELL children and their families. My years in Head Start and Migrant Head Start became the beginning of my association with children and families whose backgrounds extend beyond the backdoor of America. They embody culture, values, and ideas that are critical in assessing who they are.

I have so often seen children from immigrant families feel the urgings from their parents to lose the “old ways” and become American so they can succeed. Immigrant parents often desire their children to trade their first language with their new second language, English. I am of course, speaking of Latino children.

Having another language other than English should be seen as a blessing. However, most families do not usually see it that way. Just today, I encouraged a student to write a poem for their mother in commemoration of Mother’s Day in Spanish instead of English, because the mother speaks, reads, and writes Spanish only. This particular student was adamant that they were not going to do such a thing. In fact, when I initially instituted learning a daily Spanish word for everyone in the class, my Spanish students seemed a little embarrassed even though the rest of the class were excited. The school year is almost at its end and the previous feelings of embarrassment have gone by the way side and the ELL children seem to feel proud to help the other students learn Spanish.

I continue to work at gaining an understanding of the many barriers these children face, developing an environment that will help them through their learning process, and learning how to recognize and support positive self-images for them. I feel that those points are important in helping such students feel worthwhile and included in their new culture.

Constructing the week one research chart, has helped me to understand the correct path for finding out all that I want to learn about my topic. I think I finally realize that I need to search deeper within the research field. Instead of reading articles that have some correct ideas, I need to direct my search to find qualified information. In order to make noted headway with my ELL students, it is essential to require supported evidence of what works best with those children and their families.

I am open to any suggestions that will help me find my way through this course and put me on the correct route in working with ELL children.

Thanks in advanced to anyone who has great ideas they are willing share!

Consequences of Collaborative Learning

I am so excited to share that I finally received an email reply from a professional whom I contacted. It is not an international contact, but an early childhood educator who spoke via radio on “World Forum”. I cannot begin to explain how I felt when I saw the email. Needless to say, I was surprised to hear from someone since it is at the close of the course. None the less, I am overjoyed. I would like to take just a little time to share what this professional had to say before I address our week eight assignment. The professional who took the time out of her busy schedule to write me was Susan Lyon, Ed.D. She is instrumental in bringing and promoting Reggio Emilia, Italy here in the United States. She spoke of high quality care and education for infant, toddler, and preschool children as a critical issue in the field of early childhood. She further commented that all children should be cared for in places that give them opportunities to thrive, and women should have choices that are all of high quality as they look for care and education for their children. She said that there are many ways to advocate for high quality care an education, but the most “powerful” way she has found is to work with schools both public and private in raising the quality of care by investing in the professional development of teachers. She posed that we should ask ourselves, “Why are we doing what we are doing with children?” There was much more that she elaborated on, but I will suffice the above for getting across her main points. Three Consequences I learned: 1. That there are positives happening globally for children. We can learn much from each other no matter where we reside. 2. Never give up. Someone will eventually contact you. I have not given up on establishing an international contact. 3. Reading and researching about happenings around the world can inspire us to continue our work with children in our own communities. My goal as related to international awareness: 1. I will continue to discover and rediscover positives in the international field of early care and education in hopes that I can one day be as Susan Lyons and bring to pass something like Reggio Emilia, Italy to a small rural Idaho community. Good luck to everyone in reaching their goals.

UNESCO and Cultural Diversity

I am continually interested in and try to keep abreast of issues concerning linguistic and cultural diversity in education.

In visiting the UNESCO website, I was immediately drawn to an article under the tab of Latin America and the Caribbean. Once there I found the following linguistic and cultural diversity facts fascinating:

There is a critical issue of losing languages. Out of 6,000 languages and dialects in the world, there is a threat of losing 50%.

Almost every two weeks, a language vanishes. When languages disappear, cultural and intellectual heritages also leave. Languages are our path to knowledge and they are unique making them an important support for human growth and development.

Linguistic diversity is connected to natural diversity. Together, both promise that there will be future generations to carry on progress.

In the country of Peru the Quechua or Aymara are the dominant languages. However, the schools still use Spanish when teaching students. This presents problems for children as they struggle to learn how to read and communicate.

CARE (National humanitarian organization) has stepped in to aid schools in Peru. They work to create classrooms that have essential materials for learning a second language of Spanish.

They also provided training to teachers helping them to understand intercultural and bilingual education requisite by Peru. They also put together and distribute information and organize workshops directed to local authorities, families, and civil society members educating them on the significance of bilingual education.

Efforts like those listed above give hope for preserving mother languages (UNSECO, 2012).

It is interesting to note that educators in such countries as Peru have to contend with linguistic and cultural issues just as we do here in America.

Reference:

UNESCO. (2012, February 20). Education for sustainable development – preserving linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved from the UNESCO website at http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/resources/online-materials/single-view/news/education_for_sustainable_development_preserving_linguistic_and_cultural_diversity/

Equity and Excellence for ELL Children

In spending time on the NIEER website I found information on the current status of ELL learners in California. In an article by Rebecca Plevin on News Media America’s website titled Limited Preschool Access Dims Success for Latino Children-And California’s Future. It can be found on the following URL:

http://newamericamedia.org/2012/02/poor-preschool-access-dims-success-for-latino-childrenand-californias-future.php

I have spent a good part of my life working with Latino families and continue to embrace connections to that culture today as I work with Latino and ELL learners as an elementary teacher. In California, many young Latino children are not receiving a much needed boost for academic success and yet they make up more than half of all children under the age of five. High quality preschools only see fourteen (14) percent as enrollees. Fresno County has more migrant children than any other part of the state, and they are lucky enough to have a migrant education program that strives to alleviate such a gap by providing high quality one- on-one help through a home visiting program.

In Filer, Idaho, we have an ELL program that provides small group extra help for ELL children. The program begins working with children in kindergarten. Having been a part of that program, I know that it is a good program. However, in working with those students, I can see that such help needs to come well before kindergarten. Being a small rural community, the closest Head Start programs are in towns further away, and I am not sure how accessible it is to the children in my town. My next step is to find out if Head Start in Buhl and Twin Falls serve the children in Filer. Also, are there any Head Start home visiting programs in Filer?

I just love how these articles plant ideas and encourage me to search for avenues of support for children and families in my small world.