Saturday, October 29, 2011

Professional Hopes and Goals

My hope for all children is to have access to early education programs regardless of their economic circumstance or cultural background.  I would like to see our state and federal programs take more initiative in implementing quality programs and ensuring equal opportunity to those of diverse backgrounds.  Our children are worth the investment. 
From this course I have learned that each child despite their back ground is subject to acts of discrimination and marginalization.  As educators we need to understand the effects that biases and prejudices have on children in order to prevent and combat the occurrence.  Providing examples of prejudice and discrimination of my own experiences throughout this course has resurfaced many childhood memories and feelings.  My goal is to help children who have or are experiencing these acts overcome their challenges.  Also teaching children in early childhood about diversity will help eliminate these hurtful behaviors.
Thank You to each of my colleagues for encouraging me in this course and for being nonjudgmental about the personal information that I shared of myself.  I have greatly enjoyed the lessons learned and look forward to the next course.  

3 comments:

  1. You pointed out that each child is subject to discrimination and this is true. It is the severity of the discrimination that has the biggest impact. Most children can be resilient to some biases, but when they are constantly pelted with marginalization they suffer the consequences. It is up to adults to stop the cycle and promote equity to all.
    I have truly learned from the experiences you have shared and I appreciate your willingness to be so open. Thank you!

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  2. Leone,
    Discrimination comes in all aspects of children and families lives. However, as you have said we have the opportunity in early childhood education to help break those barriers towards discrimination. It is not only cultural issues that affect our children and families but policies and practices as well.

    Thanks for your insights!

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  3. Leone,

    Thank you for all your insights throughout this class. Good luck with your journey of having your own preschool some day. To me it seems you are passionate enough about early childhood education to take on the challenge!

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