Reflecting on Learning

• An explanation of your most passionate hope for your future as an early childhood professional and for the children and families with whom you work or will work.     

Having a child of my own started me on the path to pursuing a degree in early childhood education.  It was difficult for me to place my child in the care of strangers, when he first began daycare.  I ended up making bonds with the teachers and director of the program he attended.  This was amazing to me because I never imagined that the experience would result in a rich outcome of sharing my child’s growth with others.  Unfortunately this center closed after his first two years.  I then began thinking of the positive experiences that I had; which led my passion to create an environment where I can give those experiences back to families in my community, as I had received.  My most passionate hope as an early childhood professional is to provide a welcoming environment to all children and families where children can grow, learn, develop positive self-identities, and respect for others. 

• A brief note of thanks to your colleagues.

I would like to say to all of my colleagues that I have greatly enjoyed this experience.  Even though we have not met in person I have gotten to know you all through our communication and appreciate your comments and feedback.  I would like to wish everyone the best and thank you for all of your professional expertise.

Impacts on Early Emotional Development

• Share with your colleagues the area of the world you chose and why.

I chose to take a closer look at the areas of East Asia and Pacific.  I chose this because I wanted to explore an area that I do not know much about.  Even though I am unfamiliar with this region, I have many acquaintances through my professional experiences that are native to this area, which makes researching it even more interesting. 

• Describe in detail some of the challenges that children in this region of the world are confronting.

Based on what I researched, many of the challenges that children in this region face are of results of poverty.  Although challenges related to poverty exist, this region has seen much economic growth in the past decade (UNICEF, 2011).   The main focus is based on child survival.  A large portion of the populations in this region are affected by inadequate healthcare, education, and protection services.  Two health related challenges that effect children are pneumonia and diarrhea.  These illnesses are easily treatable but commonly take the lives of children in this region.  There is great emphasis placed on pre natal care since growth and development begins in the womb.  Also there is focus on making health care systems more efficient in delivering services to women and children. 

Education and gender equality are important focuses of improvement as well.  In the Asia and Pacific region, an estimated 239 million adolescents have either dropped out of school or are not learning adequately because of partial attendance(UNICEF, 2011).  Gender equality is addressed through advocacy, public awareness campaigns and the development and dissemination of good practices in gender equality.

• Explain how these experiences might have an effect on children’s emotional wellbeing and development.

Having inadequate nutrition, healthcare, education, and public services can hinder children’s development in many ways.  It can cause problems to a child’s physical health as well as emotional and mental development.  Not having access to these services early can lessen a child’s life span and limit future success.   

• Include a personal and professional reflection. Explain the insights you gained and the influences they may have on you as a person and as an early childhood professional.

After learning more about the challenges that children face in this region I began to appreciate the resources that we are fortunate to have access to in our local communities.   The challenges that are faced in this region of lack of health care are astonishing.  I often complain of our healthcare system and the cost of services.  However, I do not have to worry of losing my child to illnesses such as diarrhea or pneumonia.  That information hit home for me.  I am also grateful to have the opportunity to become a part of an educational system that is nurturing to children’s development and does not discriminate based on gender.

UNICEF (2011). Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/index.html

The Sexualization of Early Childhood

One thing I have always thought makes children so special is their innocence. Unfortunately today, this is exactly what is being stripped from children at early ages. There are new innovative technology devices that create easy access to social media, and celebrity sensations. Our children are exposed to these images through aspects of song, Internet, television, through cell phones, and magazines. Most of these media images perpetuate the societal importance of looks, body image, and sex.

Sexualization has to do with treating other people (and sometimes oneself) as “objects of sexual (Levin,& Kilbourne, 2009). When thinking about sexualization of children, what initially came to my mind was children's beauty pageants. When I was young my mother entered me in to a beauty pageant. She wanted me to gain confidence and come out of my shell a bit, as I was a shy child. My experience of participating in the pageant was quite different than what I see of young girls today. I was watching the television show “Toddlers in Tierras” and felt disbelief of the the activity that was going on. These children as young as 3yrs were made up to appear like adult women. I also did dot like the emphasis that was placed on the looks of the children and their body image in swim suits. I feel this is prime example of placing the emphasis of appearance before a persons character.
The second example that disturbed me pertaining to child sexualization came from my son. My four year old asked me “mommy when am I going to have a naked party”. I immediately began to question him about where that idea came from, and had anyone spoken to him about that before. It turns out that a young girl in his pre-school wanted to have a sleepover, and she told him they can have a naked party. I'm not sure where these thoughts originated from in her environment, but I did bring this up to the teachers and director of the program. They informed me that they would be certain to address this with the young girl and her family.
The third example of childhood sexualization involves my friend's son who is 12. I overheard him comment one day that girls are supposed to have big boobs, not little ones. He was talking to his friend who was visiting. His mom corrected him immediately and discussed this with him and his friend. At this time I just thought he was coming of age where he is interested in girls. I didn't think about the previously formed perceptions of women in his mind.
I believe that if we do not discuss these topics with our children they will associate sexualization with the meaning of love or relationships. In order to tech our children, both boys and girls, to respect each other and themselves we must openly communicate about these topics. It is inevitable that at some point our children will be exposed to sexualized behavior or images. If we keep the lines of communication open to our children and tech them the importance of caring and friendship over looks and sex, we can teach them important lessons about relationships.

I found it helpful to read the excerpt on sexualized childhood. Being that I do not currently work in the education system, I was stunned at the prevalence of this problem occurring at such early ages. I will be more mindful of this topic in the future. I feel that it has become so acceptable to experience images of sexuality in our media, that sometimes we forget that children are watching as well.

Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized  childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1–8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf