Favorite quotes

They (children) may not remember what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel. -Dr. Moorehead Professor of Educational Psychology

Educational Testing

I believe that children should be assessed by their mental capacity-IQ testing and their mental state (emotional testing). If you are able to see where a child is at in mental capacity you can determine what they are capable of.  If they have a low IQ or mental capacity then the school system needs to provide a curriculum or job training reflective of that.  If there is an emotional issue such as RAD-reactive attachment disorder, schizophrenia, etc., then these issues need to be addressed.  I realize this is not the system that will meet every child’s need or will find every child but it is a start.

In reading about the education of special needs children in Africa, I was unable to find much in the way of testing.  Most special needs children are hidden and do not attend school.  The social stigma of having a child with special needs is devastating to the family.

There are very few schools that are capable of taking special needs children mostly due to the lack of funding.  Many teachers are not trained to work with children who need modifications.  There is a push on to better serve students with special needs. 

http://www.education.gov.za/Programmes/EarlyChildhoodDevelopment/tabid/437/Default.aspx

http://www.info.gov.za/whitepapers/2001/educ6.pdf

Poverty

Poverty- is living with a lack of resources financially, medically, etc.   Living without enough food, clothing, appropriate shelter, or security is devastating to a family.  If as a child you have known nothing else it may be easier to deal with but I doubt that.  As a teacher I have had the unfortunate experience to watch families struggle with this.  The parents would go without food for a day or so just so their children could have something to keep the hunger pains away for a little while longer.  As a school we provided food backpacks to go home with the students on weekends that had snacks and some basic supplies to help get them through the weekend.  Most parents appreciated the offer; one particular family demanded that it come home more often.  We even offered our time and abilities to help parents fill out welfare forms (some parents could not read or write), apply for insurance, or other resources that we knew might help.  The families took advantage of the meals provided at school to help feed their children.  There were still the families that would not let us help them.  I understand the issue of pride and the feeling of embarrassment.  The devastating feeling that you are unable to support your family on your own is one that can send you into a depression that can make things worse.  The families that I was fortunate to be able to help were grateful and worked very hard at keeping the children from knowing what dire situations they were in.  They loved their children more than many families who had everything they needed.  Unfortunately I had the displeasure of working with families who did not work hard to get out of the situation but expected the school, church, and others to support them.  They encouraged the children to beg for handouts and did not use the money they did have wisely. 

Living in poverty can cause a wide range of medical and psychological problems.  Living without clean water to drink or wash in does not help keep an individual healthy.  Germs and bacteria flourish in this environment.  Depression can set in and cause and individual to give up.

The stressors that are a part of the daily life of a child in Africa due to poverty are hunger, lack of health care, lack of education, and improper sanitation.  BUT change has begun.  It may be slow but it is in motion. Organizations such as African Union, donor nations, and NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa’s Development) have made some great progress. In Kenya they have started free primary education which has allowed 1.2 million children into school.  Tanzania has built 1000 new schools and has recruited 18,000 teachers.  Also there is a movement to provide basic health care for free where the countries choose (Fighting Poverty).   

Resources:

Fighting Poverty-What is being done to help Africa.  Retrieved from http://www.fightpoverty.mmbrico.com/facts/africa.html

Clean water in Africa

Clean water in Africa

We are put out when we get the notice that our water will be shut off for a couple of hours or if the water smells a little “funny”.  We complain that we can only drink “mountain spring water” or bottled water because of the imperfections.  But what would we say if out water was brown instead of clear?  What if you had to carry your water over ten miles to get it back home?  Clean water is something that we take for granite.  We don’t have to carry water in pots on our head.  We are able to go to the sink and get a drink of water.  It may have a taste that we are not fond of but it will not make you violently ill. In Africa people’s health is put into jeopardy by drinking what water they do have access to.  They don’t have an abundance of clean water.  In Kenya young girls spend their days carrying water to their homes from water sources far away.  They are not able to attend school because of this.  Schools are not able to provide education because they don’t have clean water to support students and staff.  Children cannot attend school in some cases because they are at home managing the household due to illnesses of the parents.  The parents are sick from the unclean water they have ingested.  With such basic needs not being met education is not at the top of the list.   Un-developed areas of the world remain in poverty because of unclean water.  If you are sick from drinking unclean water you are unable to work.  Without clean water poverty is a fact of life.

The topic of clean water my not affect my teaching in the big city areas, but if I decide to teach on the reservation near my family it may.  Some families living on the reservations do not have running water or sanitation in their homes.  The topic of clean water does help me understand how devastating an earthquake or other natural disaster can be.  Without clean water public health can be put into jeopardy. 

What clean water would mean-

HIV/AIDS might be manageable with access to clean water.

Infant mortality rates have dropped by 50% where parents are able to have access to clean water.

With clean water people can grow food, build proper housing, stay healthy, and get to school or work.

Resources:

http://thewaterproject.org/poverty.asp#ixzz1GLxCTDP3The water project

Birth Experience

The birth experience I chose was the birth of my son.  This is the only birth I have had experience with that I remember.  He was an unexpected C-section birth.  After many hours of labor and the epidural wearing off, he was stuck.  I decided to go ahead with the C-section and another epidural.  He came out and had an Apgar score of 8.  We did not find out the sex of our child till they delivered him and the nurse said “Well Dad, tell her what we got!”  It was at that moment I knew that my suspicions were right, that we were going to have a beautiful baby boy.

I would like to believe that the birth experience has little to no impact on a child, but I know that I am wrong.  The birth experience has a huge impact on the development of the child, especially if the birth was a traumatic one.  Medical attention needed, the stress level of the mother, the alignment of the stars all have an impact on the development in later life. 

The region I chose to research was a birth center in Rid De Janeiro Brazil.  They use birthing centers to provide a more social event than a medical event.  They want to provide a more home like birth than a sterile birth.  The medical community is not as excited about this as the community.  Some of the centers are being closed due to lack of sterility in the setting and lack of medical equipment.  The centers are run with nursing assistants, social workers, and nutritionists.  The centers provide many services to the community such as classes and prenatal checkups.  The centers do only accept women who are in good health and little risk of complications.   The advantages of giving birth at the center is that your family is with you, you are allowed to get up and move around, give birth in any position you want, and can eat what you want.  You are not separated from family or restricted to a hospital bed and monitors.  The argument against the center is that if complications do arise medical intervention is 20-30 minute ambulance ride away.

I do like the theory behind the centers, have a natural experience for birth.  The experience does sound simple and more relaxed.  My experience was a combination of both worlds.  I was able to have my family near and could get up and move around as I pleased until the epidural.  I was not strapped down to the bed until the C-section began.  I had the sterility of a hospital and medical intervention just seconds away. 

Resources:

Frayssinet, Fabiana. (2011, March) Birth Centres vs. Hospitals. Health Brazil.  Retrieved from http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47318

Code of Ethics

Codes of ethics are written for a reason.  They are there to guide professional educations to do the best for children, families and each other to make sure they are safe and protected, and maintain high standards.  In looking at the codes it was hard to pick three that really resonated with me.  They are all important but the three I choose were:

Section III Ethical Responsibilities to Colleagues

I-3A.1-To establish and maintain relationships of respect, trust, confidentiality, collaboration, and cooperation with co-workers.

            Having a trusting and well working relationship with your colleagues is one of the most important issues. If you don’t have trust with each other it is hard to keep your mind on the children.  You are all there for one reason, the care and education of children.   This code is about basic respect for each other, something we are to be teaching to the children.  One should not be taking confidential materials and discussing them with individuals not authorized, this will dismiss any trust or respect anyone has for you.

Section IV Ethical Responsibilities to Community and Society

P-4.1-We shall communicate openly and truthfully about the nature and extent of services that we provide.

            Being open and honest with families which services we do provide onsite or are capable of providing is very important.  I would never want to mislead a parent in any situation even if this means the child must go to another facility.  I want what is best for the child and if another center can provide that, then they should attend there.

P-4.13 When a child protection agency fails to provide adequate protection for abused or neglected children; we acknowledge a collective ethical responsibility to work toward the improvement of these services.

            Child protection services are very dear to me.  I have seen to many cases where children were severely mistreated by family members or neighbors.  The children cry out to you and the pain of knowing there is little you can do legally is heartbreaking.  If an agency fails in this area it is our duty to fight the system that is preventing the CPS from doing theirs.

DEC Code of Ethics

II. Professional Development and Preparation-1. We shall engage in ongoing and systematic reflective inquiry and self-assessment for the purpose of continuous improvement of professional performance and services to young children with disabilities and their families.

            Self-reflection is never easy for anyone but it is a must to maintain growth in one’s professional life.  Teachers and caregivers need to self-reflect on their performance as a teacher and the services that are being provided.  One must look at their programs and objectively determine if they are effective to the children they are servicing.  If the programs are not meeting standards then determine what needs to be changed.

4. We shall support professional new to the field by mentoring them in the practice of evidence and ethically based services.

            All professionals need a strong support system.  New professionals need a system that is knowledgeable and ethical.  It is our job to help these new professionals learn the system and guide them in their journey to educating and loving children.  As a new teacher I did not have a strong support system set up for me and it was very difficult to find my fit in the system.  I have always remember this and am determined that other teachers should not have to experience this if I can help it.

III. Responsive Family Centered Practices

6. We shall respect families’ rights to choose of refuse early childhood special education or related services.

            As teachers we sometimes believe that we know what is best for the child.  This code I believe is made just for us.  Families do have the right determine what is best for their child and family.  Their choice may even go against what we feel is right.  We have to put ourselves in their shoes and think how we would feel if someone was pushing us to do something we did not feel right about.

Mantra

 “Play is as basic and as pervasive a natural phenomenon as sleep.(Valley, 2010)”