Professional Hopes and Goals

When thinking about parents and families that come from diverse backgrounds, my greatest hope as an educator, is that I provide an environemtn where both the student and parents feel welcomed, respected and valued.  I think it's safe to say that any person would want that in any situation.  However, i feel for a child to learn, this needs to be in place and a well-function relationship with the parents is a must.

If I could set a diversity-related goal for early childhood education, it would be that all undergraduate students should be required to take a course like this.  While it's great that I have learned all of this great information now, it would have been very useful when I was just beginning to teach.  All of the lessons we learned are vital and all educators should come equipped with these lessons before they ever enter a classroom.

I would like to thank all of my colleagues that have made the journey through this course with me.  I rather liked being placed in small groups for discussions and blogging.  I felt like I had a trusted group that I could share information with and gain new ideas.  I wish you all much success in the future...and enjoy the next two weeks with no assignments!!

Welcoming Families From Around the World

My town of Wapakoneta has a sister city in Lengerich, Germany. This has inspired me for this week's assignment.



My new student's name is Gretel.  Her family has just moved her from Lengerich, Germany as her father has taken an automotive engineer's job at the local Ford Engine Plant.  In preparation for Gretel's arrival, I have several adaptations to make.

1. I will conduct a home visit with Gretel and her parents.  Being able to interact with them one on one in their home, where they feel comfortable, will help give me some background knowledge on Gretel and I will see firsthand her family life.

2. I will research common words in German and teach those to my students prior to Gretel's arrival. Although Gretel's family is bilingual, I feel that hearing her native language will help her feel more at ease. Having at least a basic knowledge of the German language will help both me and my students communicate with her.

3. I will invite her parents to share their customs and family life from Germany with our class.  I would especially like for them to do a presentation at Christmas time to show the students how many of our Christmas traditions were started from where Gretel came.

4.  I would like to have a German food party.  I would ask Gretel what her favorite German foods are and have a sampling of these foods for the class.  I feel that food is such an important part of most cultures.  

5. I would also do background research to see what child development standards are in place in Germany. Gretel could be ahead or behind what we have already learned.  I want to be sure to ease her transition and not frustrate her.

In all, my goal is to provide a welcoming and non-threatening environment for both Gretel and her parents. I want them to feel that I respect and welcome them and their culture.  By doing this, we can work together to provide Gretel with a positive school experience.

Reference: http://www.everyculture.com/Ge-It/Germany.html

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? Keep in mind that one can encounter such incidents in real contexts, including online environments, as well as in fictional ones, such as movies, books, television shows, and the like.

The incident I would like to describe actually happened today.  I live in a small town that is very predominately Caucasian.  While I was at our local swimming pool, I witnessed an incident that I did not appriove of.  We have two large slides at our pool.  Both slides empty into the same square area of the pool.  The rules of the pool state that you need to swim to the left when coming off the left slide and swim to the right when coming off the right-hand slide.  This is the rule so that swimmers don't cross in front of the path of someone coming off of a slide as it could be dangerous.  However, many children do not remember this and if they are new to the pool, they probably don't realize this as it is not posted anywhere.

I was sitting on the edge of the pool watching my daughter and a friend go down the slides. I had been sitting there quite a while watching children run and make the smae mistake at the slides and usually the guard would just slightly blow their whistle and direct them the correct way.  Well, today, I noticed a little African American girl come off of the left-hand slide and cross in front of the other slide.  My daughter and i visit the pool quite frequently and we have never seen this little girl before.  She, more than likely, didn't know where she was supposed to exit.  What happened next, really upset me.  I watched our pool manager blow her whistle in a very loud, almost angry way at this little girl.  As the little girl exited the pool, the manager got in her face and was very loud and gruff with theis little girl, telling her where she should have exited. The little girl, obviously stunned, just stared at her. So then, the pool manager completely outstepped her boundaries and said, "Do you understand me?" and continued to stay right in the girl's face and repeated that three times until the little girl ran away.  Then, she proceeded to yell at her for running.  Besides being angry over a child being corrected in such a horrible and inappropriate way, I was upset over this little girl being singled out.  Why didn't any of the other children get admonished in that way?

In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

This incident diminished equity in the way that all of the children need to abide by the rules.  However, when i say all of the children, that means no matter what their skin color is.  I felt that this little girl stood out in the crowd due to her skin color and she was easily a target. 

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

This incident brought up quite a bit of emotions for me.  First, I was angry, just to see a child get yelled at in such a way.  I was mad over the fact that this child was singled out.  I felt protective over her and I wanted to (and should have) come between the pool manager and this little girl. I also felt embarrassed.  Is our town so backward that we pick on people for the color of their skin.  Seriously, I had a hard time believing what I had witnessed.

What and/or who would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

I'm not sure if there is anything that will change the pool manager's personal biases.  However, i will be calling the head pool manager about this.  Hopefully the manager will talk to this woman about the situation.  What I want to stress to him is that I understand that what the child did was unsafe.  However, I believe that the child was not doing anything more than any other child was doing.  They need to post the rule and unless they see a child willfully disobeying the rule, then there is no need to call any child out in that way.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

This week we have been asked to observe microaggresions around us or think back to a time when we have observed microaggresions. 

I have chosen to write about a microaggression from the past that I have observed.  Being that it is summer and we are remodeling out home,  I haven't been out and about with many people the past few weeks.

Last summer, my family and I visited Disney World for the first time.  Something that was made quite clear to us was that being an English-speaking American there put us in the minority, probably for the first time in our lives.  When we were in line, everyone around us either was speaking a different language or had a foreign accent.  I have to admit that at first, it was a little bit of a shocking feeling.  Never had I been in my own country and felt like the minority.  In hindsight, it was good that I was able to experience what this felt like.

One thing that became apparent were was that since we were there in July, it was a heavy season for tourist groups.  There were many groups from South America.  They traveled around the parks in groups pf 20 or more.  They were quite vocal, would sing out loud in line and quite often would walk right in front of a picture or cut in line with no regard to others.  I have to admit, that after several days of this, my husband and I became quite annoyed.  There was obviously a difference in culture going on.  However, at the tale end of our trip, we encountered the same type of tourist group, although this group seemed to be of Asian decent.  They were quiet in line and didn't push or shove.  My husband made, at the time, what seemed like a compliment.  he said "Look how wonderfully they are acting considering they are tourists."  I went right along with his comment, nodding my head in agreement.  What he was saying was intended to be a compliment towards that group.  However, it ended up being much like Susan's comment in our discussion assignment.  It is obvious that the two groups of tourist s were from different cultures.  We had just deemed the other group as "rude". 

Knowing what I know now, I can see how this was a microaggresion.  We needed not forget that we were tourists there too.  I'm sure many Americans visit foreign places and our culture clashes with theirs.  I believe I understand now to be mindful that just because someone's behaviors our different than ours, that it doesn't necessarily translate into rude behaviors. These unintentional types of comments can be quite hurtful, especially when a person has to hear them again and again over time.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

Definitions of Diversity and Culture:

 Ben, age 37, married, no children, nursing student, agnostic:

 Diversity "Being willing to accept and respect other's cultures and beliefs that are not like your own."

Culture: "The expression of one's learned behavior as it pertains to social or ethnic group."

 Terri Lynn , age 50, in a domestic partnership, clothing and jewelry designer, Buddist:

Diversity: "My definition of diversity is inclusion. A variety of opinions, backgrounds, cultures and skin colors. Being exposed to people different than ourselves enhances our lives and learning."

Culture: "My definition of culture is the customs and beliefs of a people. How they live in their daily lives, how they dress and what they eat. And again, being exposed to different cultures enhances our lives and learning."

Sarah, age 35, married, mother of three boys, Christian:

Diversity: "Differences between an otherwise similar group of objects or people."

Culture: "The accepted norms, standards and way of life of a group of people."

Which aspects of culture and diversity that I have studied in this course are included in the answers I received—and what are some examples?

I noticed that the anwsers I received about diversity definitions included more than just accepting someone's ethnic group or race. Terri also made mention of their opinions and that being exposed to other cultures enhances our lives.

Which aspects have been omitted—and what are some examples of such omission?

I did not see anything mentioned about cultures changing or any opinions about what it is like to not be from the dominant culture.  I noticed the ansers were geared more toward the "acceptance of others".  Terri probably came the closest to including more of what we have learned, but from reading the information I gave on her, it is easy to see that she is not a part of the dominant culture and that may be why.

In what ways has thinking about other people’s definitions of culture and diversity influenced my own thinking about these topics?

One thing that stuck out to me was that Ben and Sarah had to really think about what diversity and culture meant to them.  However, for Terri, who is predominantly not from the dominant culture, the answers came more thouroughly and with less hesitation.  I am noticing now, how little about diversity I really knew before this class.  If you would have asked my definition of diversity, I would have mentioned including all races and cultures.  My cultural definition would have been what people are raised to celebrate or their religion.  I am now fully aware that these definitions are off-track.  I am glad that each week I am discovering that there is a lot more involved in being diverse and culturally aware.

My Family Culture

Having to evacuate to a new country with a totally different culture would be quite scary.  If I had to immediately choose three items, I know what I would bring.  First, I would bring a photo album.  I would probably bring the most current one I have.  My family, friends and my memories of them are so very precious to me.  Next, I would bring my Betty Crocker cookbook.  My mother gave it to me when I left home.  She had one just like it that her mother gave her when she moved away as well.  I feel that food and the sharing of it are a big part of my culture. Finally, I would bring my miniature Christmas tree.  Christmas is a very important holiday to me and reminds me so much of family and my special memories and traditions we share.

Now, if I was told upon arrival that I could only keep one, I would keep my photo album.  In those photos I could see those I love and remember all of the special times we've shared.  I would be very upset to have lost the other two items as they are special to me as well.  However, memories about gathering together and sharing good food would still be alive in the pictures I was able to keep.

After reading over what I would pick to keep, it becomes apparent to me how dear i hold family and the special times we share in my culture.  The times when my family gathers together are some of the most precious memories I have.  Not to mention that there is always an abundance of food involved!  I hadn't really made the connection that those items that I hold dear are such an important part of my culture.

When I Think of research...

Initially, when I thought of research, the whole idea of it frightened me.  This class was actually giving me anxiety problems.  However, I now feel much more confident with my knowledge of what research entails and being able to understand research when I read it or should I conduct it myself.


I've learned that research doesn't have to be scary.  I really thought it was quite smart how the steps involved were broken down for us and then in the end, we were able to fit the pieces of the puzzle together to see research as a whole.


I've learned a lot about research in terms of the planning and the timeline of the research.  I hadn't thought before about the time involved in something as simple as conducting an interview.  My attention was also brought to the fact that validity in research is paramount.  Without validity, the study can be a waste.  


There were a few bumps in the road when learning about research for me.  At times, I didn't always understand the text. At first, I would become frustrated, but then i learned to just re-read it again (and sometimes 3 times) until I understood. Next, I also had to learn to be very concise in my statements, especially in my hypothesis.  I learned that this needs to be very narrowed.


In total, I have much more respect for the all of the early childhood professionals that have done research.  I have had to read over many research articles since I started my courses with Walden University.  However, I can say I have a new appreciation and understanding for all the work and preparation that went behind all of the research that in turn we use to make us better educators.