The Positive Effects of Research on Children and Families

I do not have an uplifting story to share regarding the research that benefits children and families, but I do believe that there are research studies that benefit families in many ways.  Research can bring about positive impacts and outcomes such as, improving parenting skills, poverty, and education.

Final Post

The consequences of learning about the international early childhood field: I have a broader view as to how other countries handle the issues and politics of the early childhood field.  In addition, I have learned to collaborate with other international early childhood professionals by sharing information regarding the issues and trends of early care.  Furthermore, I have a newfound wealth of international website available for me to foster my professional and personal development.

My one goal as it relates to international awareness of issues and trends of the field; is to keep and build on the spirit of collegial relations, by utilizing the international resources, websites, and communicating with my international with contacts.

Getting To Know My International Contacts Part 3

The Issues of Quality and Professional Growth: Holistic (Sustainable Development)

After exploring the website UNESCO”s “Early Childhood Care and Education website, I explored the link that discussed the issues of quality.  The article used the term “holistic development” This subject/issue is what I am most interested in exploring “the development of the whole person, learning from the environment.  The article’s information regarding “Quality” states to have quality childcare, “Early childhood care and programs should focus mainly on the holistic development of the whole child and continue throughout the child school years”.  In addition, more so the focus should be on the children from disadvantage backgrounds.  A positive holistic development promotes all of the developmental domains for school readiness.  After exploring more, I studied information concerning the holistic development of children living in Bangkok.  The article focused on educating teachers of Bangkok on the concept of sustainable development.  The ideal of a holistic sustainable development originated from the worldview that our behaviors have a lot to do with actions and response to one another; recognizing one’s self, wishes, and desires. Furthermore, in order for teachers to foster sustainable development in children they must teach children self-learning, self-awareness, and concerns of being part of Mother Earth.

Getting to Know your International Contacts Part 2

The article that I explored from “The Global Children’s Initiative” website titled “Zambian Early Childhood Initiative Project” is what I would like to share; because it gave me new insight and about Zambian, early childhood system.  The Zambian Project (ZECDP) was a collaborative effort to measure the effects of a ongoing anti-malaria initiative measured the development of Zambian children. The article spoke little about the “Anti-Malaria Initiative (campaign)”. To mark the full effect of the anti-malaria iniiative, the ZECDP created a tool for assessing children’s physical, socio-emotional, and cognitive development before and throughout their educational years; this was the first assessment tool in Zambia.  Zambian Child Assessment Test (ZamCAT) used  combination of child development measures with current developed assessment tools in order to provide a clear assessment of preschool children in Zambian. Although there has been countless studies, research, and data that investigates the impact of early childhood experiences in developing countries; there is practically no evidence available regarding the development, health, and educational outcomes on early childhood in Sub-Saharan Africa.  There were 1,686 children born in 2004 assessed between July and December 2010 with successful follow-up.  In 2011, another successful follow-up occurred with 1,250 of those children, follow-up scheduled for June-August 2012.  The beginning stages of this project demonstrate that comprehensive child assessments are possible within standard population-based household surveys”.

Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2010). Global children's initiative.            Retrieved from http://developingchild.harvard.edu/index.php/activities/global_initiative/

Sharing Web Resources

 World Organization for Early Childhood Education (OMEP-USNC)

This website gave specific information regards to my current professional development, were as I am learning and studying about poverty, investing, and supporting children, families, and the Early Childhood Field.  The OMEP-USA website is part of an international, non-profit, non-governmental organization whose members are in over sixty countries.  Their members include, teachers, parents, lawyers, grandparents, policymakers, researchers, social workers, and students.  The goal of the OMEP-USA is to ensure the well-being, rights, and education of children ages 0-8, here in the United States and abroad.  There is specific section on the website called “events and activities” where you can find information regarding international meeting, relief funds, and projects.  This website gives one hope for the effort in trying to sure the world of poverty.

Childhood Poverty In Japan

I have not yet received a reply from my international colleagues or podcast.  Therefore, I will share information regarding childhood poverty in Japan, from the website: http://www.childhoodpoverty.org/.  After studying this website, I have learned that although there was a decline in poverty in the 1990’s there is still a high increase in, low life expectancy, a large number of the population over the age 15 cannot read, and healthcare is poor.  This is because of a family’s economic status.  The insight that I have gained regarding this website; is that China is struggling to ensure that their children receive a safe and nurturing childhood, as with other struggling countries in this world.  I wonder if child poverty will ever be cured in one’s lifetime.  L

Getting Ready—E stablishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

This blog assisgnment has been somewhat intriguing, I have emailed a couple of Professional, one from Singapore and one from Spain. I have not yet got a reply from these professional. I am interested in communicating with these professional about their roles as early childhood professionals.

Quotes About Children

Quote By Lelicia Lara:

“My passion has been evolving throughout the years, it’s an ongoing process.  It is like a ripple effect when you throw a small rock in the center of water the ripples keep growing and growing".

A Quote from Louise Derman Sparks:

“I wanted to fits all the injustice's in the world and I wanted to do it though kids".

T. Berry Brazelton:

"Parents don" make mistakes because they don't care, but because they care so deepy".

Stanley Greenspan: "As your baby progresses from one milestone to the next, remember that he

doesn't really leave any of them behind. In order to grow and develop to his full potential he must continually build on and strengthen all of the steps that have gone before".

School-age children assessed in other parts of the world: Steiner Schools

       I had a difficult time researching how school age children are assessed in other parts of the world.  I did find information about Rudolf Steiner & Steiner Schools; which are in all parts of the world.  “What is Steiner education?  Steiner education: Works for all children irrespective of academic ability, class, ethnicity or religion; A Steiner education takes account of the needs of the whole child – academic, physical, emotional and spiritual. It is based on an understanding of the relevance of the different phases of child development. Steiner students develop a love of learning and an enthusiasm for school sees artistic activity and the development of the imagination as integral to learning.

        Steiner schools have been tried and tested and is part of state funded, mainstream provision in most European countries.  Steiner school are  respected worldwide for its ability to produce very able young people who have a strong sense of self and diverse capacities that enable them to become socially and economically responsible citizens.  How Steiner schools assess pupils?  Continuous assessment is integral to the teaching method.  This works well in a system whereby one teacher remains with the same group of children over a period of years.  This allows the teacher to get to know each pupil extremely well and reduces the dependency on performance data from tests to get a snapshot of pupils’ progress in learning. 

       In principle, Steiner Schools avoid setting pupils against each other in a competitive sense.  They do acknowledge that children enjoy challenges and do set  challenges; but these challenges do not necessarily have to take the form of testing. The schools priority is to develop a wide spectrum of skills and competencies in all pupils and to appreciate every child for their own individuality and for what they can do. This does not lend itself to quantitative assessment. 

       The absence of reliance on testing and exams avoids unnecessary tension and disruption to learning, especially for young children, although some tests are used in a low-key way, e.g. weekly spelling tests.  Older pupils are offered a relatively limited range of GCSE’s and A levels or recognized equivalents, although these are usually taken a year later than in mainstream schools. Results are well above the national average, although GCSE results are not included in the national league tables where they are taken a year later. There is regular communication with parents through individual meetings and through term class meetings and the class teacher aims to work with the parent where there is a difficulty.  Parents receive a detailed written report for each pupil annually. Steiner schools are inspected by OFSTED and are required to meet their standards before being fully registered with the DCFS.

A Commitment to the whole Child

       When considering the commitment to viewing “the whole child” I believe if anything, a child’s character should be measured and assessed. Having a good character will help children to build a strong foundation for a purposeful, productive, and fulfilling life. I think that teaching children how to be thoughtful, confident, self-aware, and respectful of those around them prepares them for adulthood. If they lack character, brains and success do not matter much,

“All of us who are parents naturally want our children to be successful.  However, we know in our bones that it is their character – their honesty, sense of responsibility, kindness, perseverance in the face of difficulty, courage in the face of danger or social pressure – that makes them human. If they lack these, brains and success do not count for much.  The novelist Walker Percy once said, "Some people get all A's but flunk life.” In living a life well, as a proverb puts it, "An ounce of character is worth a pound of intelligence (Licona)."

http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/education/ed0229.html

Consequences of Stress on Children’s Development

As a young child, life was nothing but stressful for me and my six brothers and sisters.  My mother was a victim of a vicious cycle of alcohol abuse and violence, stemming from her parents.  My mother had seven children at the age of twenty-one by three different fathers who were only fathers in the sense of the word.  She did not know how to take care of us.  As a young child between the ages of three to nine years-old I only remember being cold, afraid, homeless, and hungry.  I was a failure to strive child who developed slowly.  The year that the state took us from our mother and placed us in foster care, I went to three different schools in one year.  I would sneak out of the school building with a group of neighborhood kids and walk to the Lincoln Park Zoo/Beach (Chicago) where we would eat half-eaten food out of the garbage cans; I was seven years old.  School was sad for me, I did poorly in every subject and had profound behavior problems; I did not realize I could read until I was blessed to be placed in a positive- loving foster care home; which saved my life.  This is why I chose to write about the hunger.

Child Hunger in Asia

“One third of families in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh are regularly going to bed hungry due to soaring food prices in a region which accounts for half the world's underweight children”.  “Half of the children in India, Asia's third largest economy, are stunted because of hunger.  Child malnutrition is an underlying cause of death for 2.6 million children yearly- with most of them dying from preventable illnesses like diarrhea due to weak immune systems”. (Bhalla, 2012)

“Those who to survive, grow up without enough energy, protein, vitamins and minerals. This means children's brains and bodies do not develop properly and they become stunted and unable to function physically, academically or socially”.

“South Asia, which also includes Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Nepal, is locked into a vicious cycle of stunting that passes from generation to generation, the report says. A quarter of children in this region are born with low birth weights of less than 2.5 kg - which is a powerful predictor of stunting - compared to 12 percent in sub-Saharan Africa”. (Bhalla, 2012)

Bhalla, N. (2012, February 19). A Shocking Number of Asiian Children go to Bed Hungry. Retrieved from Reuter: http: in.reuters.com/article/1012/02/19/hunger-sasia

Consequences of Hunger on a Child's Development

When I think about my childhood all I can remember is being hungry all of the time. What I remember most is constantly thinking about the one sandwich that was never wrapped in a brown paper. How I would bite and pinch off it until it was all gone before lunch time. I believe because of the stress of being hungry most of the time during my early childhood years; is why I did so poorly in school and never wanting to participate in any activities.



Japan's tsunami Child Survivors

It is all part of an effort to get the children back into some sort of routine and to keep an eye on their emotional wellbeing. To help counter this a play date for children has been organised in a classroom in the devastated city of Minamisanriku.
Just like adults, these children can still suffer the after-effects of the tsunami long after the waves have retreated.For the children, the tsunami nature disaster did not just smash their homes and sweep away their relatives, it also etched itself on the childrens psyche so having some fun with friends is the best therapy they can get.

Giving Birth In The Netherlands

I choose to write about giving birth in the Netherlands.  Childbirth in the Netherland is not treated as a medical condition and pregnant women are not treated as patients.  As a result, "pregnant women are not given pain relief. The rate of epidural use in the Netherlands is low and there is an absence of anesthetists available out of ‘normal" hours (Expatica, 2012).  Women are encouraged to give birth at home. 

The first priority is to find a midwife.  The role of the doctor or gynecologist in a normal pregnancy in The Netherlands is minor and in most cases not involved at all.  This is slightly different to the UK, and a complete contrast to the United States. 


In the Netherland, the first appointment will be any time from week six of the pregnancy, but more usually around ten weeks. This initial contact is the time to let the midwife know how you visualize the labor and birth process, It would have been good for me to have a midwife to talk to during my pregnancy with my second child, may I would have made different choice during my pregnancy. In the Netherland, an expectant mother can always change her midwife during their pregnancy if they do not click, or that their birth plans are disrespected. Unlike the United States, one cannot change doctors at anytime during the pregnancy.  Women in the Netherlands have choices as to where they would like to deliver their baby.

  The Dutch are big believers in home births so one must make it clear if they want a hospital birth and pain relief.  With 30 percent of all births taking place at home, The Netherlands have the highest rate of home births in the world.  In Britain home births account for 2 percent of total births, in Belgium this figure is closer to 1 percent.  Similarly, 99 percent of births in the United States take place in a hospital environment.


Giving birth at home is something that I cannot even phantom, let alone no pain medication.  I have a low tolerant for pain.  Furthermore, I need a lot of qualified doctors and nurse available to help if complication would arise.



Mulligan, A. V. (2000, april 21). Maternity Matters: What to expect in The Netherland. Retrieved January 7, 2012, from Expatica.com

 

The Birth Of My Second Child.

The Birth Of My Second Child.

My youngest daughter was born with a cognitive disability that makes life sometimes a struggle for her.  I choose to write about my pregnancy with her and the day she was born because this was the most significant experience in my life.  I can remember the moment that I conceived her I actually felt it (believe me this can happen it is a feeling like no other), I told my husband “I’m pregnant" and I was.  This pregnancy and birth experience was remarkably different compared to my first pregnancy.  For the entire second pregnancy, I was physically and emotionally drained.  I had a lot of emotional baggage; I think I cried and fought with my husband the entire pregnancy.  I was about two weeks overdue with my first child, A great-aunt called me and said “girl get up and move some furniture around I bet your labor starts then" so I did and I had my first child that night without complications.  Because I did not want to go past my due date with my second child, I started moving furniture on her due date.  This did put me into labor, but she was not in the right position and had to be turned manually (with help from doctors and my husband) in order for her to move down the birth canal.  This took awhile and was very painful I think that I should have been given a C-section.  She was born very angry and fearful as well as cognitively impaired.  I believe if I had been emotionally and physically fit with my second pregnancy her birth would have went differently.  In addition, had I waited until she was ready to be born and not made my labor start; she may have not been born cognitively impaired.  I will always carry this painful guilt.  I believe that a parent’s emotional well being, physical health, proper prenatal care, and sound decision making has a tremendous affect on a child's development

"My Supports"

My family and close friend are whom I depend on the most for support; I have a strong family and friend’s support system.

            My husband: who collaborates with me in keeping our household intact in regards to decision-making, and problem solving and is truly my best friend.  We have been together all of our adult life; I cannot imagine life without his love and support.  I depend on him to do his share of the housework, start the coffee maker, he supports me in furthering my education, and he is my spell-checker, my proofreader and critic. 

            My oldest daughter supports our family without complaining, she cares for my disabled daughter during the day while my husband and I are working or whenever I need her to sit for her sister.  She supports us by living three minutes away.  I know that I am blessed to have her support. 

            My youngest daughter reminds me of how blessed we are as a family.  She supports me by being so funny.  She is anal in regards to her disability I could write a book about her; I love her so much.  She never lets me forget my work badge or lunch, she can find any and everything that has been lost if it’s in the house, all you have to say is “ I can’t find….” and she’s on it until she finds it, and she will find it.  She wakes up at the same time everyday (even weekends) except when she is sick, so because of her I never over-sleep and rarely miss work.  She keeps us focused on our conversations because when she is around she repeats everything to everybody.  I have seven brothers and sisters who, because of being separated as children we are very supported of one another.  My friends are caring, understanding, loud, crazy, thoughtful, and supportive.  Life without the support of family and friends would be very sad.

             I am also supported by technology such as, my computer, laptop, cell phone, microwave, notebook, and TV/ DVR.  Because of my busy schedule, I am not able to watch my TV shows during the week so I watch them on weekends.  The DVR supports me in keeping up with my shows.  I am also supported by the neighborhood convenience store that is exactly right across the street from my house where I have been living for twenty-five years.  The proprietors are like family, the store comes with a lot of baggage, but I would really miss having the store just across the street.

" My Connection to Play"

Play keeps us vital and alive. It gives us an enthusiasm for life that is irreplaceable. Without it, life just doesn’t taste good” Lucia Capocchione

“Play has been man’s most useful preoccupation.” Frank Caplan

We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.”  George Bernard Shaw

    Paper dolls     Playing with baby dolls

My parents supported play by not allowing us to play inside when the weather was nice we did not have a lot of toys (I have seven brothers and sisters). If the weather was nice we were outside from morning until the streetlights came on; allowed only coming in to use the bathroom, nap, and eat.  I grew-up in the city of Chicago Illinois, we did everything from stealing cardboard from the cardboard factory to build cardboard house, we played hind-n-go seek, made mud pies and leaves, played rock teacher, and rode bikes all over the neighborhood. I had some wonderful pictures of paper dolls  buy I am not able to upload them to my blog.

Play is not similar to play when I was a child, because children do not play outside for most of their childhood.  Children of today only have small blocks of outside time at schools and at home, because of TV, video games, extra curriculum activities, and after school sports.  I hope that someday recess is brought back into every school. 

Relationship Reflection

Relationships and partnerships are important to me because without them I am nothing.  I have a relationship and partnership with God, my husband of 32 years, my daughters, and grandchildren, and many friends and coworker’s.  The relationship I have with God is never ending and prayer is constant in my.  Without having a relationship with God, I would not have positive relationships or partnerships with the people who are significant in my life.

             In additions, I have a partnership with the parents of my Head Start student, parents are required to sign a partnership agreement stating that they agree to participate and volunteer in their child’s preschool educational experience.  Therefore, I am able to form relationships and partnerships with the “whole child”. 

            The relationship that I have with my husband of 32 years is a partnership of love and respect, commitment, and support plus loyalty.  Our relationship was very challenging at the beginning; we were both young (21), head strong, and wanted to be right about everything, which created many of fights.  We had to teach, learn, and show one another how we needed to be treated.  Moreover, we learned these lessons in the end by sharing our feeling and growing up together.  We still have our fights but we fight as partners.

            The relationship and partnerships with my daughters and grandchildren are forever changing for the better, with my oldest daughter I had to learn to not voice my opinion all the time and let her parent her children in her own way, even if I disagreed with her methods I must show her respect and support.  I had to learn to listen and not judge.  My youngest daughter, who is 29 years old has a cognitive disability she can and is learning but at a very slow pace, but that does not take away from whom she is; she is funny, silly, happy, and stubbornly sassy.  She is dating for the first time, so our partnership is a work in progress.

             I have many friends and coworkers who I have been friends with for over 40 years.  When I form friendships, we become friends for life because I value friendships and commitment and all that relationships and partnerships entails.  By having vast experiences with relationships and partnerships pertaining my family and friends, which includes my ability to be an active reflective contributor; has affected my ability to form effective partnerships in my role as a early childhood educator.

A Commitment to “The Whole Child”

When considering the commitment to viewing “the whole child” I believe if anything, a child’s character should be measured and assessed.  Having a good character will help children to build a strong foundation for a purposeful, productive, and fulfilling life.  I think that teaching children how to be thoughtful, confident, self-aware, and respectful of those around them prepares them for adulthood.  If they lack character, brains and success do not matter much,

 “All of us who are parents naturally want our children to be successful.  However, we know in our bones that it is their character – their honesty, sense of responsibility, kindness, perseverance in the face of difficulty, courage in the face of danger or social pressure – that makes them human.  If they lack these, brains and success do not count for much.  The novelist Walker Percy once said, "Some people get all A's but flunk life.”  In living a life well, as a proverb puts it, "An ounce of character is worth a pound of intelligence (Licona)."

http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/education/ed0229.html

Mental health of Mothers and Fathers.

I hate beating a dead horse but most everyone who knows me, knows that I come from mentally unstable parents.  This is why this topic is meaningful; I have firsthand knowledge of how mentally unstable mothers and fathers can damage a child self esteem.  Furthermore, these mentally unbalance parents can have a devastating impact on a child’s physical and mental development.  Here is some information I would like to share that I think should be added to the public health topics:

Maternal Mental Illness and Mother-child Relations

“Three disorders are specifically associated with the puerperium (Steiner, 1996) postpartum blues, postnatal depression and puerperal psychosis. All are affective disorders. Childbearing may exacerbate schizophrenia. The need to change medication (especially the cessation of lithium) may provoke a relapse in bipolar affective disorder. Recreational drugs and alcohol pose indirect risks for the infant through impaired economic and psychological functioning of the mother, as well as direct toxicity.  We shall see below that other disorders, particularly personality disorders, eating disorders and summarization disorders, may present specific risks to the sufferer's offspring. There ciprocal nature of mother child interactions, and the specific nature of some postnatal mental illnesses, also raises the question of the child promoting mental ill health in the parent” ( Steiner, 1996).

Steiner, M. (1996) Treatment of psychiatric disorders duringpregnancy and post-partum.  In Psychiatric Issues in Women, Vol. 2 (ed. U. Halbreich), pp. 687-700.  London: BaillièreTindall.

Mental health of mothers, fathers, and families in general: Asia

Unicef estimates that over 220 million children aged less than 5 years in the developing world have significantly impaired growth. The South Asian region is perhaps worst affected, being home to more than half of all the underweight children in the world.² This article considers the relevance of new evidence on the epidemiology and impact of postnatal depression in South Asia on poor infant growth in low-income countries.  This evidence shows, for the first time, that a common and potentially treatable mental health problem in mothers is one of the causes of infant failure to thrive.  We use this evidence to present a case that child focused interventions, largely aiming to provide supplementary nutrition, may need to be combined with mother focused interventions that target maternal mental health.

Unicef  Panel 3: Stunting linked to impaired intellectual development. In: The state of the world's             children 1998: focus on nutrition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998:16-9.        (www.unicef.org/sowc98/panel3.htm, accessed 29 Oct 2003.

                                                                          

The Birth Of My Second Child.