Exploring Roles in the Early Childhood Education Community:  Local and State Levels

            While researching resources for early childhood organizations and agencies I came across a nationally based program that contributes to community based programs called “Parent-Child Home Program”.  “This is an evidence-based and research-related early childhood literacy and school readiness program.  Its goal is to strengthen families and prepare children for academic success through intensive home visiting, especially families who do not have access to educational opportunities to prepare their children to enter school ready to succeed (Parent-Child Home Program, 2013).  Families served by this program are low income from any background, location, and educational background.  Services are initiated and provided by partnering with local organizations, including school districts, social service agencies, and various community based programs (Parent-Child Home Program, 2013).  This program particularly interests me because it would enable me to combine and utilize my early childhood experience and education with my social work experience.  Additionally, this programs website provides valuable information that will assist me with my Capstone Project.  Job opportunities include being a state coordinator that oversees all aspects of the program, including starting the community based program, selecting appropriate curriculum materials, and all aspects of running the program.  I am qualified for this position based on my BS in Early Childhood Education and many years in the social work field.  There are no programs in the county or surrounding counties of my home state of Pennsylvania.

I explored two other websites of state operated programs.  The first was the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW).  The website outlined many programs DPW provides oversight to including The Mentor Parent Program, Inc., Early Intervention, and Parent to Parent of PA.  The Mentor Parent Program’s mission is “to provide assistance and training to parents and professionals to provide one-on-one mentoring and support, to provide information and appropriate referrals, to develop home-school partnerships, to foster parent involvement with the early intervention & education systems, and to develop community awareness of the needs of children with disabilities” (The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, 2013).  This program is interesting to me because its mission and one-on-one support to parents of children with disabilities is much needed and a very rewarding endeavor.  The Parent to Parent of PA program has an opening for a Regional Coordinator for the Northeastern region.   I am qualified for this position, however the starting salary is much less than my current position and the location is not within a reasonable travelling distance.  Other job opportunities  are provided through Pennsylvania State Civil Service Commission. 

            The third website I explored was The Pennsylvania Department of Education.  This state agency includes Keystone Stars, PreK Counts, and works jointly with DPW to provide Early Intervention.  PA Pre-K Counts is designed for “children who are between age 3 and until the entry age for kindergarten; are at risk of school failure and living in families earning up to 300 percent of the federal income poverty level (such as a family of four earning $67,050) who may also be English language learners or have special needs” (The Pennsylvania Department of Education, 2013).  I am interested in this program as well as Early Intervention because both programs provide children with necessary developmental skills needed to help them become successful when entering school.  Presently there are no job openings; however the civil service jobsite is frequently updated.  My current position is within the Pennsylvania Civil Service system which allows me to bid on jobs as they become available.   

References

Parent-Child Home Program, (2013). Parent-Child Home Program’s National Center website. Retrieved from http://www.parent-child.org/

The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, (2013).  The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare website. Retrieved from http://www.dpw.state.pa.us/forchildren/earlyinterventionservices/index.htm

The Pennsylvania Department of Education, (2013).  The Pennsylvania Department of Education website.  Retrieved from http://www.education.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennsylvania_department_of_education/7237

Welcome back for the last class of the MS in Early Childhood Studies program!  As part of our class assignment we created "wordles", a very clever endeavor.  My use of modern technology sometimes leaves much to be desired, however after many attempts I finally decided I had to publish my Wordle to the public website viewed by everyone on the Internet! 

To access my Wordle:

Social Change.pdf (162.083 KB)

One more adventure along this journey amongst many new paths and many well-travelled roads!
 

Special Thanks!

          When I enrolled in Walden’s master’s program I was unprepared for everything the journey would encompass.  I remember writing a paper during my first class outlining what I would need to ensure completion of the program.  I identified one of my needs as taking care of myself in order to maintain the stamina needed to continue the pace of working full time while taking classes.  What I was unprepared for was the experience and expertise my colleagues would share with me as we traveled together.  I did not foresee my need for support or that I would try to support my colleagues as much as I could.  The support everyone provided along this journey helped me gain insight and knowledge I could not possibly have gained on my own.  The class material along with personal experiences that were shared enriched and broadened my understanding of the importance and extreme value of our profession.  Over the past year and a half the names of some of my colleagues have changed, however the support and camaraderie has not!  Good luck to everyone!  I hope we all are able to fulfill the dream that was our driving force to embark upon this journey.  jomazzei@yahoo.com

 

Adjourning

One of the hardest groups for me to leave was also the group I devoted the most time helping to build.  Early in my career I worked for a year as a VISTA Volunteer with a Mental Health/Mental Retardation program.  The program director had written a grant to obtain VISTA Volunteers and shortly after getting us on board she resigned her position and relocated.  Prior to leaving she told us her vision was to develop a puppet show to provide education about mental disabilities to the community.  The volunteers bought into the vision.  To realize the vision we spent much energy on the forming stage of getting to know each other, the agency staff and getting agency staff on board to “buying into” our goals and developing clear directions regarding the project (Abudi, 2010).   In conjunction with agency staff, community members, a recording studio, and other agencies we all spent countless volunteer hours writing a script, making puppets and a stage, writing and recording songs and practicing, practicing, practicing!  We progressed into a cohesive, well developed team and developed strong friendships.  We celebrated the success of the project after each performance; however we did not formally “adjourn” prior to the team members moving off into different directions (Abudi, 2010).  Perhaps we each considered our “adjournment” the sad good-byes we bade each other as the VISTA project ended.

I have been contemplating the question, “How do you imagine that you will adjourn from the group of colleagues you have formed while working on your master’s degree in this program?” and have not formulated an answer.  It seems like yesterday that I was brushing my forehead while exclaiming, “Half way there”!  We share so many personal stories and have grown so much while pursuing our master’s!  My first thought is that most school “adjournments” are celebrated with a graduation ceremony.  My second thought is that we should incorporate what we’ve learned about team development and begin with the forming stage of discussion with each other and developing objectives/goals to plan for an adjournment celebration and start to think about the roles we will each take to meet our goal (Abudi, 2010). 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my colleagues for the support you continuously provide me and for sharing your personal stories.  I am a better person for learning to listen through reading your postings and blogs.  The lessons I learned from each of you are inexpressible!  Thank you!

Special thanks go out to a colleague that shared her story of an acting group she participated in while in college (Beene, 2012).  Your story sparked my memory of the VISTA project I described above.   Until participating in such a group, it is hard to fathom the effort and commitment involved.

References

Abudi, G. (2010). The five stages of team development: A case study. Retrieved from http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/the-five-stages-of-team-development-a-case-study.html

Beene, H. T. (2012). Discussion Board, Communicating and Collaborating in the Early Childhood Field (EDUC - 6165 - 1), week 6

Conflict Resolution

       My son recently moved into an apartment off base and decided it was time to “take stock” of his finances and track where his money was going.  In doing so he discovered a rather large payment that was automatically deducted from his account.  Of course he contacted me quite upset with his dilemma of not knowing where this payment was going or for what purpose and assumed I would know the answer and fix it.  My son was using anger and aggression to manipulate me into “fixing” his problem.  My first reactions were to reassure my son that it was very mature of him to get a handle on his finances, recognize his frustration (O’Hair, 2009), and begin formulating a plan to discover where the payment was being sent.  I also used deep empathetic listening (The Center for Nonviolent Communication, n.d.) to hear his frustration.  During our discussion I was very cognizant of the importance of “power with” my son.  I realized he was struggling with a very real financial dilemma and with learning to become independent.  Fixing his problem would undermine his independence.  My course of action was to remain centered on the matter at hand and steer clear of any personal attacks or blaming.  We worked on a cooperative strategy and a compromise by working together (O’Hair, 2009 p. 212).  I began asking probing questions requiring specific and precise answers and specific research to find the answers while always reassuring my son that each step of the way brought us closer to the answer (p.215). 

I knew my son was paying off school loans via direct debit and he said he did not have any other payments made by direct debit.  His first step was to contact the college to determine the source of his loans and then to ascertain the loan company handling the loans.  I maintained a supportive climate providing my son an opportunity to explore these avenues independently while explaining the purpose and remaining focused and calm (p. 204).  My encouragement and support helped my son feel good about the research he was doing to solve his own dilemma, while simultaneously learning important tasks involved in money management.  As it turned out, my son discovered he was paying on a loan he forgot about and the loan required only one more payment!  We arrived at a solution that fully satisfied both of us – win-win!! (p. 216).  

References

O’Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s

The Center for Nonviolent Communication. (n.d.). Foundations of Nonviolent Communication. Retrieved from http://www.cnvc.org/learn/nvc-foundations

Communication

       When comparing my self-evaluation and those of my daughter and friend the one thing that surprised me most was how similar our evaluations were.  I try to be honest and forthcoming with myself and recognize areas I need to improve.  Over the years I worked on becoming more respectful of the viewpoints and intelligence of others and to maintain a good balance between respect and consideration of other’s viewpoints (Rubin, 2009).  Although this was my goal, I was not aware of how others perceive me. 

The postings submitted by my colleagues on the Discussion Board provided many insights into the complexities of schemas and perceptions.  Many of the choices we make in our communication behavior, from the clothes we wear to the way we speak, are determined by the way we want others to perceive us (O’Hair, 2009).  When presenting ourselves in a specific light we must realize others perceive and interpret us based on their own schemas retrieved from their memories (p. 40) therefore others may not grasp the intention of our communication behavior.  Being mindful of this is a reminder to ask questions and listen effectively to ensure our messages are received the way we intend and that we are receiving the intended message of others.  Another way to improve the accuracy of our perceptions is not to rely completely on first impressions, which often lead to inaccurate conclusions (p. 44).

A second insight I gained this week is how first impressions lead to stereotyping.  When answering questions about a picture of a woman many of the answers were based on past experience.  The way the woman dressed evoked memories of particular groups of people that were dressed similarly.  Generalizing the style of dress to fit a particular socio-economic status or educational level prompted placing this unknown woman into one of these categories, thus developing a stereotypical view of her.  Without being mindful of this process it may become natural to continue making assumptions and place people into generalized categories based on stereotypes. 

          Awareness of the process of schemas, perceptions and stereotyping is important in working through barriers to effective communication and acceptance of diversity.  Effective communication and accepting diversity are paramount to working effectively with children and their families.  Being aware of our own schemas and preconceived perceptions will assist us to being sensitive, mindful and respectful of the viewpoint and intentions of others, especially children, their families, and our colleagues.    

                                                  References

O’Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s

Rubin, R. B., Palmgreen, P., & Sypher, H. E. (Eds.) (2009). Communication research measures: A sourcebook. New York: Routledge

Strategies to Communicate More Effectively

          One aspect of my job involves visiting nursing care facilities.  I find that I communicate with the residents of nursing homes differently than I do with my colleagues at the office.  I tend to stand closer and speak louder and slower than usual.  A strategy I would employ to adjust my communication style to the individual with whom I am speaking is observing body language and visual cues to ascertain if the person is comfortable with how close I am standing to them and if they are able to hear my voice and grasp what I am saying when talking at a normal volume and pace.  By focusing on the other person and adapting my communication style the other person will feel at ease, making effective communication more likely (Beebe, 2011). 

A second strategy to developing effective communication skills when working with elderly individuals is to ask questions.  Asking questions is a simple technique to confirm the accuracy of assumptions, such as nursing home residents are hard of hearing.  It helps reduce uncertainty and helps both parties develop greater understanding (p. 106).  Taking the time to listen effectively to the answers increases trust and allows the other person to feel respected.

The third strategy I would use to communicate more effectively with individuals residing in nursing homes is to establish common ground (p. 105). The person with whom I may be communicating grew up in a different era than I and eliminating the communication barriers may not be possible; however finding common ground to build a new dialogue combining both our cultures may create a common understanding to develop meaningful communication (p. 107).

My experience working with people residing in nursing homes is that the time and effort taken to establish a rapport supportive of effective communication is that the reward is overwhelming.  I once spoke to a marvelous woman that told me her story of traveling cross country by hopping freight trains.  Priceless!

Reference

Beebe, S. A., Beebe, S. J., & Redmond, M. V. (2011). Interpersonal communication: Relating to others (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon