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Early childhood education theoretical perspectives
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1. Early childhood educators do not only work with children, they also work with their families directly and indirectly. Knowing what is happening in child’s family help educator understand the needs of children in their care. Children’s family socio-economic background, cultural values and beliefs affect the child’s body and mind and also their health. I remember, when I was living with my in laws, they were used to believe that being social means being nosy. Whenever I tried to communicate with people they react badly with me. Their belief and values (does not matter right or wrong) made a great impact on me and my child’s life. Today I am not very social. I cannot talk with confidence among people and so do my children. The well-being of a child is linked with well-being of families. To nurture the child as a whole, educator has to make sure that the child is achieving all developmental milestones while growing, but we also have to respect the family’s values and tradition. We are all different because of environment and experiences. We are all unique individuals, who grow and develop differently. The family’s income has a great impact on a child’s life. Income makes family and child rich or poor. The income of families separates them in society as rich and poor. Poverty has profound effects on the home environment, family structure, and parenting (Shimoni.R & Baxter.J, pg 158). Children’s experiences in the world make them analytical and cognitively smart. Children’s socio- economic background plays a major role in their development and building their self-esteem. Today in the world, we can see the children of America are way different from the children in Afghanistan because of education, health, nurturing and lack of food (r...
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...ion, shared values, coping mechanisms, and a balance of needs. (Shimoni.R & Baxter.J, pg 24)
4. It is important that educators’ dialogue with families to develop an understanding of their values, beliefs and cultural views. The diversity is not the result of differences among people so much as the importance attaches to their perceptions of one another differences (Kilbride.K, p.g7). Educators can maintain positive relationships with families by separating their own perceptions and experiences from the real situations by avoiding stereotypes and by being sensitive to the different cultural norms. Developing rapport with families is the ability to empathize i.e. the ability to imagine what it feels like to be in another person’s situation. Only with the understanding and empathy will early childhood educator be able to support children. (Shimoni.R & Baxter.J, pg 04)
A significant facet of an early childhood professional is the ability to work with families. This however can be an area in which many professionals entering into the field can feel inadequate. In order to fully support all areas of a child’s performance as a professional it is critical to work with their families. In order to effectively work with families, you must be able to understand the diversity and complexity of families.
Children in families with lower incomes at or below the poverty line have been connected with poor cognitive and social development in early childhood. The studies that I chose to use evaluate the cognitive and social development during early childhood using various surveys, evaluations, and observations completed by or with the children, parents, and teachers. Development of any kind is dependent on the interplay of nature and nurture, or genetics and environment. These studies draw from a child’s environment during the earliest years of development, specifically birth, pre-school, and early elementary school. The studies propose living in an impoverished environment as opposed to an environment above the poverty line imposes certain restrictions on cognitive and social development during early childhood.
Family’s beliefs and values may be different for some and in other cultures they may not be accepted. As teachers, we have to learn about different cultures and expand our knowledge so families could feel more accepted. In the book, Anti- Bias Education for young children and ourselves by Louise Derman-Sparks & Julie Olsen Edwards, talks about how culture and fairness involves two dimensions, children’s development of a positive culture, identity, and their respectful interactions with other cultures. With these two dimensions, it will help the child to continue to express their home culture at school while learning the different cultures at school with their classmates. They learn about what’s right from wrong, how to dress, and talk
But, there is hope: a loving, supportive environment that encourages children to grow into themselves. Preschool. Government programs are in place to help low-income families offset the costs, and national agencies provide multidimensional support for preschoolers and their families. Seven hours in a classroom doesn’t fix the problems at home. Rather, these programs are designed to help low-income families through a multi-faceted approach, attacking several issues in one mighty blow (Olson, Ceballo, and Park 427). These programs offer a variety of resources, including parenting classes, stress management courses, family counseling, and nutrition education. Through these programs, the entire community is assuming responsibility for taking care of its children. After all, it takes a village to raise a child.
A requirement in being an early childhood teacher, is to fulfill the needs, of the children and families I will work for. In chapter one, you have the Lawrence and Ashley Family. In the Lawrence family, they are a married couple, which means more income for the family. Whereas the Ashley family has one income. In addition, to the Ashley family, having one income and dealing with the state can bring heartache and struggles to buy food, clothes, housing, school supplies and other day to day activities. Therefore, I need to comprehend the lives of the families I work for and to be aware of the circumstances of the individual families. To the same degree. I need to respect the boundaries; of the families I work for. Trust is a must. With no trust, there is no communication and things get can get
While all societies acknowledge that children are different from adults, how they are different, changes, both generationally and across cultures. “The essence of childhood studies is that childhood is a social and cultural phenomenon” (James, 1998). Evident that there are in fact multiple childhoods, a unifying theme of childhood studies is that childhood is a social construction and aims to explore the major implications on future outcomes and adulthood. Recognizing childhood as a social construction guides exploration through themes to a better understanding of multiple childhoods, particularly differences influencing individual perception and experience of childhood. Childhood is socially constructed according to parenting style by parents’ ability to create a secure parent-child relationship, embrace love in attitudes towards the child through acceptance in a prepared environment, fostering healthy development which results in evidence based, major impacts on the experience of childhood as well as for the child’s resiliency and ability to overcome any adversity in the environment to reach positive future outcomes and succeed.
...lighted this feature because I value respect and feel that a very important aspect of working with children is engaging their families which invites opportunity for respect to be demonstrated. Dietze & Kashin (2012) explain the importance of engaging families when they state “Including the input of others is essential in a reflective practice and families have a right to be included” (p.411). In one of my placements I saw the positive impact that including a parent had on a young boy when his mother came in to read a story to the. The boy’s self-esteem seemed to increase and could be seen in the way that he beamed the whole time she was there. This experience highlighted to me the importance of family involvement in an early childhood program. These three highlighted statements all reflect values that are important to me and which are important parts of my practice.
In the end, as early childhood educators we want to fight the constant layers of oppression our generation currently encourages and condones into what America is made up to be. By identifying our personal biases, understanding our many social identities, examining institutional advantages and disadvantages, understanding internalized privilege and oppression, and finally learning how to take action we can change the way kids socially identify themselves and create a wholesome environment where we are all equal. By respecting and coaching healthy ways of life, our children can only grow to help future generations and facilitate a growing America with positive results.
(Wesley, 1998; Wood, 2008). More specifically, effective early childhood educators should be empathetic to the children in their care, the child's family and other co-workers. This reflects that the educator is willing to listen, relate to others and therefore be integrated as a respected and trusted member of the school and wider community. As an effective early childhood educator, create strong partnerships with children and their parents, as explained by Shonkoff et al. (2000; as cited in Wood 2008) has shown that to provide a productive learning environment a teacher must have a positive relationship with children and their families....
It discusses how children are born with that needs to connect with individuals around them. Teachers and providers create positive relationship with children from birth through the early years. The foundation for that healthy social and emotional development because it affects her children see the world, express themselves, manages their emotions, in establishing a positive relationship with others. There were several areas of development that included social interactions that focus on the relationship that we share and include relationship with adults and peers. Emotional awareness recognized and understands your feelings and actions of other people, and self-regulation where you have that ability to express your thoughts, feelings, and behavior in a socially appropriate way. There were many tips that were listed when working with infants from talking and reading, having that warm, responsive, and consistent care, maintaining predictable routines, and getting to know each child while following their lead. The importance of supporting children and developing social skills is critical for learning, happiness, and long-term. This development begins during infancy and can be supported through simple social games, emotional role model, and imitating an infant's facial expression and sounds. The importance of social-emotional development and toddlers makes an impact in a child life when these skills are developed starting in infancy. Encouraging positive behaviors and using positive discipline practices that helped to develop the ability to make good choices as well as recognizing the confidence that is built when these behaviors are repeated. This is a process for young children to learn these behaviors always remembering that a patient response will help especially when the behaviors are
Teachers have a significant role with the children; they are their leader in learning and development. Teachers have to plan effectively so the students will be able to learn and grow from the different activity’s this it why it is important that teacher take the responsibility and know the goals of the programs and their curriculum so they can plan accordingly. Establishing reciprocal relations with the parents of a child are important. Teacher should seek to know more about the families and their culture. With this information’s teachers are able to enhance the curriculum. Communication is the key when it comes to relationships with
Cooper, J., Masi, R., & Vick, J. (2009). Social-emotional Development in Early Childhood. National Center for Children in Poverty.
The modern early childhood curriculum refers to the experiences gathered throughout a child’s infancy and beyond. It incorporates everyday interactions with family members within a wide spectrum of environments. Such interactions can be spontaneous or structured however, it is important that they are established within a supportive, safe and nurturing setting in order for the child to flourish in terms of their mental and physical ability ( O’Hagen,and Smith (1998). We refer to such a curriculum as Child centered as equal emphasis must be made on the child’s learning through out infancy as it is within a formal education setting.
After multiple days of research, I have concluded that the environment in which a child is normally in, can play a major role in every aspect of his life. Everything aspect from home life, school life, and child care can affect the child’s cognitive, learning, language, emotional, social, and physical development. I believe that the environment in which a child is placed should not be looked over lightly, but a child should be placed in safe environments where he/she will receive proper learning, play, and nutritional
Early childhood education plays a key role in a child’s academic development because he or she learns soft skills, job skills, and develop positive traits. Preschool is not like kindergarten, but instead a stepping-stone that prepares young students for the years of schooling they will have later in life. As more schools began to open families wanted to be able to verify that programs would benefit and protect their children. In response, the National Association for the Education of Young Children was made to help families find the best care for their children, by providing the early childhood educators with training and ensuring the quality of children’s daily experiences. (“NAEYC”5).