By not having children of my own, I always imagined that I would be able to help more. And over the past 25 years, I have helped many children and families through transitioning into preschool programs, coping with changing family dynamics, adjusting to new social, emotional, academic and care needs, overcoming their challenges and celebrating their milestones and triumphs. However, it has been through my education in anti-bias work with young children that I truly feel I have found my calling.
The road to get here has been long and winding, and I'll admit there were more than a few detours along the way. That's life, I guess--never a straight line. Yet, it's all brought me to this point in life and my professional career as an Early Childhood Educator. Now, I can see the path unfolding in front of me. Whether I take it one step at a time or one step forward and two steps back is irrelevant, because I finally feel like I know where I'm going, and I'm excited about the journey. I am filling my tank with my most passionate hope for the future which is to share what I have learned about diversity and anti-bias education with as many as possible. By conducting teacher training workshops, parent coaching, program consulting, and openly advocating for early childhood education that includes anti-bias work, I hope to travel far and wide spreading optimism and excitement about the future of early childhood education as well as the positive outcomes it can render for children, families, and communities toward a peaceful, global society.
I would also like to extend a special thanks to Dr. Kien and all of my colleagues in the Walden University Early Childhood Studies Master's program. Your words, experience, diverse perspectives, learning process and response to my own have been greatly appreciated, tremendously supportive, and have certainly helped me grow to be a better person and teacher. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors and hope that our paths cross many times down the road. I will be continuing my blog and invite you all to click to follow me on your regular email. Please keep checking back and posting to share your own exciting experiences as together we learn to write our own Roadmaps to Wonderland. Happy travels!
Saturday, August 22, 2015
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Stranded: Dominican Children of Haitian Decent
While I look forward to graduating with a Master's in Teaching and
Diversity, my knowledge and skills in anti-bias education will truly be tested
in March when I plan to travel to the Dominican Republic and visit a small,
rural village on the Haitian Border to assist a friend in the Peace Corp with
preschool teacher training. As many of you may have read recently in the
news, the Dominican Republic is currently ripe with racial tensions based on
historical as well as current social and political issues. According to a
statement issues by UNICEF (2013),
“The ruling by the Constitutional Court of the
Dominican Republic depriving Dominican-born persons of Haitian descent of
their right to citizenship could have a devastating impact on thousands of
children. Without a nationality, stateless children can be denied access to basic social protection
programmes, cannot earn education certificates or graduate, or obtain an identity card or a passport. Without these basic protections and
opportunities, these children are more vulnerable to exploitation and
abuse".
As a result of this ruling
and a massive Haitian deportation program, racial tensions have escalated
through "rogue" military intimidation, racial profiling, public controversy,
fear, and a racially biased distribution of resources due to the new
citizenship law. The Guardian (2015), reports that while the government denies
implementing arbitrary deportation and racially motivated actions with the
claim that they are simply trying to register undocumented residents to ensure vital social services, darker skinned people are experiencing racial profiling, targeting,
persecution and inhumane treatment in these uncertain times. Add to that
"the fact that 80% of Dominicans are black or mulattos and that they are only deporting people without
papers" (The Guardian, 2015), puts all Dominicans, Haitians, and mixed
race people at risk of racism with or without proof of citizenship especially
in the poor, rural communities where births are not always documented with the
government. What's more is that many of the children being targeted for
deportation are Haitian refugees who fled to the Dominican Republic after the
massive earthquake that recently devastated much of Haiti; these children have already
suffered trauma, loss, poverty, and sickness--must their pride and spirits be
stripped by racism as well?
These children are at
severe risk, as we know. Toxic stress in children's lives effects their well being
by disrupting their social, emotional, cognitive and physical development.
According to the Center on the Developing Child through Harvard
University (2015), "This kind of
prolonged activation of the stress response systems can disrupt the development
of brain architecture and other organ systems, and increase the risk for
stress-related disease and cognitive impairment, well into the adult years. In addition, "hearing and absorbing disparaging messages about any aspect of
their physical appearance and racial identity is toxic to young children's
evolving self-concept and confidence" (Derman- Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 83).
While
the situation seems overwhelming for an outsider to enter, I am determined to
do what I can to help a small community deal with race relations in a peaceful way
through the introduction of an anti-bias curriculum within the village
preschool. I will be living with a host
family and training preschool teachers for only a few short weeks, which means
I must be delicate and concise with my approach as well as open and respectful
of the local culture, and conscious of efficient teaching practices, limited child development knowledge, and
limited access to materials. I must
really think outside the box for strategies, games and activities to promote
anti-bias attitudes that are sustainable for this community as well as
overcoming a language barrier to a localized Spanish, Haitian Creole mix. Luckily, my TEFL training will come in handy
for this scenario.
Thus
my action plans include introducing a persona doll to help them engage in
conversations about same and different as well as fair and unfair as it relates
to the children’s lives; designing social/emotional games that require little
to no resources to implement and reinforce cooperation; providing multi-toned
bean bags for skin tone comparison and use in structured group activities; incorporating
families into the preschool program to promote positive race relations; as well
as to begin to cultivate a new anti-bias attitude among the preschool teachers
to help them learn how to think in prosocial attitudes that meet anti-bias goals, understand how to react to
prejudice and injustice in the classroom, and develop their own emergent
anti-bias curriculum, peace education and supportive materials based on the
specific mixed cultural needs of the area.
I
would like to take this opportunity to seek the advice of my colleagues in this
program to share any thoughts or ideas you think might be valuable to take with
me and introduce to the village. With
limited materials to work with, I need all the creative, resourceful ideas and
action plans I can get. Any thoughts,
ideas or support you would like to offer will be greatly appreciated. So many of you have made valuable
contributions to discussions, offered wonderful insights into race relations,
and are already implementing anti-bias curriculum in your classrooms, so I'm seeking your expertise and asking, “What would you do?”
In
addition, if anyone is interested in following my friend’s experience, her
blog is both inspiring, educational and printable to make a book for your own
classroom and teaching activities.
Follow Sarah Cook at: sarahdrawsthedr.tumblr.com
References:
Derman-Sparks,
L., & Olsen Edwards, J., (2010), Anti-bias
Education for Young
Children and Ourselves,
NAEYC: Washington, D.C.
http://developingchild.harvard.edu/key_concepts/toxic_stress_response/
Saturday, August 8, 2015
Too sexy Too soon: Protecting Children Against the Sexualization of Childhood.
As a young girl, I remember singing the catchy jingle, "I don't want to grow up; I'm a ToysRUs kid". I can almost recite the whole song in adulthood even though I haven't heard it in two decades. But, have you heard what young girls are singing today? "If you like it, then you better put a ring on it" and "I'm too sexy for my shirt, sooo sexy". If you think I'm a prude, you're wrong. If you don't think this is a problem, you're also wrong. Next time you walk down the aisles of a toy store, take a moment to observe all the sexualized and sexist messages available to children packaged as toys. Or, spend 30 minutes watching a kid sit-com and count the sexualized messages bombarding our children. Many industries make many executives rich using sex and violence to market products; today's child gets overt exposure to highly publicized adult sexual messages, ads, entertainment, music, billboards, video games, commercials and street slang references to pop culture. We can't have our children walking around covering their eyes and closing their ears all day to their everyday environments, so what are we to do to combat the over-sexualization of our children?
"We want to be clear that sexualization is not the same as sexuality or sex. According to the Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls published by the American Psychological Association in 2007, sexualization has to do with treating other people (and sometimes oneself) as “objects of sexual desire . . . as things rather than as people with legitimate sexual feelings of their own.” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 4). If you take a moment to study the toy aisles, you will notice all sorts of sexualized messages actually printed on toy boxes. They stereotype children, send powerful messages, and discourage children from necessary developmental experimentation with gender roles such as few pictures of military women or men in domestic roles. "A narrow definition of femininity and sexuality encourages girls to focus heavily on appearance and sex appeal. They learn at a very young age that their value is determined by how beautiful, thin, “hot,” and sexy they are. And boys, who get a very narrow definition of masculinity that promotes insensitivity and macho behavior, are taught to judge girls based on how close they come to an artificial, impossible, and shallow ideal" (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 2). This is damaging material for young minds. These lessons can affect children's ability to develop healthy attitudes about body image, self-esteem and caring relationships now and into their future.
To be clear, sex is not the problem. We are all born sexual creatures and meant to be sexual creatures. However, "sex in commercial culture has far more to do with trivializing and objectifying sex than with promoting it, more to do with consuming than with connecting. The problem is not that sex as portrayed in the media is sinful, but that it is synthetic and cynical. The exploitation of our children’s sexuality is in many ways designed to promote consumerism, not just in childhood but throughout their lives" (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 5).
To many, this seems like more of a tween and teen issue and, somehow, an inappropriate discussion for early childhood. However, if corporations are going to target our young children to "hook" them into buying these images, then we must start very early preparing them by countering these messages. "When children are young, long before they can fully understand the meaning of sex and sexual relationships, the foundation is being laid for the kind of sexual relationships they will have when they grow up" (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 4).
So, what can we do? We can quit ignoring the fact that our children are absorbing an over sexualized environment and distorted, sexist messages. We can quit blaming them for acting out in sexualized ways when they are only imitating what they see around them. We can quit laughing at these exploits allowing children the thrill of attention for the wrong reasons. We can monitor what our children watch, and by watching with them begin to help them question and think critically about the characters and situations they see. We can counter all these negative messages with an abundance of positive ones related to their characters, personalities, and spiritual nature. We can have discussions with children to help them think more critically, deeply, building character, and celebrating their connections with themselves, each other and groups. We can build their self-esteem, self-respect, and self-worth like a fortress around them to shield from dark forces distorting their souls for another buck. We can accomplish this and more through anti-bias education in early childhood.
Recently, a four-year-old girl told me that she was going to break out her secret weapon--her nakedness. I want her to break out her super secret weapon, her intellect. It's never too early to begin to teach young children how to look past the wrapper and go deep to discover the treasures of the mind, body and soul and to use these tools properly to connect in positive ways with themselves and others. The commercial world will spend a lifetime trying to wear them down. Let's do all we can as early as possible to lay a strong foundation in young children to appreciate humanity not Barbie. Let's build them up in ways that truly give them weapons to battle dark consumer forces and fortitude to win!
References:
Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf
"We want to be clear that sexualization is not the same as sexuality or sex. According to the Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls published by the American Psychological Association in 2007, sexualization has to do with treating other people (and sometimes oneself) as “objects of sexual desire . . . as things rather than as people with legitimate sexual feelings of their own.” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 4). If you take a moment to study the toy aisles, you will notice all sorts of sexualized messages actually printed on toy boxes. They stereotype children, send powerful messages, and discourage children from necessary developmental experimentation with gender roles such as few pictures of military women or men in domestic roles. "A narrow definition of femininity and sexuality encourages girls to focus heavily on appearance and sex appeal. They learn at a very young age that their value is determined by how beautiful, thin, “hot,” and sexy they are. And boys, who get a very narrow definition of masculinity that promotes insensitivity and macho behavior, are taught to judge girls based on how close they come to an artificial, impossible, and shallow ideal" (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 2). This is damaging material for young minds. These lessons can affect children's ability to develop healthy attitudes about body image, self-esteem and caring relationships now and into their future.
To be clear, sex is not the problem. We are all born sexual creatures and meant to be sexual creatures. However, "sex in commercial culture has far more to do with trivializing and objectifying sex than with promoting it, more to do with consuming than with connecting. The problem is not that sex as portrayed in the media is sinful, but that it is synthetic and cynical. The exploitation of our children’s sexuality is in many ways designed to promote consumerism, not just in childhood but throughout their lives" (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 5).
To many, this seems like more of a tween and teen issue and, somehow, an inappropriate discussion for early childhood. However, if corporations are going to target our young children to "hook" them into buying these images, then we must start very early preparing them by countering these messages. "When children are young, long before they can fully understand the meaning of sex and sexual relationships, the foundation is being laid for the kind of sexual relationships they will have when they grow up" (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 4).
So, what can we do? We can quit ignoring the fact that our children are absorbing an over sexualized environment and distorted, sexist messages. We can quit blaming them for acting out in sexualized ways when they are only imitating what they see around them. We can quit laughing at these exploits allowing children the thrill of attention for the wrong reasons. We can monitor what our children watch, and by watching with them begin to help them question and think critically about the characters and situations they see. We can counter all these negative messages with an abundance of positive ones related to their characters, personalities, and spiritual nature. We can have discussions with children to help them think more critically, deeply, building character, and celebrating their connections with themselves, each other and groups. We can build their self-esteem, self-respect, and self-worth like a fortress around them to shield from dark forces distorting their souls for another buck. We can accomplish this and more through anti-bias education in early childhood.
Recently, a four-year-old girl told me that she was going to break out her secret weapon--her nakedness. I want her to break out her super secret weapon, her intellect. It's never too early to begin to teach young children how to look past the wrapper and go deep to discover the treasures of the mind, body and soul and to use these tools properly to connect in positive ways with themselves and others. The commercial world will spend a lifetime trying to wear them down. Let's do all we can as early as possible to lay a strong foundation in young children to appreciate humanity not Barbie. Let's build them up in ways that truly give them weapons to battle dark consumer forces and fortitude to win!
References:
Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice
Studying anti-bias education and curriculum has opened my mind and heart to understanding and dealing with the many -isms in our society including racism, classism, LGBTism, ableism, etc. I am learning many new strategies and teaching techniques to combat the impact of these real world realities on the young children I serve. However, I am not only an early childhood professional, I am also an individual who has been impacted by these social mentalities. And yet, I had never fully thought about how my experience as an individual specifically battling with classism might have an effect upon the children I serve. Because our personal and professional identities are intertwined, it is important for us to take a step back to uncover how we fit socially and emotionally into the lessons we are trying to facilitate through anti-bias curriculum/work.
I began working with young children and families in high school as a respected and coveted babysitter. In college, I expanded my work into more preschool settings. As I began to grow as a human, I sought out more diverse and philosophic work in International, Montessori, and Waldorf preschools. Yet, no matter which program I was involved with, I struggled to make ends meet and resorted to supplementing my income as a waitress on the weekends and evenings. Soon, I realized that I could make higher wages working privately with families as a nanny. I excelled at this under many different work and family dynamics including cultural and language diversity, live-in situations, co-op/family share scenarios and traveling nanny excursions to foreign countries. Working privately improved some of my working conditions and provided some perks, yet I was still earning poverty level wages and often considered as more of a servant than respected teacher in the home. This lack of respect began chipping away at my own self-esteem by continually being reminded that I was considered a second class citizen even if I was the most valued outsider in the home; I always knew I was family one minute and furniture the next.
While I have always valued my work and considered myself successful by the lasting and impactful relationships I have formed with children, it seemed society did not value my work in the same way. Hugs and kisses don't pay the rent, apparently. This realization, as well as the fatigue that results from continually living in survival mode and covering it up with a bright smile, almost caused me to make the heart-wrenching decision to leave the field altogether. Even with a strong passion for working with children, I was never sure that I could afford to stay at work in the field and adequately support myself financially, physically or emotionally.
Unsurprisingly, I am not alone. "Inadequate wages, lack of benefits such as health care, and the low societal respect given to the field all have a negative impact despite the best intentions of the early childhood teachers" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 110). While this remains true, I had never considered how many of the issues I was experiencing with classism were also affecting the children I served. "When staff leave because they cannot afford to stay, it puts at risk deep bonds and consistent relationships with children; ongoing, integrated curriculum; and strong family-school and inter-staff relationships" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 110). As I stated earlier, in many ways I felt I was improving my working conditions and pay grade by working privately as a nanny for wealthier families, however this did not improve levels of respect, social status, or effect to my own sense of self-esteem and self-worth. Yet, I never thought about how this dynamic might also be affecting the children I served. "In some cases, higher income families may reflect social attitudes about income and professionalism and may not treat the staff with the respect or recognize their educational background or their high level skills" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 110).
Therefore, advocating for higher wages, health benefits and respected social status is not only in the interest of early childhood professionals, but in the interest of all children, families and community members. "While public spending in early childhood education has substantially increased in recent years, it has mainly fueled expansion, not quality enhancement to help programs attract, compensate, and retain well-educated teachers and administrators" (French, 2010, p. 62). If we allow this well of passionate, committed, educated early childhood professional to dry up, then we will all go thirsty--our children, our workforce, our communities, our economy, our society, and our great nation. By believing in the importance of our work in the early childhood field; continually advocating for fairness and equality in wages and benefits; and speaking out against social mentalities the demean or discriminate against our work, passion and profession, we begin to not only preserve our own dignity, but build a stronger foundation for the field and fuel a sustainable resource for the benefit of all children and families. Therefore, in the end, improving my own self-esteem and societal value, advocating for fairness and equality for myself and others in the field, and honoring my passion and commitment to the importance of early childhood education in our society has been my biggest payoff and had the greatest impact on my professional practice. As a special note to myself and others in the field: Thank you for continuing to believe in the importance of who you are and what you do in the face of adversity and challenge...and continuing to provide free hugs in spite of it all!
References:
Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J., (2010), Anti-bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves. National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC): Washington, D.C.
French, R. (2010). The best of times, the worst of times: Rising standards and declining staff qualifications in early childhood educations. YC: Young Children, 65(2), 62-66.
I began working with young children and families in high school as a respected and coveted babysitter. In college, I expanded my work into more preschool settings. As I began to grow as a human, I sought out more diverse and philosophic work in International, Montessori, and Waldorf preschools. Yet, no matter which program I was involved with, I struggled to make ends meet and resorted to supplementing my income as a waitress on the weekends and evenings. Soon, I realized that I could make higher wages working privately with families as a nanny. I excelled at this under many different work and family dynamics including cultural and language diversity, live-in situations, co-op/family share scenarios and traveling nanny excursions to foreign countries. Working privately improved some of my working conditions and provided some perks, yet I was still earning poverty level wages and often considered as more of a servant than respected teacher in the home. This lack of respect began chipping away at my own self-esteem by continually being reminded that I was considered a second class citizen even if I was the most valued outsider in the home; I always knew I was family one minute and furniture the next.
While I have always valued my work and considered myself successful by the lasting and impactful relationships I have formed with children, it seemed society did not value my work in the same way. Hugs and kisses don't pay the rent, apparently. This realization, as well as the fatigue that results from continually living in survival mode and covering it up with a bright smile, almost caused me to make the heart-wrenching decision to leave the field altogether. Even with a strong passion for working with children, I was never sure that I could afford to stay at work in the field and adequately support myself financially, physically or emotionally.
Unsurprisingly, I am not alone. "Inadequate wages, lack of benefits such as health care, and the low societal respect given to the field all have a negative impact despite the best intentions of the early childhood teachers" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 110). While this remains true, I had never considered how many of the issues I was experiencing with classism were also affecting the children I served. "When staff leave because they cannot afford to stay, it puts at risk deep bonds and consistent relationships with children; ongoing, integrated curriculum; and strong family-school and inter-staff relationships" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 110). As I stated earlier, in many ways I felt I was improving my working conditions and pay grade by working privately as a nanny for wealthier families, however this did not improve levels of respect, social status, or effect to my own sense of self-esteem and self-worth. Yet, I never thought about how this dynamic might also be affecting the children I served. "In some cases, higher income families may reflect social attitudes about income and professionalism and may not treat the staff with the respect or recognize their educational background or their high level skills" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010, p. 110).
Therefore, advocating for higher wages, health benefits and respected social status is not only in the interest of early childhood professionals, but in the interest of all children, families and community members. "While public spending in early childhood education has substantially increased in recent years, it has mainly fueled expansion, not quality enhancement to help programs attract, compensate, and retain well-educated teachers and administrators" (French, 2010, p. 62). If we allow this well of passionate, committed, educated early childhood professional to dry up, then we will all go thirsty--our children, our workforce, our communities, our economy, our society, and our great nation. By believing in the importance of our work in the early childhood field; continually advocating for fairness and equality in wages and benefits; and speaking out against social mentalities the demean or discriminate against our work, passion and profession, we begin to not only preserve our own dignity, but build a stronger foundation for the field and fuel a sustainable resource for the benefit of all children and families. Therefore, in the end, improving my own self-esteem and societal value, advocating for fairness and equality for myself and others in the field, and honoring my passion and commitment to the importance of early childhood education in our society has been my biggest payoff and had the greatest impact on my professional practice. As a special note to myself and others in the field: Thank you for continuing to believe in the importance of who you are and what you do in the face of adversity and challenge...and continuing to provide free hugs in spite of it all!
References:
Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J., (2010), Anti-bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves. National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC): Washington, D.C.
French, R. (2010). The best of times, the worst of times: Rising standards and declining staff qualifications in early childhood educations. YC: Young Children, 65(2), 62-66.
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