As part of my Capstone Project, I was given the opportunity this week to imagine a national/federal dream team as part of my exploration of jobs and roles that peek my professional growth and inspire me in the ECE field. There are three national organizations that I would like to involve in my community of practice, or my dream team as I work to support preschool teachers in responding to rapidly changing demographics and families with multiple languages and ability needs in their programs. The research this week only solidified my goals to work with and along side these organizations to provide teacher training, professional development, and the best possible opportunities for all young children and their families living in the United States and beyond. We all deserve the dreams that high-quality early childhood education offers for ourselves, our children, our communities, our countries and our planet.
At the top of my list is NAEYC, National Association for the Education of Young Children http://www.naeyc.org/. They are at the forefront of connecting practice, policy and research in this country. They not only reach the most preschools and childcare centers in the nation to provide accreditation, assessments, as guidance of DAP and best practices for young children, they also provide family support through connections with other national and federal agencies. As well, they also provide many professional development opportunities and an Early Childhood Career Center on their website. Of the jobs I found posted, many appealed to me including Early Learning Support Specialist and National Early Childhood Coordinator for The Sciencenter Discovery Museum. Although I am interested in working with NAEYC especially through presenting at their national conference, the other two jobs would also involve professional development and preschool teacher trainings.
Second on my dream team list is Zero to Three, National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families http://www.zerotothree.org/. Their mission is to give all young children a strong start through nurturing relationships that provide optimal development. They support parents, professionals and policymakers in making educated decisions and following best practices for infants and toddlers. They offer education and support for behavior and development, maltreatment, care and education and public policy. They also offer a Career Center, professional development and hold an annual conference in its 30th year through the National Training Institute. If we're going for our dreams, I would love to someday be the keynote speaker one day.
The third is Early Head Start http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/ehsnrc as they are serving low income, immigrant and multi-cultural families by providing care in the education and development of infants and toddlers. I would love to be able to partner with federal government through this agency to provide professional development, training and support to Early Head Start teachers who face considerable challenges as they respond to the needs of many different types of children and families. I would like to design a professional development opportunity for these teachers and caregivers to introduce practical strategies, such as incorporating Baby Signing into their programs, to aid in the development of cognitive, social/emotional relations and behavioral, and linguistic/literacy skills for infants and toddlers in both their home and school environments and transitions between the two. There is currently no conference listed for this entity of Head Start, and I think that makes a valid point as to the need to recruit more professionals to aid in trainings, seminars, and other professional development opportunities centered around the needs of those serving this specific age group.
Others I would also like to include are The United Way, The REACH Center, The Children's Learning Institute, and The National Center for Learning Disabilities.
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ReplyDeleteAngela,
ReplyDeleteI love that you have a focus on children birth to age three. I often feel that many forget about the importance of serving this age group in the early childhood field. So much brain development occurs between 0-3 years of age. Each of the organizations you have chosen are excellent organizations doing wonderful work to help ensure our youngest children receive the very best. Our government is beginning to see the value as well. I think I have seen information in my state about the expansion of Early Head Start programs. This is so valuable as many of our young babies and toddlers are attending child care centers that are running on a shoe string. They often do not have trained staff with a high turnover rate. The improvement of care for these children who are living in poverty and already at risk is invaluable. Great choices.