Parent, Family, and Community Engagement

When I think of education, it involves the parent, family and the community.  All must be involved in order for education to be effective.  Reviewing the Parent and Family Stories, I found myself feeling connected to them.  We all want our children to be successful in society and that is what these families are stating.  One specific conversation stood out to me and it was the gentleman that spoke of spending time with our children now and to not wait until later.  Our children need us now more than ever and modeling for them the way to respond to challenges in life is important. 

As a parent and educator, I can relate to every parent that spoke on media segment.  I want the best for my two children and for every child I come in contact with in my community.  I did not use the Head Start program in my community, but I used a private preschool program that used a similar curriculum to prepare my two for their educational journey.  I insure everyday that my two are ready for school by insuring them both by telling them how proud I am of them and telling them both that they need to do their best each day.  As an educator I am very involved with my families and community.  Promoting in my community the program we offer is the number one way I get them to engage in their child’s future.  Using experiences I have had personal and professionally have also assisted with getting the community engaged in our program.

Parent/family involvement is an essential system element for all strands of service in the early childhood field.  Our program can only be as successful as the families want it to be.  I truly believe that in order for our programs to get funding, our families have advocated alongside of the educators.  Having them in our corner assists with politicians pushing for funding, research, more educators, etc.  Some of our best advocators for EC programs have been parents of children experiencing or have experienced challenges within early childhood education programs.  Education will always be a topic on the table for our communities.  We will forever move forward with improvements to insure our children the best of education for their future.  Our families, parents, and community will only make that a stronger foundation for our children.

Quality Programs for All Children

Advocating for change is what I hope for.  Public opinion is needed simply because some of the best resolutions to some major problems have been improved.  I believe every child no matter what cultural background, race, gender, or economic status deserves to partake in a high quality educational program.  We have seen what happens to children that have been given the opportunity to belong in quality programs.  What I see changing in the hope of public opinion in the next five years is more educators dedicating their time to children that are not able to participate in quality programs.  I see more people in the community wanting to be involved with the wellbeing of all children.  We live in a very fast and forever changing society and with that in mind Kieff (2009) has implied that globalization is everyone in the world has some influence on everyone else, it may be either a positive or a negative influence, but there is an interdependence among all the citizens of the world (Bigelow & Peterson, 2002; Clinton, 2007).  I believe this is so.  This will only strengthen our services, systems, policies, and advocacy with early childhood education.   With the technology as it is this will happen.

Seeing others advocating for what is important in the early childhood education field is only going to strengthen our young children and their families.  Seeing the better good in others influences our little ones and to see them laugh and learn through the wonderful enriched programs our communities provide and support.  I hope to see our children follow in our footsteps to improve the already great programs we have. 

Bigelow, B. & Peterson, B. (Eds.). (2002) Rethinking globalization: Teaching for justice in an unjust world.                 Milwaukee, WI. Rethinking Schools Press.

Clinton, W.J. (2007) Giving: How each of us can change the world. New York: Knopf.

Kieff, J. (2009). Informed advocacy in early childhood care and education: Making a difference for young                              children and families. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc

 

Early Childhood Education Public Policy and Advocacy

Early childhood education has been a big part of my life since I can remember.  Having worked with children beginning at the age of 6 weeks old to 18 years old I have witnessed the challenges that the families have with the development and wellbeing of their children.  Sitting with the teachers and the parents, coming to the table with a plan to assist with the successful development of their child has always been a passion for me.  Advocating for a child daily, I take on that challenge for my community.

I feel that it is essential to have advocates in the EC field that are skilled and confident.  An advocate is someone that is dedicated and proactive stance taken by individuals in response to particular issues that concern them.  In early childhood education, the purpose of advocacy is to promote ideas and seek resolution that will affect children and families in positive ways (Kieff and Casbergue, 2000, p. 13).  An advocator must feel that they are in control and know what they are speaking of.  They are going to be expected to be the expert in the subject they are advocating for and not knowing the answer can land them in a predicament that may lose the audience that was supporting them. 

I have set the following goals for this class and hope to meet them:

·         A better understanding of what is expected from an advocate

·         Investigating what areas in EC are in need of advocating

·         What challenges do advocates face and how they overcome them

I know a few of them are not as important as the others, but I want more for my families and their children, my program, and my community.  I would fight until the last bit of energy was taken from me in order for my community get something that they needed in order to better the quality of life.  I hope to gain a better understanding of others, advocates so that I can only rise up and become a stronger and efficient advocator.

Reference

Kieff, J., & Casbergue, R. (2000). Playful learning and teaching: Integrating play into preschool and primary programs. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.