Adults are children's first teachers.  They see our actions and in most cases, repeat what they see.  It is important for us to make the best impression we possibly can upon them - for their good and ours!

A friend of mine was born in Ethiopia during the time of the Ethiopian Civil War.  Both her parents died during that time and a result left her and her siblings as orphans.  Though this would be devastating to most, she said she has hardly any recollection of them (she was 5 at the time).  She told me that she does not remember anything prior to the day that a man walked over to her and her sisters and told them they would be coming to live with him and his wife. From there, they relocated to Germany and she remembers growing up in a loving and warm home.  As a result of losing her parents early, she has made a point of being a part of every aspect of her children's lives.  She says that she never knows when her last day will be and she wants her children to remember the best about her.

One region of the world that I am interested in knowing more about is Syria.  For nearly seven years, the war in Syria has taken the lives of millions of people and approximately one million children have been orphaned due to this (Javaid, 2017).  To me, this is more than a Syrian problem; it is a human problem.  Some of the images that I will never be able to get out of my head are that of the little boy whose body had washed ashore after he drowned and that of another little boy who was sitting in an ambulance after an air-strike caused damage to his home.  I often wonder what has to be done to put a stop to things while preventing more mass casualties of the citizens there.  And how far is too far when other nations get involved in solving problems that are occurring in other countries.  That may step a little bit into the political realm but it is seriously something to think about.

Javaid, O. B. (2017).  A million children orphaned by the Syrian war.  Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/11/syria-unicef-warns-dangers-facing-war-orphans-171115165757024.html

The Importance of Immunizations

The debate on immunizations has been a subject of contention over the last few years.  Today, many parents are hesitant to vaccinate their children, whether for religious beliefs or the belief that vaccinations are unnecessary or harmful to the health of their children.  They still do it but really question whether or not it is the best thing for their children.  This topic is meaningful to me for a couple of different reasons.  The first is because I am a parent and strongly believe in community immunity.  Vaccines.gov states that, “If a critical portion of a community is immunized against a contagious disease, most members of the community are protected against that disease because there is little opportunity for an outbreak.”  This means that infants and pregnant women (two groups who are usually ineligible for certain vaccinations) can be protected from the outbreak of diseases because they are contained.  This is an important factor for the overall health of millions of Americans.  The other reason is because I work with children.  In community care, children easily spread germs.  If there is a chance to prevent any outbreaks that can be prevented by vaccinations, I am on board (for the health of the children and the adults that care for them). 

In the United States, vaccination rates are higher.  In Ethiopia, as of 2011, death rates among infants were one of the highest in the world.  At that time, “infant and under-five mortality rates were 59 and 88 per 1,000 live births, respectively” (Gurmu et al, 2016, p. 2307).  Although the rate for that country was much lower than in previous years, that is still considerably high.  According to Gurmu (2016), “Child morbidity and mortality in that country occurs mainly due to vaccine preventable diseases such as pneumonia, malaria, diarrhea, measles and neonatal causes,” (p. 2307).  On the other hand, in the United States, vaccination rates are higher.  “The decrease in mortality from tetanus and pertussis [alone] that has been directly attributed to vaccination has been estimated to be 99.2% and 99.3%, respectively.” (Ventola, 2016).  In Ethiopia, parents may not have access to the tools and materials that parents in more developed countries have access to.  In the United States specifically, we have access to health care that provides coverage of vaccinations as well as the ability to do our own research and draw our own conclusions about vaccinations.  Education is the most important factor.

Because I work within Air Force Child and Youth Programs, I know that even the slightest outbreak can affect the overall mission.  It is a requirement that all children enrolled be vaccinated.  The only exemptions are for allergies or religious reasons.  If there is an outbreak, those individuals must be excluded from programs until the outbreak has subsided.  The outbreak of a preventable disease could greatly affect the mission if children are affected and not allowed into the programs.  As far as the effect that this has on the future of my career, I eventually want to be in a position where I can help implement or enforce policies pertaining to Air Force.  Conducting research will help me be better informed so that I can make the best possible decision for the children and families that we provide care for on a daily basis.

References

2014.  Report shows how 20-year US immunization program spares

millions of children from diseases recent measles outbreaks underscore importance of sustaining high vaccination coverage.  States News Service.

Community immunity (“herd immunity”).  Retrieved from

https://www.vaccines.gov/basics/protection/index.html

Gurmu, E., Dula, E. (2016).  Factors influencing children’s full

immunization in Ethiopia.  African Population Studies 30(2), p. 2306-2317.

Importance of vaccines:  Top 10 reasons to protect children through

vaccination.  Retrieved from http://www.vaccineinformation.org/vaccines-save-lives/

Ventola, C. L. (2016, Jul). Immunization in the United States:

Recommendations, Barriers, and Measures to Improve Compliance.

The birth of my daughter, Laila, was an interesting one.  At 30 weeks, I was admitted to the hospital due to pre-eclampsia, high blood pressure and rapid weight gain.  From there, my doctor told me we would take things day-by-day.  Two weeks later, during the nurses’ routine monitoring of her heartbeat, we witnessed her heart rate slow down to almost nothing then it would build back up again.  They continued to monitor to see if everything improved and after 24 hours of the same thing happening, they decided that June 16, 2008 would be her birthday.  I was mortified! I wasn’t prepared to welcome a baby home but the doctor, nurses and anesthesiologist were all wonderful.  They kept me calm and helped me through the process of figuring out all of the last minute details!  Once I’d been given my epidural, it seemed like only a matter of minutes.  I remember my husband and parents and sister gathering around me to say a prayer and shortly after, I was headed into the delivery room for a Caesarian section; the doctor decided he would not put Laila through labor since they did not know the cause of her heart beat declining and increasing.  Things went pretty quickly as the doctors explained what they were doing and after some pressure and a few more moments of anticipation, Laila was delivered and crying with a healthy set of lungs!  As soon as they rolled her over to me, I said to my husband, “Oh my goodness, she looks exactly like you!”  That was the scariest and most exciting day of my life.  Once I was back in recovery, I remember the nurse telling me about the medicine pump that would alleviate any pain.  After that, everything was a blur.

According to the CDC website, the number of Cesarean deliveries is 1,272,503, making the percentage of all deliveries by Cesarean 32.0%.  I chose Canada as the region to compare my experience to (https://www.babycenter.ca/a160/caesarean-section-basics gives a thorough explanation).  The process in Canada is not different than my own experience.  Although I was stressed because I did not want to be cut open, the experience was seamless and I was reassured the whole way.

I chose this example because it was an extremely important day in my life.  When it comes to birth, I think it’s the very beginning of development.  Shortly after birth, depending on circumstances, a mother and her new baby begin the bonding process.  The relationships between children and their parents is a major factor in development as well.  Parents are their children’s first teacher and the bond established at birth is an integral piece.

Births – Method of delivery.  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/delivery.htm

Codes of Ethics and Reflections

I have listed some of the Codes of Ethics that are meaningful to me.

The first is from the Division for Early Childhood website.

Enhancement of Children’s and Families’ Quality of Lives:  We shall demonstrate our respect and concern for children, families, colleagues, and others with whom we work, honoring their beliefs, values, customs, languages, and culture.

This code speaks specifically to the importance of professionals respecting each other and the families within our programs.  Respect is such an important component these days.  In the military community, there are so many different types of families.  But within our society, we are all diverse individuals.  Within our program, we have teens that are a part of the LGBTQ community, whether they are themselves or their parents are.  Recently, I realized that one of the staff member’s struggles with accepting members of this community and I had to remind that individual that, although he does not agree with their lifestyle, it is his responsibility to still treat those persons with dignity and respect.

The next two come from the NAEYC website:

NAEYC I-1.5 – To create and maintain safe and healthy settings that foster children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development and that respect their dignity and their contributions.

When parents enroll their children in our programs, they expect that their children’s safety will be our top priority.  What they may not expect is that we are giving them so much more.  We are observing them and ensuring that they have meaningful interactions, opportunities to evolve socially and emotionally, develop respect for their peers and adults based on the activities that we plan for them.  Otherwise, the time that children are in our care is just considered unorganized play.  I take this seriously as it is my job to observe that these things are happening and if they are not, provide staff with the tools to make these things happen.

NAEYC I-1.11 – We shall be familiar with the risk factors for and symptoms of child abuse and neglect, including physical, sexual, verbal, and emotional abuse and physical, emotional, educational, and medical neglect.  We shall know and follow state laws and community procedures that protect children against abuse and neglect.

This is a huge factor in my daily job.  Before employees begin any interactions with children, they are required to complete 12 hours of training regarding Child Abuse Identification and Prevention.  Additionally, I monitor on a daily basis make sure staff members have appropriate interactions with the children in our care.  The way our facility is designed, it is set up so that we can see interactions at all times (through use of cameras and open spaces) as well.

Studying the Foundations of Early Childhood over the past few weeks has been really insightful.  I have learned many things and have enjoyed the feedback (receiving and giving) from my peers.  As this is my first class, I look forward to continuing my journey through the education field and cannot wait to see what the remainder of this program holds for me.

Course Resources

Here are a few resources that I use on a regular basis to ensure that I find the best resources possible to help those that I train provide the best care to our children.

Better Kid Care. https://extension.psu.edu/programs/betterkidcare

Caring for our children.  http://cfoc.nrckids.org/WebFiles/CFOC3_updated_final.pdf

Conscious Discipline.  https://consciousdiscipline.com

Kids Included Together.  https://www.kit.org

Course Resources

Position Statements and Influential Practices

·       NAEYC. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/dap

·       NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on child abuse prevention. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/ChildAbuseStand.pdf

·       NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on school readiness. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Readiness.pdf

·       NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on responding to linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf

·       NAEYC. (2003). Early childhood curriculum, assessment, and program evaluation: Building an effective, accountable system in programs for children birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/pscape.pdf

·       NAEYC. (2009, April). Early childhood inclusion: A summary. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/DEC_NAEYC_ECSummary_A.pdf

·       Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families. (2010). Infant-toddler policy agenda. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://main.zerotothree.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ter_pub_infanttodller

·       FPG Child Development Institute. (2006, September). Evidence-based practice empowers early childhood professionals and families. (FPG Snapshot, No. 33). Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://community.fpg.unc.edu/sites/community.fpg.unc.edu/files/imce/documents/FPG_Snapshot_N33_EvidenceBasedPractice_09-2006.pdf

·       Turnbull, A., Zuna, N., Hong, J. Y., Hu, X., Kyzar, K., Obremski, S., et al. (2010). Knowledge-to-action guides. Teaching Exceptional Children, 42(3), 42-53.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

Global Support for Children's Rights and Well-Being

·       Article: UNICEF (n.d.). Fact sheet: A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf

·       Websites:

·        

o   World Forum Foundation
https://worldforumfoundation.org/about-us

o   World Organization for Early Childhood Education
http://www.omep-usnc.org/
Read about OMEP's mission.

o   Association for Childhood Education International
http://acei.org/
Click on "Mission/Vision" and "Guiding Principles and Beliefs" and read these statements.

Selected Early Childhood Organizations

·       National Association for the Education of Young Children
http://www.naeyc.org/

·       The Division for Early Childhood
http://www.dec-sped.org/

·       Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
http://www.zerotothree.org/

·       WESTED
http://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm

·       Harvard Education Letter
http://www.hepg.org/hel/topic/85

·       FPG Child Development Institute
http://www.fpg.unc.edu/

·       Administration for Children and Families Headstart's National Research Conference
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hsrc/

·       HighScope
http://www.highscope.org/

·       Children's Defense Fund
http://www.childrensdefense.org/

·       Center for Child Care Workforce
http://www.ccw.org/

·       Council for Exceptional Children
http://www.cec.sped.org/

·       Institute for Women's Policy Research
http://www.iwpr.org/

·       National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education
http://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/

·       National Child Care Association
http://www.nccanet.org/

·       National Institute for Early Education Research
http://nieer.org/

·       Pre[K]Now
http://www.pewstates.org/projects/pre-k-now-328067

·       Voices for America's Children
http://www.voices.org/

·       The Erikson Institute
http://www.erikson.edu/