Time Well Spent

The past year and a half have been the most rewarding weeks.  I have learned a great deal about the Early Education field not just from the class but from those whom I have had the opportunity of working with in the classes.  I have learned how to build an early childhood program and most importantly how to fund the program.  Secondly, I have learned to stay up to date with the evolving early childhood field.  The education field is constantly changes.  With that being said, we as educators need to stay abreast of the new strategies and tools being developed to help meet the needs of all students and families.  Third, I have gained the ability to be a passionate advocate for children and their families.  I am a bigger advocate because of this class. I feel confident in being a part of organizations to voice my opinions and to help in the efforts to making positive change within the community.  I am not afraid to let my voice be heard.

The long term goal I have set for myself is to start an epidemic that resonates within schools allowing all parents and families to become involved in schools.  I want families to feel welcome and confident in being involved.  My goal would be for family involvement to become something they want to do rather something they have to do.  I would like families coming to me asking how to be involved rather the school going to them. Once I have made a difference on the local level, I would like to go state or national wide spreading to word on why families need to be involved.

My journey has been a long and challenging a times.  But, I would never change it for everything.  I have a feel of accomplishment and fulfillment as I complete this last assignment.  I have gained professional from each and every person I have come in contact with.  There are several people I would like to thank.  It is because of them that I was able to complete my degree.  I would like to first thank my family and friends for pushing me to my max and encouraging me to continue strong.  To all my professors, you have believed in all I have done and continued to push me to do more.  You set the expectations high and with that given me to ability to be successful.  Finally, to my colleagues, you have all been so amazing the entire journey.  Your passion, feedback, and ability to be leaders has shown me the true meaning of successful leaders and educators.  I have learned so much from each of you. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, skills, and experiences with the class.  I wish each and every one of you the very best.  I am very grateful to have been granted the opportunity to work with each one of you. Best of luck in the future!  I look forward to keeping in touch with all you.

Thank You,

Victoria Reigart

Jobs/ Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

International Association for Steiner/Waldorf Early Childhood Education

The Steiner/ Waldorf education is devoted to the health, education and care of the young child from birth to school entrance.  The Waldorf educators seek to nurture the development of each child’s unique capacities by offering warm, homelike environments with opportunities for imaginative play, meaningful purposeful work, and experiences in the arts, nature and in community.

Some of the goals of this organization are to:

• Foster co-operation among colleagues throughout the world, through meetings, group work, and conferences.
• Deepen and renew the work with the young child
• Foster training and continuing development
• Provide resources, information, and publications on Waldorf early childhood education.

International Association for Steiner/ Waldorf Early Childhood Education (IASWECE). Welcome. Retrieved from http://www.iaswece.org/index.aspx

 

Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI)

The ACEI is an organization dedicated to promote and support the optimal education, development, and well- being of children worldwide. They have a commitment to supporting and advocating for access to education, equality in educational settings, quality educational content, and the child’s right to education.  Those involved act as social change agents who involve themselves in critical societal issues in the efforts to ensure that children around the world are protected, supported, and educated in ways that allow them to reach their full potential.   

Association for Children Education International (ACEI). (2011). About ACEI. Retrieved from http://acei.org/about-us/about-acei.html  

 

Division for Early Childhood (DEC)

The mission of the DEC is to promote policies and advance evidence –based practices that support families and enhance the optimal development of young children who have or are at risk for developmental delays and disabilities. This is an international organization for those who work with or on behalf of young children with disabilities and other special needs and their families.  The children this organization works with or for are between the ages of zero and eight.

Division for Early Childhood (DEC). (2014). Our Mission. Retrieved from

http://www.dec-sped.org/about

 

Career Opportunities

Assistant Center Director: KinderCare (Virginia)

Skills Needed:

• Fulfills all record-keeping responsibilities
• Understands developmentally appropriate practice and ensures its use in the classroom.
• Complies with all governmental laws and regulations regarding management
• Performs each of the essential functions of each position
• Attends and participates in staff meetings, center events, and parent/ customer meetings

Education and Experience

• High school diploma
• Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education or Business highly desirable
• State specific requirements
• State qualified for teaching positions required
• Valid driver’s license
• Ability to quickly learn software
• Excellent administrative and organizational skills required
• 2+ years of early childhood education experience required
• 1+ years of business management experience desired, including experience with budgeting and accounting

 

Executive Director (Early Learn Programs- New York)

Some of the Skills Needed:

• Report directly to the senior staff executive
• Overall, planning and execution of on-site child care programs
• Manage and direct a comprehensive program of EC development, include assessment, linkage to health, educational programs and other services throughout the organization in order to assist families
• Supervision of Educational Directors and their coordination of on-site activities, monitoring, and supervision day care staff
• Ensure compliance with licensing, permits, and all rules and regulations applicable
• Establish ongoing training

Education:

• Masters of Science Required
• Minimum of 2 years experience as a group director in a program for children under 6 years of age.
• Licensed by the City Board of Education as a teacher in Early Childhood Required
• Must have completed at least 150 hours of observation and supervised practice teaching in Pre-Kindergarten or Kindergarten Grades
• State certification
• Computer literate
• NYS Certification is a plus

 

Coordinator, Early Childhood Education Program

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Act as instructional leader for ECE program
• Develop and implement professional development model
• Supervise ECE licensed and classified staff
• Plan, organize, and administer daily operations
• Create partnerships with parents and community
• Solve conflicts between/among parents, students, and teachers
• Hire ECE staff
• Implement school-wide safety and emergency protocols
• Oversee and participate in CPP Grant Re-Application
• Plan and monitor Child Development Center Budget
• Serve as administrative support

Experience

• Over 1 year and up to and including 3 years of experience in Administration
• Over 5 and up to and including 7 years of experience in public education
• Over 7 and up to and including 10 years of experience in more than 10 years of experience in Special Education/ Early Childhood Education/ Elementary Education

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

Three National and Federal Agencies that appealed to me are:

 

National Early Childhood Program Accreditation (NECPA) - I chose this agency because I hope to one day work in an accredited early childhood program.  The goal of this agency is to encourage the availability of high quality, affordable child care and preschool program for children, families, and communities.   

Zero To Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families- I chose this organization because I had a personal connection with this site in one of my previous classes but also because I have a young son and I used this as a resource for his development.  The mission of this organization is to ensure that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life.  They are a national nonprofit organization that provides parents, professionals and policymakers the knowledge and know-how to nurture early development.

The National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE) – I chose this organization because I am an educator and I found this to be a great resource.  The purpose of this organization is to promote the professional growth of our membership, to discuss educational issues specific to their membership, to advocate for improvements in early childhood teacher education, provide a forum for consideration of issues and concerns of interest to educators of early childhood teacher educators, provide a communication network for early childhood teacher educators, facilitate the interchange of information and ideas about research and practice, and cooperate with other national and international organizations concerned with the study and education of young children.

 

Job opportunities that interest me and the skills needed to fulfill each role:

 Administrator/ Directors of Center- Based Programs

            Recommended Education- Associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education, Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education/ Child Development with coursework in child care administration, and Graduate degree in Child Care Administration.

            Salary- $25,340 - $71, 440

 

Professional Development Coordinators

            Recommended Education- Graduate degree in Early Childhood Education/ Child Development or Youth Development

            Salary- $28,000-$99,000

 

Program Manager

            Recommended Education- Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education/ Child Development, Human Services or a related field, Bachelor’s or Graduate degree in Business Administration with a minimum of 18 credits in Early Childhood Education/ Child Development.

            Salary- $39,000-$150,000

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

Three state organizations that appealed to me were:

1. Advocates for Children of New Jersey- I chose this organization because it is their mission to be the voice for children, since they are not old enough to vote and will not be heard.  This organization identifies children’s needs through research, policy and legal analysis and to raise awareness of the needs they find as well as to work with government officials to find an effective response to their needs. Their main goal is to help children grow up safe, healthy, and educated in hopes of them growing up to be productive adults. My passion is to inspire children to be all they can and with this driving force I have, it correlates to the mission and vision of this organization.
2. NJAEYC (New Jersey Association for the Education of Young Children)-  I chose this association because their main focus is devoted to high quality early childhood programs through improvements in professional practice and improving public understanding as well as support and funding of high quality programs in center, homes, and schools. Their mission is to advance excellence in the field of early childhood education. I want to make a difference in the early childhood field and this association has this focus.
3. Prevent Child Abuse- I chose this organization because I do not think any child should have to be a victim of child abuse. I want to decrease the number of children who are abused and to help those who have already been abused. The mission of this organization is to prevent child abuse. This organization is the only state-wide non-profit organization that is dedicated to preventing child abuse in all of its form.

Job Opportunities

1. Early Childhood Education Director – Requirements for this job are: directors credentials, Core Series Training, Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education or related fields, Master’s degree in Education, Minimum of three-five years documented supervisory experience, demonstrated customer service communication skills, demonstrated process and organization oriented skills, large scale academy experience, ability to frequently lift or move weight, ability to effectively read, write and communicate the English language.
2. Supervisor of Early Childhood- hold a NJ administrative certificate, master’s degree from an accredited institution, minimum five years teaching/ administrative experience, hold and maintain a valid driver’s license with no serious violations, have excellent administrative and/or teaching experience and work with students, demonstrate excellent organizational skills and the ability to motivate people, have excellent integrity and demonstrate good moral character and initiative, demonstrate knowledge and understanding of early childhood curriculum development and program evaluation, child growth and development, effective instructional strategies, classroom management, learning assessment and diagnosis, and research related learning.  

 

References

Advocates for Children of New Jersey (2014). Our mission and our vision. Retrieved from http://acnj.org/about-us/

NJAEYC (2011). Our mission. Retrieved from http://njaeyc.org/about-us/our-mission/

Prevent Child Abuse New Jersey (2013). Mission. Retrieved from http://preventchildabusenj.org/about-us/mission/  

 

 

Thank You!

Dear Colleagues,

Each and every one of you has played a major role in my educational journey. I am very grateful to have such inspiring and influential classmates.  All your comments, feedback, and questions have helped shape me into the professional I am today. Some of us are a few courses away from finishing this journey; continue with putting in such a great effort. The hard work is going to pay off soon. Best of luck to all! You are all amazing individuals.

                                                            ~ Victoria

Team Development- Adjourning

Thinking back to all the groups I have been a part of, the ones that were hardest to leave or hardest to say good-bye were the ones where everyone was very close and worked well together. I personally do not think it has anything to do with performance.  I think the most important parts of being in a group are collaboration. The groups that build a relationship/ bond, share the same goals, set guidelines and stay focused, and the ones who overall work well together are the ones that you would hope can work together again or stay friends. Working in a group like this, there is a shared leadership.  There is not one leader in a group like this; everyone is a leader.

The group/ team that I had to leave were a service learning group.  This group had meetings leading up to the trip and then spent a week in another state doing service projects for others in need. The group I was in truly became a family by the end of the trip. We knew each other inside and out and made so many memories together. Although this was not an academic group or a group where papers needed to be written, it was a group that still requires leadership and a bond still needed to be made in order to perform all duties and to spend a week together. This group was hard to leave because we grew close enough to be family. At the end of our week together, we had a closing ceremony where we could share our stories about the week and reflect back on all the work we had done. We closed out the trip with a bang and even chose a song to signify our group and trip. Still to this day (8 years later) every time I hear the song, I immediately think back to that trip and all the people I was able to work with. Once we returned back to our daily lives, we still stayed in touch and even got together for dinner where we could reminisce about our trip.  

As for adjourning from my colleagues in this course/ program, I think it will be bittersweet. I think we all have worked immensely hard and will feel a sense of accomplishment as well as excitement to have finally succeeded. I think I will be a little sad because even though I have not met any of my colleagues in person, I feel I know a lot about them just based on all our discussions, blogs, and introductions. I think saying good-bye in person is much harder so in terms of emotionally, I do not think saying good-bye will be too sad. I have enjoyed working with each and every one of my colleagues and will definitely miss our discussions and sharing of ideas. I have gained so much just from reading what everyone else has to say and helping me see different viewpoints on the same topics.

Adjourning is an essential piece of teamwork because it is a time for everyone to be congratulated and feel a sense of importance.  We all like to feel good about what we are doing as well as having people notice us for it. Adjourning helps that all come into place. Adjourning helps you feel that sense of accomplishment.  It also helps us realize that this chapter may be done but it is time to begin the next.

Conflict Resolution

The conflict I have chosen to share is between me and the other first grade teacher and our aide. The conflict we are having is that we have a schedule posted in our classroom of the responsibilities our aide has to do. We have already taken away a lot of the responsibilities because she was feeling very stressed and because of that was doing it wrong. So, to relieve some stress, we took away the grading and entering grades and just left her with making copies and making sure their homework was all ready to be handed out on Monday morning as well as prepping her enrichment craft so that it is ready by Friday afternoon when she would do it with the class. We have given her time frames of when to do these things to help her with her time management. These responsibilities can be done in the morning when she first comes in, during her prep, or afterschool when the children leave. The problem we are having is that she is not completing her tasks and this intern forces me and the other first grade teacher to do it for her because either way the things need to be done. We have addressed this issue with her already multiple times this year.

The strategies I am going to try to use in hopes of resolving this ongoing conflict is Think Win-Win and compromise.  In addition to those strategies, I will use the three R’s when speaking with her.  Using the three R’s when speaking will help her feel that she is not being attacked rather trying to find a way to resolve this conflict. By thinking Win-Win will help in us both get what we need completed. I will have her tasks complete so I can continue with my job and she will have time to complete hers.  In doing so, we might need to make a compromise.

I spoke with my colleague, the other first grade teacher, since she was involved too and feeling the same way as I am. She suggested we write out specific directions for the copies so that there is no confusion.  She also expressed that she was out of ideas and did not know what else to do since this was not the first time we have addressed this problem. We then went to our other colleagues for more suggestions. One suggested that if she was losing time on her prep because of her lunch duty maybe giving her extra time to complete the task so that it gets done and time is not an issue. So, we are going to try that and address the situation using the strategies and skills that I have learned and shared with the other first grade teacher this week.    

Who Am I as a Communicator

The thing that surprised me the most was how different my boyfriend and coworker scored compared to me on the Verbal Aggressiveness Scale. I scored myself in the moderate range where my coworker scored me in the low category and my boyfriend scored me in the significant category.  I think it is interesting how differently people view you when you think that you are the same across the board. This just shows how people perceive others differently for one reason or another. This surprised me because by the definitions of each group, I feel I am in the moderate group.  I know I need to work on how I share my strong beliefs and opinions. It definitely made me think twice about how I am communicating with others.

The first insight I gained deals with how we look at ourselves. I learned through reading and from the results of the tests that the way we see ourselves both how we think we are and how we think we talk has an impact on the way we communicate with others. For example, when I feel my facts and opinions are right I may speak with a tone where it says to others I know I am right and it does not matter what they say (which could be why my boyfriend scored me the way he did). This is one thing I turned into a goal in hopes of stopping that even though I was unaware it was even bad. I thought the way I stated my opinions was sensitive towards others but apparently not everyone, because the people at work scored me in the low range which was lower than what I scored myself. The second insight deals with how we perceive things and the negative effects it can have on us. One way to overcome failure is to not let emotions take over.  I also learned that our predictions can negatively or positively impact our communication. 

These insights can enhance my ability to communicate both professionally and personally.  I am more aware of how people perceive me which has actually caused me to be more careful as to what I am saying and how I am saying it. I am making fewer assumptions or opinions before talking with the person first that way my perception is less likely to interfere negatively with my communication. I am trying to gain a full understanding of the context/ content before speaking.  Implementing these goals will help in the way I communicate with my families and students as well as hopefully helping the communication I have with my boyfriend, since that is the area that shocked me the most.

Communicating Differently

Since beginning this program and especially this course, I have found that I do communicate differently with people from different groups and cultures.  I have reflected on the person I was and decided I wanted to change. I try not to stereotype or judge a person; rather I begin a conversation with that person and try to learn more about them.  I have implemented some of the skills we learned on effective communication and have made more of an effort to watch my facial expressions, body language, and tone when speaking. Lastly, I have begun to implement the Platinum Rule.

One exciting thing I started doing at school was I chose a staff member who I did not know much about. She is new to the school this year and I figured that I could maybe make our school a little more welcoming. So what I decided to do was for 10 days straight, 2 minutes a day, I make an effort to have a conversation with her about anything of her choice that does not involve something about work. That way I can learn more about her as a person.  I mean I will discuss work but that does not count towards my 2 minutes of learning something new about her.

Communication Skills - T.V. Show

The television show I chose to watch was How I Met Your Mother. In this Episode, it was Robin’s wedding day and Ted recounts the time he insisted on leaving Victoria’s fiancé a note before they drove into the sunset together.

While watching the show with no sound, I looked at the relationship between the characters as well as their feelings and expressions based on their nonverbal behaviors. A lady had come up to Ted at the train station and began talking to him.  Ted looked angry or frustrated by his facial expression and force when slamming a book closed before it went to the flashback while the lady was just starting a conversation that must have set him off.  The bride in the flashback looked nervous based on her hand gestures and watery eyes. At other times everyone looked happy and smiling at a baby that their friend just had. Then, it appeared they were having a deep conversation and blocking the other person out by their facial expressions of pretending to fall asleep while she was talking and their body language and hand gestures when talking.  When Ted is with Victoria he seems to be frustrated when he snatches the pen right out of her hand in the car causing Victoria to shake her head and talk back in a disgusted way (like did you just really do that). Then while talking with each other they body language and facial expressions appeared to be sarcastic and anger. Ted then leaves and gets out of the car. Towards the middle of the episode, Ted was trying to sneak into someone’s apartment and then is caught by a girl who grabbed his shoulder out of anger and spun him around with an angry looked on her face and a scared look on the guys face she began yelling (her eyebrows were up and she was staring in his eyes).  The relationship between these two did not seem to be very friendly. Towards the end, the friends had concern looks on their faces when their other friend was fighting with a girl in front of them. They all have a conversation together and at the end they seemed forgiving because the people they had a problem with began to cry and then they hugged. At the end, all the characters seemed relieved.   

Their relationship with each other appeared to be close friends. They hugged each other throughout the episode and held hands. It appeared that the conversations were honest and open which friends should be able to do even if the content might be deep and maybe sometimes hurtful.

When I watched the show with sound, I had a much better time watching it and understanding what was going on. I had a good interpretation of the beginning because it started out with Ted telling the lady he would rather not talk about it and then began venting to the lady.  I did however misinterpret the one scene because I thought the friends were all having a deep conversation when really they had just found out their friend was engaged and then the other couple who I thought was blocking out the person talking was really delirious from just having a baby and not sleeping in days.  I also had a misunderstanding of the scene when Victoria left her fiancé at the alter for Ted and he brought up writing a letter.  She said she never did so he was getting loud and frustrated with her because she never wrote the letter.  He forces her to leave a letter so that is when they write it in the car and Ted is forced to sneak in a leave it on the bed for him while Victoria is out in the car. When he gets caught, he waits for another opportunity and that time, leaves the keys in the room which causes him to find a way to sneak through the window and get the keys.

While all this is going on, the other friends are discussing the recent engagement of their friend.  The soon to be bride asks all the girls to be her bridesmaids.  Robin feels some kind of way because that is her ex-boyfriend that she is marrying.  When she pulls him aside, she finds out that he never told his fiancé that they ever dated.  He refuses to tell her and therefore asks all his friends to never say a word about them dating.  Then, the two friends that are delirious didn’t remember inviting everyone into the baby’s room and they accidently blurted it out thinking they were in private but she was in there. This caused tension and shock based on the brides facial expressions.  The other two really had no clue she was in there and therefore could not believe what really just happened. She then confronts her soon to be husband about the dating. She was very angry and he rushed to tell her the story before she walked out. After his story, she walks out and he is upset. Looking to the end of the show, I misinterpreted the gathering when Robin hugged her two friends; she hugged them because she was trying to tell the new parents to get some sleep when the baby started crying. She did hug them to make them feel better and then they fell asleep standing up. 

Reflecting back on the show and comparing what I interpreted with no sound and then what really happened, I learned the importance of active listening and fully comprehending what is going on.  I learned that my assumptions throughout the show were completely wrong.  I interpreted many scenes as negative based on body language and facial expressions when really they were positive.  I also learned the importance of body language and facial expressions and how you feel might not always be how another person perceives them to be. I think if I was watching a show that I enjoyed on a regular basis and knew what was going on based on previous seasons or episodes my interpretations would not be so wrong.  The one thing that I was correct on was that they were all friends and that in the end nothing will change that.

Competent Communication

Competent Communication

 

The person I believe demonstrates competent communication is my school lead at my place of employment. She is a strong leader and no matter who she is speaking with or to, she always demonstrates great communication skills.

What behaviors does this person exhibit that makes her effective?

My school lead is effective because she speaks clearly using an appropriate volume at all times. She makes direct eye contact with whomever she is speaking with.  She listens attentively without interrupting.  She makes sure she has a full understanding of what the person has said before she will respond (She told us one time that she counts to three before speaking to ensure that she has her thoughts together and to make sure the person she is speaking with is done). Lastly, she uses appropriate body gestures/body language. 

Would I want to model some of my own communication behaviors after this person? Why or why not?

Yes, I would want to model some of my own communication behaviors after my school lead.  I feel that she is very effective and successful when speaking with people.  She is always positive and never makes a person feel like they are not being heard.  I have known her for three years now and I absolutely love talking with her. She has so much to offer and is always looking to instill her knowledge in others.  If I could be half the person she is I would be happy.  If I modeled her behaviors, I feel that I would be able to communicate with anyone in any situation and feel confident in what I am saying. My first year working for her, I was very shy and stayed to myself for the most part. Now, I have been seeing and learning from her and feel like I have already grown so much.  I went from not feeling confident in speaking in front of the whole school to now leading leadership assemblies.  My goal is to continuously learn and grow from her utilizing all the communication skills she uses.