Research that Benefits Children and Families

            When thinking of research that had a positive effect on children and families, the Abecedarian Project quickly comes to mind.  The results of this project showed the impact that health and nutrition has on children and their families.  The positive effects on the children have been long lasting up throughout adulthood.  Also through this research came the Heckman Equation.  The Heckman Equation brought an element of economics to our field.  It shows that we need to invest in early childhood if we want to build our economy and sustain our society.  The rate of return in investing in early childhood is 10%, which is substantial.  In North Carolina, we have the First 2000 Days campaign to spread the awareness of early childhood and the importance of investing in it.  It uses the research done through the Abecedarian Project and the Heckman Equation as the foundation for its campaign.  The research has been positive and critical.  It gives people information to use to advocate and invest in early childhood.

            Another exciting new research that has been conducted has been the study of marijuana oil, known as Charlotte’s Web, and its ability to reduce or even eliminate seizures in children.  This has been very controversial research especially since marijuana is illegal.  Only a handful of states are allowing patients to even take the drug.  This research is dear to me because a friend and co-worker has a nephew with Dravet Syndrome.  He is constantly having mini seizures, ranging from minor ones up to grand mal.  He is on numerous medications yet he still has them daily.  This summer, his family is moving to Colorado to receive Charlotte’s Web in hopes that it will work and he will finally be seizure free.  This is his family’s last hope and I hope that it works. 

            The downside to this research is that the long lasting effects of taking marijuana oil have not been studied simply because this is still new research.  Nobody knows what is going to happen to these children several years from now.  This type of research gives me an ethical dilemma since nobody knows what will happen to these children later in life.  But it is giving some people hope, and I cannot take that away from them.  So far the results have been positive and here is to hoping it stays that way.

My Personal Research Journey

            The topic I chose was teachers’ experience versus teachers’ education and the correlation of each to quality.  The reason I chose this topic is because in my job I see teachers who have education with no experience and I see teachers with experience with only the minimum education.  In both situations there are high quality and low quality teachers.  I hope through researching this topic I can see where the education and experience correlate with quality.  It has also been one of my personal and professional goals to professionalize the field and I feel that this simulation and the results I find will be able to be a step in furthering this goal. 

            It has been ten years since I last conducted any kind of in depth research.  Although some assignments in previous Walden classes have required some research, they have not been to the same magnitude as I am expecting in this class.  I completed my undergraduate degree in 2004 and have not had to focus on the process since.  As such, my research skills are a bit rusty.  I am hoping that the process is like riding a bike and will come back to me as I progress in this class.

            Some of the insights I have gained from the research chart and other assignments so far in this class are the importance of your topic and the importance of quality research.  First, I rediscovered the importance of a narrowly defined topic.  If your topic is overly broad, it is easy to get buried in the amount of research.  Having a narrowly defined topic will help eliminate some of the articles and research that are not beneficial to what you are wanting to find out.  Although virtually worthless in your research, they require the time to read or skim to find this out.  Having the narrow topic allows you to focus on the research that is most meaningful.  Secondly, once the topic is narrowly defined, it is important to assess the quality of the research on the topic.  There is usually a plethora of research and articles on any topic, even if narrowed down.  Not all of this research is worth using.  As the assignment earlier this week demonstrated, a low quality article or web site wastes time in your research and can lead to incorrect conclusions.  Being able to narrowly define your topic and weed out the low quality articles will aid in producing the best research results.

            Throughout the duration of this course, I would be grateful if you could share your insights and/or resources.  Likewise I will do the same for you especially as I learn what others are researching.  My biggest advice is to not be afraid to ask for help.  We are here for each other. 

International Wrap Up

            On a professional and personal level it is sad knowing that children around the world struggle with access to high quality early childhood education.  I could understand some of the “third world countries” having barriers and issues in relation to quality and access.  But some of the leading world powers have problems with quality and access to early childhood.  We are a perfect example of that.  The consequence is that it makes me want to work and advocate even harder for the children in our country and around the world.  We all have issues and that should be seen.  We are not independent of each other in our struggles.  If we can advocate for one, we can advocate for all.

            Another consequence of learning about early childhood on the international level is that I am able to learn from their efforts.  If a country had success with a program, I look at it and see how I can adapt to fit my county’s needs.  Also if something was not successful, I can learn and not repeat the mistake.  At the same, I can analyze it to see why it wasn’t successful and learn from their mistakes as well.  From researching Early Childhood Australia’s website, I came away with ideas and information.  I love how they were a one-stop shop for early childhood in Australia.  My Partnership is looking at redesigning our website.  I would love for our website to be formatted after theirs.  Plus the website also gave me additional resources I can use in the future. 

            A third consequence of learning about international issues and trends is more of an observation that I have made.  It seems that while the US is one of the leading researchers into early childhood, other countries are using our results and really making a difference.  Yes I said earlier we all have issues especially when it comes to quality and access.  But there are countries that are further along in their recognition of early childhood’s importance and making huge strides in advancing it.  We could learn from that.  We need to do more with our own research such as funding and creating or amending our policies.  It would make all the difference in the world. 

            My goal is to stay aware of issues and trends in early childhood on the global level.  I think that is key in making a difference.  By being aware, I can learn and input it into my work on the local level.  My other goal is also to keep in contact with Ms. Smith.  I have learned a lot from her and it would be great to keep that connection strong because it will help me keep in touch with the global issues and trends.

International Contacts Part 3

            One of the main problems is regulating quality in the Bahamas.  According to Ms. Smith, programs have to report themselves in order to be monitored for quality and accountability.  The issue is that some programs do not report and register.  Steps and policies are being advocated for so that all programs must register.  This also brings up another issue: monitoring.  Apparently the programs that are registered are not properly monitored due to staffing issues.  Again, policies are being drafted to address the staffing issue. 

            The ability to obtain an Associate’s Degree in early childhood is plentiful in the Bahamas.  Almost every higher learning institute has early childhood programs and certificates.  This is helpful since there are several islands that make up the Bahamas.  Most people obtain their Bachelor degrees through online learning although some of the schools do offer the program.  The Bahamas has not seen the push for higher degrees in early childhood even though the thoughts and policies behind early childhood are great.  Her hopes and dreams revolve around increasing the standards for preschool teacher education. 

            Ms. Smith and her colleagues are advocates for increased education and monitoring of standards.   She feels blessed that her country takes early childhood education seriously and is included in the Ministry of Education department.  Her hopes and dreams include increasing quality and the ability to properly monitor all programs.  The biggest challenge is the geography of the Bahamas themselves since they are a group of islands.  Tourism is also another challenge.  Potential staff for early childhood is drawn to the tourism industry because it usually pays better.  Ms. Smith hopes that more money from tourism will be put into early childhood education and draw more people to the field. 

Sharing Web Resources

            While exploring the Early Childhood Australia website, I explored several of the outside links.  The major one I explored lead to http://www.mychild.gov.au/.  This website is a parent’s dream for childcare information.  It gives parents information on different types of childcare, what facilities are in their area, the facilities’ fees and availability, etc.  The website also has many helpful links for parents to learn more information about children’s health, development, and well-being.  It also serves to provide links to parenting and family support services.  It is a one stop website for parents needing information on children, childcare, and help in Australia. 

            One area of the website I searched was about the National Quality Standard Professional Learning Program (NQS PLP), which is implemented by Early Childhood Australia in 2011.  The NQS PLP is a program designed to help the field better implement the Early Years Framework in every day activities.  It is Australia’s version of Early Learning Standards.  The NQS PLP helps teachers and other professionals find ways to implement these standards in their classroom.  Social media and discussion forums allow teachers across the country to discuss successes, idea, challenges, etc.  It also provides them with additional professional development and support. 

            From the e-newsletter, Web Watch, I found a link to an article that discusses an issue we have talked about this week, and that is access to early childhood.  The article can be found at http://greensmps.org.au/content/media-releases/national-childcare-survey-shows-parents-sector-can%E2%80%99t-afford-cuts.  A national survey was conducted that showed prices were going up for families that had children in childcare.  Costs for childcare are going up and owners/directors are passing that cost to the parents.  The article calls for additional funding for early childhood from the government to help ease the burden of costs.  Another issue is that many families are not able to find available care.  The facilities are filled up and families are put on an endless waiting list.  So you either need childcare and you cannot get it, or you have it and are paying a high price for it. 

            The information I found corresponds to the issues we have been discussing.  People have issues to accessibility and struggling to implement early learning standards to increase quality for all children.  I think the biggest insight is learning more about the NQS PLP.  I think a program like that would be beneficial in the US but it would require national early learning standards.  But I do like how it is set up to let teachers communicate with each other to learn and develop. 

            Another insight I have gained this week is that Australia seems to be more open with parents.  There is a ton of information for the parents to access.  It is also either written in user-friendly terms for the parents or early childhood terminology is explained.  Parents have access to a wealth of information and it is found online.  The websites have a wealth of knowledge for parents and it is like a one stop shop.  If they are able to access one website, there are links to others.  Although for some parents this might be a bit of an information overload.  However, I find that in the US it seems more difficult for parents to get access to information.  Websites and resources seem to be more geared to professionals in the field.  I think we need better access to parents and Australia seems to be a good model for this initiative. 

International Contact-Part 2

            I finally made contact with someone!  It dawned on me that one of the facilitators of my Cultural Competence Collaborative has international contacts.  I was correct and pointed me in the direction of the Bahamas.  I made contact with Ms. Smith who is the director of a school that serves children from preschool to 9^th grade.  I was able to learn a lot about excellence and equity in the Bahamas.

            Since I had studied school readiness for my Discussion, I talked to Ms. Smith about the concept.  She is able to see how children transition from the preschool years to the primary years due to the wide range at her school.  Like I learned in my Discussion, school readiness is dependent upon standards and achievement gaps.  The Bahamas have not been able to hide from any of these issues.  She admitted that the government was a strong supporter of the early childhood years because they realize their importance.  However, this knowledge and support has not translated into policies and laws for early childhood like she would like to see.  Standards are not what they should be.  Due to the low standards, there are variances in the quality of schools.  Ms. Smith runs a school that keeps high standards but knows of others that do not and the children that attend that school.  Those children attend the school because that is all their family can afford.  Ms. Smith is able to keep her children school ready and close the achievement gaps due to high standards and her school.  It is easy to help guide that huge transition when everything is under the same roof.  She also commented that she works with dedicated individuals that help contribute to her successes in this area.  She acknowledges that she is lucky especially compared to other schools on her island.  The biggest issue that she continues to face is polices and government support.  According to her over the past few years, this has greatly improved.  The government has created a Ministry advancing early childhood with a program called INSPIRE.  INSPIRE was created to help children who cannot get access to early childhood programs.  This program provides materials and other services to these children.  She is excited to see how this program improves the lives of these children. 

Early Childhood Australia

            I must admit when looking through the website (http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/) it seems everything is relevant to my professional development.  This website contains information about almost every possible aspect of early childhood education.  The particular sections that spoke to me the most were school readiness and children’s transitions, social/emotional development, and importance of play.  The school readiness and children’s transition section has good information for both educators and parents about how to help children transition and be prepared for school.  The sections on social and emotional development talks about how to foster children’s development and behavior.  I particularly enjoyed reading an article about cyber bullying and how to prevent in early childhood through working on children’s social/emotional development and be aware of their social media.  They were speaking about how five year olds were on social media!  Yikes!  The importance of play is for educators, parents, and politicians.  It talks about how to foster play, how parents can support play, and the importance of play for politicians to support funding to early childhood.

            It was hard to find something on this website that was controversial.  I did find a statement in school readiness that I particularly did not agree with.  It talks about how children need to be able to handle more formal, structured learning and be prepared to stay on task, cope with transitions, and understand the rules.  I think the way it was written is what caught my eye.  It almost seemed that pre-k teachers need to set up a more formal learning environment to prepare the children for the structure of kindergarten.  I somewhat disagree with this statement.  I believe that we should let children be children in developmentally appropriate practices for as long as possible.  But I truly believe this is not what they are trying to say.  Preschool does need to prepare children for rules and structure and not run in chaos.  This is appropriate and I believe this is what they were trying to convey in their statement. 

            The information on the website validates the learning from this week about economists, neuroscientists, and politicians.  Early Childhood Australia (ECA) has used financial reports from economists to advocate more funding for early childhood from the politicians.  In fact in February, the ECA complied a financial report to submit to the Productivity Commission.  The research completed by neuroscientists fuels the advocacy efforts of ECA by showing the positive effects of high quality child care.  It shows that in another country the three are working to support early childhood and how advocacy efforts keep the fire burning.

            When exploring the website, a worldwide issue popped up that I didn’t expect to find on an early childhood website.  That is the issue of global warming and climate change.  I saw the headline and thought what does global warming have to do with early childhood.  So I read the article to find out.  It discusses how we need to find sustainability if we are to successfully survive our changing climate and ways to prolong global warming.  The article says the start of sustainability is teaching these skills to our children so they learn how to be resourceful from the beginning.  I found this to be very interesting and insightful.  Australia is taking global warming seriously and they want to do something about it and start with their youngest citizens.