The example of microaggression I observed this week was at Walmart. Several people were in line for Customer Service returning items. There was a couple two people ahead of me who spoke limited English. I think they may have been they may have been of German or Polish descent. The person in front of me was extremely rude remarking that if they didn't want to learn English, they should have stayed wherever they were from. She was loud and boisterous. The couple obviously did not understand what she was saying and the customer service person did a great job trying to help them and make them feel comfortable. After they left, that person continued her little tirade and the clerk hurried her along as quickly as she could. Obviously to her, her behavior was amusing, because she laughed and carried on like she was at a party. No one else in line was laughing.
I personally, felt horrible for this couple who expressed no idea they even knew what she was talking about. I was also pleased to witness that no one else in that line agreed or participated with her. Perhaps, we are further along in our understanding of how microaggressions affect the people they target.
My perception of the way some people still react to non-English speaking people has widened to know that as many steps forward we make towards unity, there is always someone available to move us back 2 steps! Sad, but true. Being in the 21st century makes little difference to some people, who living in a small town like I do, do not get enough exposure to the real world!
Friday, November 23, 2012
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
3 Opinions on Culture and Diversity
The first person I questioned was my husband. His definition of culture is the work ethic ( you can't tell that is important to him, right??), mannerisms, and parental leanings (generational) you inherit from your family. Diversity is going out of the box to engage others without fear.
My second person was my eldest son, Michael. His definition of culture is the way you are raised, how you learned to socialize, and the methods you use to define yourself. Diversity is how people do everything differently and how you adjust to it.
And thirdly, I chose my manager at work. She said culture is the dynamics of anywhere you are. She also said that diversity is the differences you don't know.
The answers I received did include some examples of what I am learning in this course. I particularly liked my husband's answer about going out of the box and approaching others without fear. Diversity is all about how you relate to and adjust to others.
Examples of some omissions are really not evident to me. I think that they pretty well covered culture and diversity. I was actually proud of their responses.
My second person was my eldest son, Michael. His definition of culture is the way you are raised, how you learned to socialize, and the methods you use to define yourself. Diversity is how people do everything differently and how you adjust to it.
And thirdly, I chose my manager at work. She said culture is the dynamics of anywhere you are. She also said that diversity is the differences you don't know.
The answers I received did include some examples of what I am learning in this course. I particularly liked my husband's answer about going out of the box and approaching others without fear. Diversity is all about how you relate to and adjust to others.
Examples of some omissions are really not evident to me. I think that they pretty well covered culture and diversity. I was actually proud of their responses.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
My Family Culture
A major catastrophe.............I am imagining all different types of scenarios. The three items I would choose to bring with me would be my bible, a family photo and the dog. I hold the bible dear to me and would explain it as my "rule book" to remind me how to live my life. I would bring a family photo so I can remember my family with love and be reminded of how dear to me they are. And lastly, I would bring our dog because he is a true reminder of the love we share. My children have always had a dog and although we have gone through a few over the years, they are always loved like family members and would be lost without us and us without them.
My feelings upon arrival if I was told I could only keep one item would be extreme devastation. I would probably experience the same feelings I had when I had to choose only three items in the aftermath of the major catastrophe. I would definitely feel lost and floundering. All three of the items I chose are integral parts of my life and who I am.
The insights I gained just from doing this exercise are enormous. It must be devastating to leave behind all you hold dear and then move to a place where you will never see any of your family or "things" again. Refugees are lucky to have their lives, but I am sure some of them feel like they were leaving their entire lives behind and had no idea of what direction they should go in. How easy it must have been to sweep them up and assimilate them into the dominant culture! If really thinking this through doesn't make you more culturally sensitive, nothing will!
My feelings upon arrival if I was told I could only keep one item would be extreme devastation. I would probably experience the same feelings I had when I had to choose only three items in the aftermath of the major catastrophe. I would definitely feel lost and floundering. All three of the items I chose are integral parts of my life and who I am.
The insights I gained just from doing this exercise are enormous. It must be devastating to leave behind all you hold dear and then move to a place where you will never see any of your family or "things" again. Refugees are lucky to have their lives, but I am sure some of them feel like they were leaving their entire lives behind and had no idea of what direction they should go in. How easy it must have been to sweep them up and assimilate them into the dominant culture! If really thinking this through doesn't make you more culturally sensitive, nothing will!
Friday, October 26, 2012
When I think of Research....
The insights I have gained through this course are many. I have learned there are many ways in which research is classified, and I have only begun to understand a few of them. Many avenues have to be considered before beginning a research adventure.
I have changed my ideas about research because I had no idea research was such a complex endeavor. I am in awe of people who do this as a career.
The challenges I have encountered have been the complexity of dissecting a research method in order to better understand it. I believe the only ways available to meet it are to slow down and take it step by step.
My perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified because I truly had no idea of the immensity of a research foundation. I understood it required much work, but perhaps not the magnitude of it!
I would like to thank my classmates for all the positive comments and support they have provided throughout such a challenging course. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Davis for enlightening us about such a necessary subject. She has truly showed us the light at the end of the tunnel! I wish blessings to all and good luck in your future endeavors!
I have changed my ideas about research because I had no idea research was such a complex endeavor. I am in awe of people who do this as a career.
The challenges I have encountered have been the complexity of dissecting a research method in order to better understand it. I believe the only ways available to meet it are to slow down and take it step by step.
My perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified because I truly had no idea of the immensity of a research foundation. I understood it required much work, but perhaps not the magnitude of it!
I would like to thank my classmates for all the positive comments and support they have provided throughout such a challenging course. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Davis for enlightening us about such a necessary subject. She has truly showed us the light at the end of the tunnel! I wish blessings to all and good luck in your future endeavors!
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Research Around the World
I was very interested in the Early Childhood Australia website. It is very similar to the NAEYC website. Some of the current international topics that I noticed were: Childhood Allergies are on the Rise; this interested me because it seems the same here in the United States. However, Australia is reporting the highest of any other country!
Workforce Strategy is in the news because each state and territory government have committed to develop implementations that outline steps to be taken to support people to join the Early Education and Care workforce and get the qualifications and skills they need to support children from diverse backgrounds and with differing needs.
Crisis in Syria is a report about how it is affecting children and families. At AlZaatari Camp there are 5000 children under the age of 4! How will this affect their futures?
Australians belive in the support of their youngest citizens. Something the United States could take lessons in.
I found the information on this website very noteworthy and I would definitely look here in the future to see what types of things are happening internationally and how Australia is dealing with problems that are similar to ours.
Workforce Strategy is in the news because each state and territory government have committed to develop implementations that outline steps to be taken to support people to join the Early Education and Care workforce and get the qualifications and skills they need to support children from diverse backgrounds and with differing needs.
Crisis in Syria is a report about how it is affecting children and families. At AlZaatari Camp there are 5000 children under the age of 4! How will this affect their futures?
Australians belive in the support of their youngest citizens. Something the United States could take lessons in.
I found the information on this website very noteworthy and I would definitely look here in the future to see what types of things are happening internationally and how Australia is dealing with problems that are similar to ours.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Research that benefits....
I started out with good intentions! I decided to talk about fluoride. Research done on fluoride showed it would be beneficial to our children's teeth, right? Well, in a Harvard study in July, has found that there is a relationship between fluoride and reduced IQs! The U.S. fluoridation proponents have continued their approach of forcing individuals, including children to ingest fluoride through tap water and food made with it. The United States in conventional risk assessment uses a default margin of safety that is ten times the levels that cause adverse effects. (Harvard study, 2012).
This truly was to be about how fluoride in the drinking water was good research to strengthen our children's teeth! Once I started looking for articles, however I ran across this one and it was over!
As the public is learning, there are deeply disturbing details that have been omitted from reports about fluoridating our water. Some children are at much greater risks than others. "A UNICEF-funded study (http://www.fluoridealer.org/uploads/lin-1991.pdf) for example, found that children with iodine deficiencies suffered reductions in IQ at low fluoride levels. (Harvard study, 2012). This situation is unnerving and very serious. Fluoride is toxic and the USDA has the public believing it is beneficial to us! How many children will suffer needless harm because of our government's inability to tell us the truth?
Thank you for letting me share this information with you. Please go to this website and read it for yourself!
Reference:
Harvard study, (2012), Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.fluoridealert.org/hsph_2012/.
No Difference in Tooth Decay between F and NF countries. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.fluoridealert.org/issues/caries-data/
Many Children Now Exceed Recommended Daily Fluoride Intake From Toothpaste Alone. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://S4780.sites.pressdns.com/issues/sol-toothpaste/
This truly was to be about how fluoride in the drinking water was good research to strengthen our children's teeth! Once I started looking for articles, however I ran across this one and it was over!
As the public is learning, there are deeply disturbing details that have been omitted from reports about fluoridating our water. Some children are at much greater risks than others. "A UNICEF-funded study (http://www.fluoridealer.org/uploads/lin-1991.pdf) for example, found that children with iodine deficiencies suffered reductions in IQ at low fluoride levels. (Harvard study, 2012). This situation is unnerving and very serious. Fluoride is toxic and the USDA has the public believing it is beneficial to us! How many children will suffer needless harm because of our government's inability to tell us the truth?
Thank you for letting me share this information with you. Please go to this website and read it for yourself!
Reference:
Harvard study, (2012), Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.fluoridealert.org/hsph_2012/.
No Difference in Tooth Decay between F and NF countries. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.fluoridealert.org/issues/caries-data/
Many Children Now Exceed Recommended Daily Fluoride Intake From Toothpaste Alone. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://S4780.sites.pressdns.com/issues/sol-toothpaste/
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Personal Research Journey
My chosen topic for this simulation assignment is children's mental health or perhaps their emotional health. The experienc I had personally is listed below:
We gained custody of my stepson at the age of 4. He was badly damaged and it has been a long road back to health. With my passion for young children, seeing a child in these circumstances made my heart cry out and at that time, I wished for more knowledge. We followed different avenues to try to get a handle on what was happening, and looking back I can remember it was almost always a decision that was left up to me. As I look at him now, thirty years later, I am assured I chose paths that benefitted him. He is happily married with 2 sons. I just wish I would have had better answers for him and myself when we were both experiencing things on a trial and error basis.
I do believe that in researching these topics, if I can help a family look to the proper sources for information, then my research will have been worthwhile. One of the most difficult things to do is to make those decisions while you are experiencing the problem. I can sympathize with these families and instead of jumping at the first offer of help, they can turn to the source that has been proven effective. This would make their journey just a little bit easier.
Also, another reason would be to be able to obtain the proper type of education for young families that are seeing emerging difficulties due to a lack of knowledge of how regulation can assist separation anxiety. I see many parents and children who have a difficult time separating at child care centers and sometimes even with grandparents. To instill the knowledge in them about how assisting their children in regulating themselves can be invaluable to separation anxiety would be priceless. This needless suffering they go through on a daily basis can be eliminated. Of course, they must learn this in childbirth classrooms so we don’t wait until they have not achieved self-regulation to try to correct it.
And lastly, the topic of child abuse which is very painful. My stepson had been abused by his mother and her new husband. Whatever I could do to try to eradicate this horrible plague would make it worthwhile. To look into a child’s eyes and see that terror is not something a parent should ever have to experience, nor should any child. I am adamantly committed to taking proper care of children, so it is very difficult for me to see someone use physical punishment to discipline a child. I raised my stepson and my son without spanking them. If people teach children respect first and foremost, they will find it is unnecessary to spank them. It is a very difficult world to raise two fine young men with only a mother to care for them, but it can be done. I am not looking to commend myself, only stating that I know firsthand that it can be done! If I found it possible somehow to inform parents of the crucial roles they play in their children’s lives at birth or before then, I would make it my lifelong commitment to inform all people! I have always said that giving new parents a diaper bag at the hospital is a lovely gesture, but why not give them a parenting class that would greatly benefit them and their brand new babies much more than a bag! Our society is in dire need of radical changes to keep our children safe. I would like to be a part of it.
If anyone has any advice or insight in this that might help the process, I welcome it! It makes it easier and more difficult to research something so personal!
We gained custody of my stepson at the age of 4. He was badly damaged and it has been a long road back to health. With my passion for young children, seeing a child in these circumstances made my heart cry out and at that time, I wished for more knowledge. We followed different avenues to try to get a handle on what was happening, and looking back I can remember it was almost always a decision that was left up to me. As I look at him now, thirty years later, I am assured I chose paths that benefitted him. He is happily married with 2 sons. I just wish I would have had better answers for him and myself when we were both experiencing things on a trial and error basis.
I do believe that in researching these topics, if I can help a family look to the proper sources for information, then my research will have been worthwhile. One of the most difficult things to do is to make those decisions while you are experiencing the problem. I can sympathize with these families and instead of jumping at the first offer of help, they can turn to the source that has been proven effective. This would make their journey just a little bit easier.
Also, another reason would be to be able to obtain the proper type of education for young families that are seeing emerging difficulties due to a lack of knowledge of how regulation can assist separation anxiety. I see many parents and children who have a difficult time separating at child care centers and sometimes even with grandparents. To instill the knowledge in them about how assisting their children in regulating themselves can be invaluable to separation anxiety would be priceless. This needless suffering they go through on a daily basis can be eliminated. Of course, they must learn this in childbirth classrooms so we don’t wait until they have not achieved self-regulation to try to correct it.
And lastly, the topic of child abuse which is very painful. My stepson had been abused by his mother and her new husband. Whatever I could do to try to eradicate this horrible plague would make it worthwhile. To look into a child’s eyes and see that terror is not something a parent should ever have to experience, nor should any child. I am adamantly committed to taking proper care of children, so it is very difficult for me to see someone use physical punishment to discipline a child. I raised my stepson and my son without spanking them. If people teach children respect first and foremost, they will find it is unnecessary to spank them. It is a very difficult world to raise two fine young men with only a mother to care for them, but it can be done. I am not looking to commend myself, only stating that I know firsthand that it can be done! If I found it possible somehow to inform parents of the crucial roles they play in their children’s lives at birth or before then, I would make it my lifelong commitment to inform all people! I have always said that giving new parents a diaper bag at the hospital is a lovely gesture, but why not give them a parenting class that would greatly benefit them and their brand new babies much more than a bag! Our society is in dire need of radical changes to keep our children safe. I would like to be a part of it.
If anyone has any advice or insight in this that might help the process, I welcome it! It makes it easier and more difficult to research something so personal!
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