Moving on to More about Diversity

As I begin my sixth course toward my Master's degree, I am looking forward to learning more about views on diversity.  I think it is easy to come to conclusions about diversity that are somwewhat narrow.  As  I viewed the video Playing for Change on youtube, I was taken back by how that was put together.  I also viewed the clip Imagine.  I must admit, I am a huge Beatles/John Lennon fan so it caught my attention in the list.  I enjoyed watching it and was moved by it.  I am looking forward to what lies ahead.

When I think of research.....

            As I reflect on the past eight weeks, I have come to realize I am in a different place than I was at the onset of this course. I began with many feelings of apprehension since my experience and education related to research of any sort was very limited.  The terminology, methods and principles all seemed so complex.  Each week as we added a new element to our simulation and read more to understand the terms and process, I gained a little more confidence.  

            My “fear” of studying research has been addressed somewhat.  I feel that I have gained knowledge in all areas including the terms, the process and how to be sure that any research I would consider conducting is done keeping in mind the importance being equitable.

I also learned about being conscious of the feasibility of a topic I would study. Initially, my question was too broad and had too many elements to consider investigating.  Through the weekly assignments, I learned to narrow the scope.  This was my biggest challenge as I thought about a question.  I knew what I wanted to accomplish but not exactly how to begin.   

            For me, the notion of equity was new to me as it is related to research. I continue to think about how important this is. Going forward, it will always be a consideration in my work. I will also consider using the process we learned to conduct actual research related to my various aspects of my work. I don’t think I would have considered this prior to taking this course.  All in all, it has been an interesting and worthwhile experience

Early Childhood Australia

Research around the World

I viewed the website Early Childhood Australia.  The information was easy to access and seemed very current. The site had a wealth of information on key early childhood research. The articles and books are not free to retrieve but a summary is provided on the website. I reviewed an article entitled ”Children’s Resilience: Working with the Early Years Learning Framework”. The article explained how work has been done to use the Early Years Learning Framework to help formulate strategies for enhancing children’s resilience.  It also provided information on the factors that contribute to a child’s resilience.  Another interesting article, “Greening Services-Practical Sustainability” provided strategies for helping children gain an understanding of the importance of recycling.  The final article I reviewed, “Young Children as Active Learners” supported children being self-directed in their learning.  It also discussed the importance of play.  I found it interesting that the current research in Australia is very similar to what is currently being studied in our country.

            I was surprised to find the research on promoting being green and our responsibility to sustain our earth on a preschool level.  The focus was on involving children in many ways.  It just seemed like much more than celebrating Earth Day one day per year as we do in our country. I also was surprised to see the similarities between Early Childhood Australia and our professional organization, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).  Many things aligned closely.

            I found the many videos especially interesting. They covered many different topics and provided many useful strategies. One video reviewed the types of care for children.  It referred to “long day care”.  This was a term I never heard before but watched the video and came to understand it as extended hours for working parents.

            All in all, I found the website well designed and easy to navigate.  I was somewhat surprised at the amount of similarity in the Code of Conduct as well as the many topics that supported best practice as we know it.

Reference

Early Childhood Australia- http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au

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