Professional Hopes and Goals

            It takes optimisms, passion and vision in order to create a society where all people can be nurtured and respected (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011). Over the past eight weeks, I have had the opportunity to grow immensely in my journey to becoming a more multicultural educator who is more aware of their own bias and prejudice thanks in part to each and every one of my classmates and Dr. Parrish.

            A hope I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is for each child and family to have a smooth transition into an early childhood programs where open communication, and multicultural curriculum and staff help to ensure the family feels welcomed into the learning environment. While it will take continuous education for both myself and my coworkers on diverse cultures and the adaptation of a more inclusive curriculum, I feel better now understanding how this is not an overnight process and any step is helpful in terms of becoming more understanding and welcoming to diverse individuals.

            A goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice, is for mandatory trainings in multicultural curriculum and inclusion to take place by all staff members on a frequent (annual or biannual) basis which would be funded through the government. Having access to free education for staff members can in turn help families and children to feel as if their culture is respected and the staff members understand their cultural differences both within and outside of the educational environment. If staff are unwilling to attend these workshops/events, then I feel as if this proves they are not willing to change their perspectives and do what is best for young children and families. My hope is the more educated staff are, the more welcome and passionate they will be to seeking out diverse families to attend their programs.

            Finally, I would like to extend my sincerest thank you to Dr. Parrish and each and every one of my classmates. It is because of the experiences and questions you posed which have offered me the most self-reflection and personal education on diversity, equity and social justice topics. I look forward to continually learning through all of you in future courses, yet if we do not have the opportunity to meet again, I wish you all the best in your journey to becoming an early childhood professional leader within your community and beyond!

Reference

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). EDUC 6162 Course Media. Diversity

and Equity Work: Lessons Learned. Baltimore, MD. Retrieved from

https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4732505_1%26url%3D.

Welcoming Families from Around the World

           As educators, our professional roles are evolving as our society is becoming a more global. In order to include all students into our classroom, including those whom have recently emigrated from a country we know nothing about, we need to prepare ourselves to welcome the child and their family in a way which offers support and is culturally responsive to the family’s country of origin.

            The country I have chosen to explore further for ideas in how to be the most culturally responsive I can within an early learning center, is the country of Bulgaria. I chose Bulgaria because I currently have a family friend who has emigrated to the United States and their child is in my program. According to Advameg, Inc. (2014), many Bulgarian families believe in herbal remedies over more Western-approaches to medicine, therefore they rely on Western medical approaches as a last resort. In order to be culturally responsive of my student, especially when obtaining medical records and addressing the issue of kindergarten immunizations, it is important for me to consider their cultural view of medicine and not push my philosophy of the importance of kindergarten immunizations on them, yet I can educate them about why we believe in them through a brochure which we have available for all families. One way I can help be culturally responsive to the family is to recommend holistic doctors within our community and to offer a waiver to the kindergarten immunizations as part of their welcome packet in case this is the route they wish to continue to take with their child.

            Another way in which I will prepare myself to be culturally responsive is to learn which language the family speaks, as well as the nonverbal gestures common within their country. According to Advameg, Inc. (2014), Bulgarians shake their head side-to-side to state a ‘yes’ response and up-and-down to state ‘no,’ the complete opposite of many European cultures. As Dr. Garcia stated in his own experiences about language barriers within the education field, having someone who can communicate, understand and appreciate your language shows respect for your cultures, allowing students to maintain their cultural identities (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011).

            Other ways which will help me to be cultural responsive towards this family will be to understand the family’s child-rearing practices and cultural traditions in order to incorporate their culture into my classroom through books, manipulatives and toys, mini-lessons and an allowance for the children to practice their religious customs within our early learning program. As stated by Advameg, Inc. (2014), about half of Bulgarian residents are Christian, with the other half being Muslim. Knowing which celebrations such as Ramadan, Christmas, etc., the child practices will be important so I can enrich their culture within my classroom, allowing for the child to feel included and respected.

            At last, I will ensure I am culturally responsive towards this child and their family by offering them a list of resources within the community which will help with their transition to the United States. This list will include health care facilities, ethnic and traditional cuisine restaurants which they may enjoy trying, fun places which other children in my program enjoy in order to help the child meet friends and feel more welcomed within our society, as well as many other cultural events within our society which they may be interested in attending. According to Advameg, Inc. (2014), the Bulgarian culture enjoys learning about many diverse cultures while still maintaining their own traditions. They are a culture marked by inclusion of many cultures, therefore they find it important to continually experience different opportunities. By suggesting many activities to do within our society which both offers diverse experiences, as well as activities which reflect their Bulgarian culture, my hope will be the family and child will begin feeling welcomed into our diverse society.

            My hope in preparing these culturally responsive practices within my classroom for this family and myself would  be to allow for a smooth transition for the child and family into their child’s first educational experience within our country where open communication, respect and diverse curriculum are incorporated. Through continued communication with the family, child, and Bulgarian support groups within our community, I hope to continually learn about how to accommodate the Bulgarian culture into my classroom while helping the child to feel welcomed and free to be him/herself.   

Reference

Advameg, Inc. (2014). Culture of Bulgaria. Retrieved from http://www.everyculture.com/Bo-

Co/Bulgaria.html.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). EDUC 6162 Course Media. In his own

voice: Dr. Eugene Dr. Garcia. Baltimore, MD. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_4732505_1%26url%3D.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

            Derman-Sparks & Edwards (2010) define prejudice as “an attitude, opinion, or feeling formed without adequate prior knowledge, thought, or reason. Prejudice can be prejudgment for or against any person, group, or gender” (p. xiii). One of the most prominent examples of prejudice within my own life happened when I received my first job in a local nursing home.

            After applying for numerous jobs and getting excited to become more independent by finding my first job, I was happy when I received an interview and call-back from a local nursing home working in their kitchens. After accepting the position and beginning my job, I noticed many of my coworkers having a ‘chip on their shoulder’ and an attitude towards me as if I was not adequate enough to work there. At first I had attributed their attitude towards my age (15), yet was still confused as to why this would matter as other 15 year old individuals also worked in my department. It was not until later on that one of my colleagues finally told me the other workers felt as if I was just ‘handed my position’ because my sister had worked for the same department for years. I was very frustrated to find out people’s thoughts about how I had received my position, which I was so proud to have. None of my coworkers knew my qualifications, knew me as a person, or knew how hard I had worked to prepare for the interview and develop my resume. Instead, I was met with attitude and microaggressive behaviors.

            In my specific example, I felt the prejudice I had received due to my sister being a former employee diminished equity as I was not treated fairly and was not welcomed into my new position. People did not care to train me in as thoroughly as I should have and when asking questions, I felt as if I was a burden to many of the coworkers. Thankfully after my boss talked with many of the workers, the attitudes began to diminish, yet I still felt as if I was not being accepted into my workplace the same way as the other new employees whom I was hired with.

            Determined to work hard, I set my frustrations aside and proved myself as a dedicated, hard worker through picking up any extra shifts I could and being ‘overly’ nice to my coworkers. Eventually my coworkers saw how I had a lot of skill set to offer to their team and although it was exhausting at times going above and beyond picking up extra shifts just to prove myself to my coworkers, I finally felt accepted after several weeks of working there.

            In order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity, I believe the staff need to have the opportunity to attend in-service trainings where they learn about diversity, interpersonal relationship skills, as well as how to work together as a team. From my point of view, I wish I would have said something sooner to my boss in order to eliminate the prejudice towards me sooner. By finding my voice and talking with my coworkers, as well as my boss, perhaps I could have avoided exhausting myself as I attempted to prove my worthiness within my position.

            Examples of prejudice are prevalent all around us in society. If we do not begin standing our ground and advocating against microaggressive behaviors, then we will not see a reduction in people’s behaviors. The first step is to begin within ourselves and allow ourselves to reflect on our own personal bias and prejudice through educating ourselves about where bias and prejudice are initiated, then we can begin to help other individuals to make the same changes within their own lives, eventually leading to a more understanding and accepting society.

Reference

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and

ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).