Dear Dr. Myers,
The class on early childhood development has changed my assumptions on language acquisition and communication. I am very grateful for these insights on development, in disbelief on how narrow minded I was before taking this course!
Thank you for your class and words of encouragements!
MarieFrance
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Thank You!
Dear Colleagues,
Reflecting with you on childhood’s sensitive issues has been comforting and, thanks to your shared expertise, I feel a lot closer to early childhood needs.
Reading your posts and responding to your questions has been a growing experience. Studying for the master in early childhood has somehow propelled me on a therapeutic introspection. I greatly appreciated the support you offered in sharing your personal life events.
As my daughter is getting married in October, I postponed the next class to November and I will probably join another group.
To All, A Big Thank You, A Big Hug
Good Luck!
Marie
Reflecting with you on childhood’s sensitive issues has been comforting and, thanks to your shared expertise, I feel a lot closer to early childhood needs.
Reading your posts and responding to your questions has been a growing experience. Studying for the master in early childhood has somehow propelled me on a therapeutic introspection. I greatly appreciated the support you offered in sharing your personal life events.
As my daughter is getting married in October, I postponed the next class to November and I will probably join another group.
To All, A Big Thank You, A Big Hug
Good Luck!
Marie
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Child development - Looking for ways to communicate and play
Professionals in the field of education must keep in mind that all children are different and that it is every educator’s challenge to celebrate their differences. Too often, educators and caregivers are caught in convenient generalizations, labeling children’s behavior and progress with scientific words instead of first describing the situation and later offering a diagnostic.
“I can remember the frustration of not being able to talk. I knew what I wanted to say, but I could not get the words out, so I would just scream”. Temple Grandin
Educators and caregivers must remember that anger and “bad” behavior indicate issues that have not been verbalized. Would signing the language a palliative to inhibited verbal expression?
I have become a big fan of sign language since I learned that non hearing infants can communicate their feelings through signing the language much earlier than their speaking peers.
“Men should learn to live with the same seriousness with which children play.” Nietzsche
I love Nietzsche’s approach to life because it feels like abstract art: the artist decomposes and offers the individual’s mind to make sense of the painting by putting pieces together in their own way. Each one must find the answer or own interpretation of the writing or the painting.
“Play is the highest form of research.” Albert Einstein
Dr. Gopnik emphasized the importance of play and offered to explore computer programs, saying that good programs provide an exploration time and also an exploitation time such as those found in play. Adults are competent in exploitation but no longer in exploration. Einstein compounds these two ideas with the term research where the scientist explores a hypothesis until they can exploit one experiment and turn it into a theory.
References
http://www.great-quotes.com/quotes/author/Temple/Grandin?full_site=0
http://www.childsplaymagazine.com/Quotes/index.htm
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/286612-play-is-the-highest-form-of-research
“I can remember the frustration of not being able to talk. I knew what I wanted to say, but I could not get the words out, so I would just scream”. Temple Grandin
Educators and caregivers must remember that anger and “bad” behavior indicate issues that have not been verbalized. Would signing the language a palliative to inhibited verbal expression?
I have become a big fan of sign language since I learned that non hearing infants can communicate their feelings through signing the language much earlier than their speaking peers.
“Men should learn to live with the same seriousness with which children play.” Nietzsche
I love Nietzsche’s approach to life because it feels like abstract art: the artist decomposes and offers the individual’s mind to make sense of the painting by putting pieces together in their own way. Each one must find the answer or own interpretation of the writing or the painting.
“Play is the highest form of research.” Albert Einstein
Dr. Gopnik emphasized the importance of play and offered to explore computer programs, saying that good programs provide an exploration time and also an exploitation time such as those found in play. Adults are competent in exploitation but no longer in exploration. Einstein compounds these two ideas with the term research where the scientist explores a hypothesis until they can exploit one experiment and turn it into a theory.
References
http://www.great-quotes.com/quotes/author/Temple/Grandin?full_site=0
http://www.childsplaymagazine.com/Quotes/index.htm
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/286612-play-is-the-highest-form-of-research
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Assessing Children in Schools
At first, it would seem logical to assess “the whole child”. But, wait! What exactly does “whole child” mean”? Does it imply that the body protecting our vital organs and our brain should be assessed? Or, does it mean that only the head containing the brain should be assessed? And then, should the left brain be assessed first and then the right brain, or should they be assessed at the same time? So many questions for one obvious answer: Yes! The whole child should be assessed because what really matters is to know that children are on track regarding their own development. Since educators cannot promote maturity, they only can teach and recycle the information taught so that everyone eventually internalizes it. In that light, assessing students through keeping a running record of their achievements seems logical.
Secondly if schools continue to merely test students on their intelligent quotient (IQ), they would benefit from adding social-emotional learning (SEL) classes to their curriculum. Studies indicate that students who had high emotional quotient (EQ) were more likely to be successful in school than those with lower scores (Goleman, 1995). Students who are emotionally mature are more able to design bright and happier futures. SEL classes coach students how to evaluate and manage their emotions, strengths, and limitations in achieving their goals; to make positive choices and relationships; to work in teams and resolve conflict (CASEL). In the US, both affluent and inner city schools have been at the forefront of developing and implementing SEL programs. Also, John Pelliteri demonstrates in his article, "Emotionally Intelligent Interventions for Students with Reading Disabilities", that emotional intelligence helps regulate emotions by being able to interpret them, facilitating the thinking process and the acquisition of academic knowledge. Pelliteri explains that students with reading disabilities are more susceptible to being affected by adverse emotions, such as low self-esteem leading to bullying or aggressive behaviors. Pelliteri affirms that SEL classes have greatly helped his students gain confidence, and succeed both in their academic and personal lives. According to the National Bureau of Education (IBE), an autonomous part of UNESCO:
“Academic and social-emotional learning is becoming the new standard for what is considered the basics that children should acquire during their schooling. Each student deserves the opportunity to have his potential developed.The combination of academic and social-emotional is the most promising way to accomplish this goal. In so doing, educators are also preparing students for the tests of life, for the responsibilities of citizenship, and for adopting a lifestyle that is literate, responsible, non-violent, drug-free, and caring” (Elias).
While searching information on how the Netherlands assess their students, I came upon a UNICEF document where child’s well-being in the wealthy countries of the OECD, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. On page 4, the document indicates “no obvious relationship between levels of child well-being and GDP per capita”, and places the Netherlands in first place for child well-being. Surprisingly, the Netherlands also uses standardized tests to assess their students but formal school starts at 6 when children seem to be most ready for sitting and learning in a school environment. In disadvantaged areas, schools receive subsidies to create smaller classes and support their students with the use of technology. There is a huge effort to create inclusive schools and to broaden the cooperation of schools and their environment “connecting schools with real life” (Snoek M. and Douwe Wielenga D., 2001). According to Snoek and Douwe “The curriculum of teacher education should foster initiative, creativity, pride and responsibility by the learner, must be practice based, product driven and demand driven, must be holistic and competence driven, and should accommodate assessment methods accordingly.”
References
Goleman D.Emotional Intelligence.The 10th Anniversary.New York:Bantam Dell,1995.Print.
CASEL:Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning. Social and Emotional Learning for School and Life Success.Retrieved from:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:IAnLHyO1tH4J:casel.org/wp-content/uploads/ParentPowerPoint.ppt+CASEL+power+point+social+emotional+learning&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
Pelliteri J. et al."Emotionaly Intelligent Interventions for Students with Reading Disabilities." Reading & Writing Quarterly 22.2(2006):155-71.Web.Apr.2006.
Elias M.J. "Academic and social-emotional learning." Education Practices Series 11 (2003).Web.2011.
UNICEF. A comprehensive assessment of the lives and well-being of children and adolescents in the economically advanced nations.Innocenti Research Centre.Report Card 7.Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/media/files/ChildPovertyReport.pdf
Snoek M. and Wielenga D. Teacher Education in The Netherlands.Change of gear.June 2001.Retrieved from: http://www.seeeducoop.net/education_in/pdf/workshop/tesee/dokumenti/COUNTRIES_NEDERLANDS.pdf
Secondly if schools continue to merely test students on their intelligent quotient (IQ), they would benefit from adding social-emotional learning (SEL) classes to their curriculum. Studies indicate that students who had high emotional quotient (EQ) were more likely to be successful in school than those with lower scores (Goleman, 1995). Students who are emotionally mature are more able to design bright and happier futures. SEL classes coach students how to evaluate and manage their emotions, strengths, and limitations in achieving their goals; to make positive choices and relationships; to work in teams and resolve conflict (CASEL). In the US, both affluent and inner city schools have been at the forefront of developing and implementing SEL programs. Also, John Pelliteri demonstrates in his article, "Emotionally Intelligent Interventions for Students with Reading Disabilities", that emotional intelligence helps regulate emotions by being able to interpret them, facilitating the thinking process and the acquisition of academic knowledge. Pelliteri explains that students with reading disabilities are more susceptible to being affected by adverse emotions, such as low self-esteem leading to bullying or aggressive behaviors. Pelliteri affirms that SEL classes have greatly helped his students gain confidence, and succeed both in their academic and personal lives. According to the National Bureau of Education (IBE), an autonomous part of UNESCO:
“Academic and social-emotional learning is becoming the new standard for what is considered the basics that children should acquire during their schooling. Each student deserves the opportunity to have his potential developed.The combination of academic and social-emotional is the most promising way to accomplish this goal. In so doing, educators are also preparing students for the tests of life, for the responsibilities of citizenship, and for adopting a lifestyle that is literate, responsible, non-violent, drug-free, and caring” (Elias).
While searching information on how the Netherlands assess their students, I came upon a UNICEF document where child’s well-being in the wealthy countries of the OECD, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. On page 4, the document indicates “no obvious relationship between levels of child well-being and GDP per capita”, and places the Netherlands in first place for child well-being. Surprisingly, the Netherlands also uses standardized tests to assess their students but formal school starts at 6 when children seem to be most ready for sitting and learning in a school environment. In disadvantaged areas, schools receive subsidies to create smaller classes and support their students with the use of technology. There is a huge effort to create inclusive schools and to broaden the cooperation of schools and their environment “connecting schools with real life” (Snoek M. and Douwe Wielenga D., 2001). According to Snoek and Douwe “The curriculum of teacher education should foster initiative, creativity, pride and responsibility by the learner, must be practice based, product driven and demand driven, must be holistic and competence driven, and should accommodate assessment methods accordingly.”
References
Goleman D.Emotional Intelligence.The 10th Anniversary.New York:Bantam Dell,1995.Print.
CASEL:Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning. Social and Emotional Learning for School and Life Success.Retrieved from:
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:IAnLHyO1tH4J:casel.org/wp-content/uploads/ParentPowerPoint.ppt+CASEL+power+point+social+emotional+learning&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
Pelliteri J. et al."Emotionaly Intelligent Interventions for Students with Reading Disabilities." Reading & Writing Quarterly 22.2(2006):155-71.Web.Apr.2006.
Elias M.J. "Academic and social-emotional learning." Education Practices Series 11 (2003).Web.2011.
UNICEF. A comprehensive assessment of the lives and well-being of children and adolescents in the economically advanced nations.Innocenti Research Centre.Report Card 7.Retrieved from: http://www.unicef.org/media/files/ChildPovertyReport.pdf
Snoek M. and Wielenga D. Teacher Education in The Netherlands.Change of gear.June 2001.Retrieved from: http://www.seeeducoop.net/education_in/pdf/workshop/tesee/dokumenti/COUNTRIES_NEDERLANDS.pdf
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Consequences of Stress on Children’s Development
War Stories
At the beginning of WWII, a German boy was born in a military family. His father climbs up the ladder of Nazi ranks and takes charge of constructing bunkers on the European coasts. Of age to attend the Hitler Youth, the boy’s brother is enlisted. Strangely, this young boy was insensitive to Nazi ideology, would not let himself be indoctrinated, devised a stratagem, and successfully obtained his release from the training camp. At the end of the war, father is interned in a camp where he dies from starvation; mother dies from tuberculosis and children integrate an orphanage. Although relentlessly promoting peace and tolerance, the youngest boy bears the shame and guilt that his parents’ generation has left for legacy, never being able to apply the principles of peace and tolerance to himself. All his life, the youngest boy deals with conflicting and irresolvable feelings of love for his father as well as intense hatred for having adhered either by choice or by cowardice to Hitler’s mandates. End result: unmanageable post traumatic stress disorder and a sacrificed life seemingly offering his life in repayment for his parents’ mistakes. Forged in a time of intense emotional crisis, the young boy’s identity is unable to shift.
In another country, a Jewish girl born well after WWII continues to nurture hatred for anything German, perpetuating her parents’ victim syndrome. Forged in a time of intense emotional crisis, the Jewish girl’s identity is permanently impaired.
Perhaps affected by her cultural environment and the media, a non-Jewish girl identifies with the Jewish culture at a young age. Curiously, her behaviors exhibits stresses expected from people having lived through a war. Are people like her the necessary links to extend memories and feelings when actual witnesses are gone?
About Poverty, Hunger, and Violence Here and There
Having to fare for himself, a very young boy was accustomed to roam the neighboring streets scavenging for food. Alarmed by the condition of this very young boy’s teeth appearance, a teacher alerts CPS, Child Protective Services, who remove the child from his unsafe home where he also was subjected to random acts of violence and abuse. Neglect, hunger, and violence since birth prevent the child from thriving emotionally and linguistically. Thanks to recent science discoveries, we know that the brain continues to grow until the age of 25 giving caregivers hope that their children have a chance to catch up with development. Unfortunately, from his emotionally non-available caregivers’ situation, the young boy has developed reactive attachment disorder which prevents him from healing his early childhood scars. Only caregivers’ patience and unwavering trust in life’s marvels may give the child enough time to catch up with expected childhood’s growths such as a disposition for trust, respect for authority and abandon of controlling issues, and empathy.
Brazil
A UNICEF Look at Childhood Poverty in Brazil
Retrieved from: http://www.google.com/search?q=child+poverty+in+brazil&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7SKPT_enUS428
Not surprisingly, the last slide confirms that black children from rural origin cared for by a very young mother (20) with no specific professional skills because she only attended school for 7 years, 3 brothers, and no father fit the profile for poverty stricken children.
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Nutrition and Malnutrition
Nutrition and Malnutrition
West and East
North and South
Every continent
Every country
Dissension
Food and water are quintessential for life sustenance. In the western world, water is so cheap that it has been stripped off its value, and people have difficulties fathoming the devastating effects of lack of water and safe drinking water. On the other hand, food is also a problem in western societies due to their inherent inequalities. For the majority, westerners have access to water but may encounter hardships buying food and having access to nutritious food.
While pregnant, women know how being well fed matters for the child they are bearing, and having access to enough calories coming from a variety of sources must be a priority. When food is lacking, the fetus will use the available amount of food to optimally continue to develop the brain to the detriment of other body parts of lesser survival significance such as legs and arms. Expecting mothers who receive adequate nutrition have a better chance to give birth to healthy babies and to be able to breastfeed their babies. In the first few months of infants’ lives, breast milk shields them from nasty infections and diarrhea; hence, the importance of breastfeeding in general and particularly in developing countries. In Mali, infants’ mortality from diseases had decreased 30% from 1987 to 1996 because for at least the first 4 months of their lives mothers breastfed them. Also, infants started to eat solid food at 6 months which allowed them to fight diarrhea (PubMed, 1997). It is fascinating that food and water, two trivial elements in the western world, are the causes for such catastrophes in developing countries.
According to the Pediatrics (1997), there has been an increase in obesity among American children 4 to 5 years old and it is suggested that measures preventing obesity be taken as early as preschool. Surely, young children have also become more sedentary but something needs to be done in the quality of food that children ingest. At Parklawn Elementary School Alexandria, Virginia, First Lady Michelle Obama (The White House) made clear the benefits of launching school lunch standards; nutritious food to support children’s academic efforts and also to support children for whom lunch might be the only meal of the day.
With this information in mind and with much respect for parents’ cultural values, it is necessary that (my school) schools develop and practice healthy food habits. Networking with the community might bring solutions to raise funds toward nutritious lunch meals and snacks. I am looking forward to work on the school and community project that will look for creative answers to resolve diet and health issues. Food for thought!
References
Alisha Wilson. Why Breastfeeding is a Natural Shield Against Illness for Your Baby. Feb.3, 2007. Retrieved from: http://voices.yahoo.com/why-breastfeeding-natural-shield-against-illness-184582.html
PubMed. US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. Malnutrition in Mali: a major concern for child health.News/Macro/Syst/Inst/Resour/Dev/Demogr/Health/Surv.1997;9(1):3-4. Retrieved from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12292676
Pediatrics. Prevalence of Overweight Among Preschool Children in the United States, 1971 Through 1994”. Vol. 99 No. 4 April 1, 1997. pp. e1 (doi: 10.1542/peds.99.4.e1)
The White House. Remarks by the First Lady in School Lunch Standards Announcement. Office of the Press Secretary. January 25, 2012
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Childbirth
It is now common place that optimal birthing environments and fulfilled mothers benefit babies about to take their first breath. With compassionate care and understanding, mothers’ limited stress and pain welcome their progenies to this world; holding hopes they will be the most intelligent and the strongest. Understandably, this was my disposition. However, the feature documentary “Babies” left no doubt in my mind that babies anywhere in the world show the same intelligence regardless of what parents do to boost their babies’ brain development (Babies, Thomas Balmès, 2010).
Whenever the conversation drifted to pregnancy, I told my friends loud and clear that getting an epidural was the only way I could give birth because women did not need to give birth proving right the Bible, Genesis 3:16 “To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children." In college, I became close friends with a woman pregnant with her second child who confided that giving birth was more likely to inflict pain but the kind of pain you would feel when you exert yourself physically. As the idea of physical challenge grew and I wanted to welcome my baby in a peaceful and friendly environment, I decided to give birth in a pool with the epidural backup plan. At the beginning of my seventh month of pregnancy, the clinic with the pool closed down. At this point, I was ready for the natural birth still having my backup plan as an option in case of excruciating pain. Fortunately, the clinic where obstetricians shared this philosophy had a spot for me. I took yoga classes to help with the process and was determined to use the traditional Native American way of giving birth, standing up and squatting (Holmes Pearson E., 2012). The midwife told me that I could choose any position that would make me feel more comfortable and explained how I should carry through with standing up and squatting. I understood what my friend meant with intense physical effort. When my body accompanied the contractions’ downward movement, it was comparable to pushing my already exhausted and achy body to run to an invisible finish line. My husband helped me in every contraction pulling me back up and holding me so that I could rest a moment. To better monitor the dilation, the midwife asked me to lie down on the table for the last twenty minutes. Unfortunately too late for the epidural, I understood the unconditional choice for the epidural.
In each circumstance concerning their bodies, women should have the possibility to choose the way they want to give birth. My mother in law only had a vague recollection of her two birthing experiences and with the regret of having oxygen widely dispensed to her as was widely practiced at the time. Also, it makes sense that mothers should enjoy the beautiful moments that lead to giving life, therefore requiring some kind of pain management.
More importantly and even if to this day I encourage women to start labor the way Native American women used to, at least some of them, with the idea to avoid unnecessary pain, good nutrition and knowledgeable midwives should provide mothers a physical and emotional safe environment to give birth. Thanks to an experienced midwife who delivered my sister at home, my mother survived a breached birth because the midwife succeeded in turning around the baby at the last minute, safely extracting her. Moreover, the baby turning blue was saved by the same midwife who, understanding the situation, took the necessary steps to relieve the baby.
Curious about Africa’s practices, I came upon two websites concerning Mali. Nicole Warren (2009) “Empowering Birth Blog” explains Malian midwives’ difficulties in responding to 60% of births that require formal training. Malian midwives “Matrones” need training in order to successfully respond to challenging deliveries (Warren, 2009). A horrific example of difficult childbirth can be found on Canadian International Development Agency page “Mali - Dignity, Compassion, and a Trade, 2011). The Malian organization “Delta Survie” sponsored by the Canadian Agency works to rehabilitate women suffering from fistulae, an incredible one in three women (Canadian International Development Agency). Clearly, trained people need to accompany women in childbirth.
References
Babies, Thomas Balmès, Amandine Billot, Christine Rouxel, Alain Chabat , May 7, 2010 (USA), Retrieved from You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vupEpNjCuY
Holmes Pearson E., Ph.D., 2012, retrieved from Center for History and New Media at George Mason University, http://teachinghistory.org/history-content/ask-a-historian/24097
Nicole Warren, PhD, Empowering Birth Blog, October 03, 2008
http://empoweredbirth.typepad.com/empowering_birth_blog/2008/10/mali-midwives.html
Canada International Development Agency, Mali – Dignity, Compassion, and a Trade. 2011, Retrieved from: http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/acdi-cida.nsf/eng/ANN-1223115410-MTW
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)