Connecting with different
countries and different programs has really helped me in understanding
different ways people view early childhood and the similarities that they all
share. I really find the e-newsletter Early Childhood News very informing. It
touches on different issues and concerns across the board. It provides
resources for teachers and parents. Another resource is the Head Start program.
It allows me to view different cultures and families throughout the world. The
NAEYC is also an important resource that I have become very familiar with as I
continue my studies in Early Childhood. Every resource is very useful and
important. Other than reading articles, I like connecting with other
professionals throughout the world. Speaking to people and hearing their
advice, testimonies, concerns, etc. is one of the most reliable and valuable resources.
Every resource has really helped and provided information to guide me through
my course and career.
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Getting To Know Your International Connections
With much joy, I was able
to get in contact with a relative that has been studying in Africa for the past
2 years. I asked her several questions about the poverty in Africa. She is
located in South Africa in city called Cape Town.
Me: How is poverty in Cape
Town?
Relative: When I first
landed in Africa the airport was beautiful but when you got on the road it was
a township in the center of all this beauty and modernization of South Africa.
The poverty is right in the middle of progress which is very shocking. There
are three major townships; Langa (which means “Sun”), Nyanga (which means “Moon”),
and Gugulethu (which means “Our Treasure”).
Townships are homes that all of the poor Africans live in. Townships are
homes that are built out of tin majority have no electricity or water. When
visiting these townships you should have an escort because there are no street
signs, so you need to be accompanied by someone who knows their way around.
Me: How does this affect
the children?
Relative: There is no
playground or grass for the kids to play safely. The kids do not have a place
to study and they live in a place of filth and they are prone to more diseases.
Even though the kids are poor and they do not have much at all, they seem
really happy playing with their stick and rocks. : Children ages 0-4 years top
20 reasons of death is because of HIV/AIDS. In 2007 60% of children were dying
because they were underweight for their age and 50% was because they were in
stages 3 and 4 of HIV.
Me: Are there any
improvements?
Relative: The Government
built an Apartment Building. These buildings are very old and rundown but it is
a step up from the shacks. However, they are still located in the townships. In
one apartment there are three rooms with three beds in each room. It is not
setup where one bed is for one person, one bed is for one entire family. Some
of the apartments are still without electricity and running water.
Me: How are the schools?
Relative: The schools are
only three mini buildings. The school that I visited was a secondary school
with only three rooms for fifth, sixth, and seventh grade. There are not enough
desks, the books are few and outdated; there are no windows and nothing to
protect them from the rain and winter. There is no cafeteria, no playground,
and no gym. There are a lot of students because they are eager to learn.
Parents are expected to pay for their child to go to school, which is hard for
many because they are ill and have AIDS and other diseases.
Me: How do you fix poverty?
Relative: Fix the family
structure. There needs to be health care coming to the family regardless of
their current health situation. There needs to be education provided for these
parents and job placement programs. A lot of children drop out of school after
secondary because they need to help support the family or raise their younger
siblings because their parents have died from either curable diseases or they
cannot get access to HIV care.
South Africa has nine
provinces (communities) for a total population of 47 million people. Of those
47 million 86% are African, 9% are Colored, 9% are White. All of the resources
and funds are going to the two 9% populations. So the question is, how are you supposed
to bring them out of poverty when most of the funds and resources are going to
the minority and not the majority. If the cycle is not broken then poverty will
never improve.
From this conversation I was able to get a
better understanding of the poverty level in Africa. I realized that the people
that are well off are never going to struggle but the ones that are struggling
will continue to struggle with minimum assistance. The children seem happy with
what they play with but what happens when their parents die. They are left to
become orphans and drop out of school.

Picture of the Township homes

Saturday, September 14, 2013
Sharing Web Resources
The
topic I choose was the post-quake in Haiti and how the kids are coping with the
change since 2010. The earthquake killed thousands of people and destroyed
hundreds of homes and also tore apart families. There are a lot of children in
foster care because they lost their parents and other family members, therefore
the orphan rate doubled since then. There are many organizations that are
supporting Haiti. Here is the mission statement for one of them called, New
Life Community Project of Thomazeau, Haiti, Inc. The Day Care Program mission
will provide early childhood education and intervention services for preschool
age children who have been unable to attend school due to health issues,
transportation and financial difficulties. A significant number of children
do not receive the educational benefits of preschool. This program will
be designed to serve two hundred children from ages two and a half to five
years old (newlifeofthomazeau.org).
The
UNICEF is also an organization that is providing support and materials for the
children in Haiti. The UNICEF provides the children with early childhood
development kits that includes dominos, coloring pencils, construction blocks,
hand puppets, puzzle pieces, and memory game just to name a few. They realize
how important it is to educate children under the age of five and the
difference it will make when they enter school. The UNICEF is also training the
teachers who will spread their skills to other teachers on how to monitor
pupils on a daily basis and evaluating individual children’s well-being
(unicef.org). The ECD programme also includes education for parents on
non-classroom aspects of child development. Parents learn proper nutrition and
sanitation to protect children from waterborne diseases, and what they can do
at home to help their children prepare for school (unicef.org) This is very
important it allows the parents to be a part of their child’s education and how
to help them at home and how to be health conscious and safe. This website was
very helpful and I want to continue my research on the children in Haiti and
how they have learned to deal with trauma and poverty.

These additional resources are very informative about the young children in Haiti and their programs. There are a lot more that I will be adding as I continue my research.
www.unicef.org
www.newlifeofthomazeau.org
www.jrs.net
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources
For part one of the blog assignment, I left several
messages and sent emails to different groups and organizations around the world.
I have not received a response yet but I know I will. I was able to sign up and
contact professionals in Global Fund for Children. I also have a personal
contact in Africa but she has yet to respond to my email. I will continue to
reach out to more people until I receive a response.
For part two of the blog assignment I expanded my
resources by researching and exploring Harlem Children’s Zone (http://www.hcz.org) and Pre-k Now (http://www.pewstates.org/projects/pre-k-now28067).
There were a lot of websites that
interest me so I am sure that I will expand my research even further. Even though
I have not got in contact with other people I am very confident I will and look
forward to the information I will gain when I do.
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