EECERA
(European Early Childhood Education Research Association) is the name of the
website that I subscribed to. The
purpose of EECERA is to increase the development of theoretical foundation of
the theme and related topics, the development of new research methodology, an
up to date overview of current knowledge and developments in the field
(EECERA.org). I am most interested in the
theme and related topics because it keeps me up to date on the latest trends
and issues. I am always concerned on
what's new around, as well I should be.
As an educator, I plan to teach my students according to the latest
theme and related topics.
Throughout
the article there were three controversial questions that stuck out to me. The questions are as follows: 1.) Should early childhood education programmers
be universally accessible and affordable to all? 2.)
Should resource programmers be targeted only at supporting those who are
in the greatest need? 3.) Is the quality factor in early childhood
education a universal concept or should it be individualized to context, and
adapted to accommodate different social and cultural constructs of
childhood. All three of these
questions are very controversial because no matter who you ask the question to,
you are guaranteed to get a different answer from.
If you ask a
politician questions such as, should all programs be affordable and should
resources only be provided to those in need, the answer is going to be the
obvious. A politician is usually running
for some sort of office and the need people to vote. Therefore, a good politician needs to seem
concerned. The answers would be very
similar to the following: every child
deserves a quality education and the resources should definitely be affordable
to them. Although this statement sounds
good coming from them, it is not always the case when they make it into the
office. Asking a neuroscientist who
needs resources to obtain a higher knowledge should be answered in one
way. But, unfortunately this can arise new
thoughts within certain people. Some
people feel like why should resources be provided to schools who already have
sufficient resources? Why not provide
low income schools with more resources?
Personally, I feel like what can be recycled should be. But, every school deserves new materials
every school year. Furthermore,
economists perceive some things to be universally accessible. I agree some things can be considered
universal, but several things are not considered universal. The most important aspect to remember is that are children are not universal, and
never will be. This is why the phrase,
"no child left behind" comes into effect. Because the system does not want any child to
fall through the cracks, the policy council and other educational
administration perform all tasks to ensure that all children can learn. Every child is important.
From this
website, I have learned to be more open minded.
There are some issues and trends that are going to be controversial,
however educators always consider what is in the best interest of the
child. Every educator, no matter where
they work, is an advocate or a voice for the children. Advocates can be politicians, neuroscientists
or economists. The qualifications of an
advocate is simply to want what's best for the child. I have learned this week to consider all
options and make them available resources when possible.
Reference
EECERA.org
I always enjoy reading your posts, Tymeshia! The resource you have chosen si one that I want to look further in now. When you say at the end of your blog "Every. educator, no matter where they work, is an advocate or a voice for the children," I couldn't agree more with that. That is one of the most important roles we play being an educator. I admire your perspectives and the controversial issues you stated are ones that I had a hard time answering as well. It was interesting to see what the different opinions. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteTymeshia,
ReplyDeleteGreat analysis! I like your quote “children are not universal”. You are right, as an educator we always plan the best for children. However, our funding kept on cutting as the politician and economist do not understand how important it is to invest upfront in the current economic would lower/ eliminate costs to the future economic.
Tymeshia,
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree that when it comes to children many questions are controversial and The No Child Left Behind Act is one of them. To some NCLB is hurting students because the curriculum is being looked at as the teachers are just teaching to the test, children’s achievements are measured only by multiple choice questions, and all students are being held to the same standard regardless of their ability. On the other hand, its supported because the achievement gap in academic performance is prevented and higher academic standards encourage children to work harder.
Hi Tymeshia,
ReplyDeleteI am unsure how the state allots money to early education, but in public schools money is given to each school per child in attendance at that school. Principals plan their budget accordingly. I know for some low income schools in my area, the teachers supplement needed resources by using donors choose and there are several local churches and community organizations that partner with these schools to pour resources in. However, I agree that our governments can improve in the financial area by allotting money to schools who are in poverty or low income areas.
I agree that educators should be an advocate for children, but in reality this is not always the case. I have worked in school settings, public and private where a teacher advocates for some children, but not all. Ideally, the career title, educator automatically equals advocate, but realistically this is not practiced.
I would like to look further into the EECERA so that I can more fully understand what they do. I like to know of the latest research and development as it relates to early childhood and I do search out what is happening in other countries concerning education.