Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

As I prepare to finish my master's in early childhood education, it is important to think about the vast job opportunities that are available for me both domestic and international. Below are a list of international organizations and agencies that I found interesting, which are dedicated to making social change in the lives of young children and their families.

1. Child Trends- "Child Trends is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center that provides valuable information and insights on the well-being of children and youth" (childtrends.org). Their mission is to "improve the lives and prospects of children and youth by conducting high-quality research and sharing the resulting knowledge with practitioners and policymakers" (childtrends.org). Although this is an international company it is locally based and have an office located in Maryland. One of the jobs that I found most interesting was the Research Assistant- Early Childhood. I liked this position because it evolved assisting scientist in conducting research in the early childhood field. The requirements for this position are having a bachelor's degree (P.H.D preferred) in their field of early childhood, strong written skills, good verbal communication, and the ability to analyze data. 

2. International Step By Step Association- "ISSA’s vision is a society where families, communities and professionals work together to empower each child to reach her or his full potential and embrace values of social justice and equity (issa.nl). Their mission is to "support professional communities and develop a strong civil society that influences and assists decision makers to provide high quality care and educational services for all children from birth through primary school (birth through 10 years old), with a focus on the poorest and most disadvantaged, ensure greater inclusion of family and community participation in children's development and learning, and ensure social inclusion and respect for diversity" (issa.nl). Job opportunities were not as clear as other organizations that I discovered. You can become a member of the organization and many of its members hold job positions in other early childhood fields. They do have the following positions although none of them are currently open: executive director, program director, senior program manager, membership officer, officer coordinator, and communications officer. I was drawn to this organization for it's mission and vision and felt a connection to them. 

3. Art Building Children's Dreams (ABCD): ABCD's mission is to provide support to vulnerable children and families around the world so that they can accomplish their dreams (abcdreams.ca). "Art Building Children’s Dreams is to provide financial assistance to the schools and families of orphans and children at risk by using the children’s art to raise funds for their education and for community development" (abcdreams.ca). One of the jobs that most interested me was the instructional design and facilitator position which designs, plans, and facilitate trainings for developing countries educational systems services young children (abcdreams.ca). They qualification for this position were not listed because this position is not available at this time. 

Reference 

Art Building Children's Dreams. 2015. Retrieved from http://abcdreams.ca/

Child Trends. 20105. Retrieved from http://www.childtrends.org/

International Step By Step Association. n.d. Retrieved from http://www.issa.nl/

This week I have been challenged to look at national organizations and federal agencies that provide services to young children. This is an extremely important task because there are many jobs in the field of early childhood that are not publicly recognized. I feel this is the perfect challenge for me because I need to look outside the box for possible jobs in my field and really explore my options so that I can find one that speaks to my passion.

The first organization I discovered was the National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Education. This organization mission is to enhance professional develop opportunities for teachers, advocate for improvements, discuss educational issues, provide a communication network, and work with other organizations but local and national (naecte.org). There are various board positions, regional representative positions, and non-board members paid positions. You can also find and search research and journals about early childhood issues and trends.

The second organization is the National Child Care Association supports public policies that benefits children. They host conferences, professional developments, special events, and programs. They provide the latest news, journals, and research in the field of early childhood. I was not able to find any job postings but they did have a like to become apart of the NCCA's Lobbing Team.

The third organization I found is one the Association for Early Learners and their mission is to "promote  leadership development and enhancing program quality through the National Accreditation Commission's standards. Since 1984, Early Learning Leaders have been serving childcare directors, owners and administrators" (earlylearningleaders.org). They provide online training, conferences registration, accreditation registration, and webinars. Again, I was not able to find job posting for this organization. 

In conclusion, I was disappointed in my research because I did not discover the information I was looking for in possible positions that are with in these organizations. I looked at several organization and agencies I had the same problem. I hope that others were more successful and that I will be able to learn and discover new position through my colleagues. 

References

Association for Early Learning Leaders (Association for Early Learning Leaders)

http://www.earlylearningleaders.org/

National Child Care Association. (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.nccanet.org/

NAECTE - Home (NAECTE - Home)

http://naecte.org/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

This week, I was challenged to find at least three local or state organizations that I found appealing and find job opportunities that I thought were interesting, listing skills and experiences that I would need to fulfill each of these roles. In the state of Maryland I was able to find three organizations that I found appealing. The first organization is the Maryland State Child Care Association their mission is to assist in the growth and advancement of Maryland licensed childcares and learning centers (mscca.org). I found this organization interesting because I have a close connection to their mission and vision. I understand the professional development and growth it takes for child care center to become licensed and to maintain that license. This organization supports these centers by providing them with valuable state resources to help them stay on top of current changes and new information. They also provide trainings and conferences in the state of Maryland. The second organization, I discovered was the National Child Care Association based out of Washington, DC. This organization mission is to support policies and regulations that are good for all children (ncc.site-ym.com). They hold special conferences, professional developments, provide articles and resources for members to access. The third organization I chose was the National Early Childhood Teacher Training Association which thrives to build and implement a bi-lingual eLearning experience that uses technology to allow early childhood leaders to reach their goals (nectta.org). They host training all over the state of Maryland for early childhood professional through online classes for an affordable price. I found this organization interesting because I have a passion for training early childhood professionals. These organizations would be great assets to my community of practice because they have valuable information and resources that will be useful in my efforts to extend pre-k to all children in Maryland regardless of economic status. 

There were many teaching opportunities in Maryland and opportunities to work as a director of a daycare center but since I already have experience in those fields I wanted to look deeper at other job opportunities that were not commonly known to early childhood professionals. I came across three that I thought were really interesting, the first job was a position with the State of Maryland as an Education Program Specialist 1. The salary for this position is between $ 60,543.00 and $97, 203.00. The duties include providing support to early childhood programs focusing on early childhood inventions, progress monitoring, and assessment practice. Applicants for this position must have a Master's Degree in Early Childhood Special Education, Early Childhood Education and four year teaching in the field of early childhood. The second job opportunity that I discovered was Professional Development Manager for Apples for Children, which is located in Hagerstown, MD. It did not list the salary range for this position but the duties are developing and implementing professional development for early childhood professionals. Applicants for this position must have a Master's degree in Early Childhood Education, experience teaching adults, and developing professional development sessions. The last job I saw that was different was at John Hopkins University for a CEO position for their partnership school. The CEO will be responsible for establishing evidence-based practice and innovation in Early Childhood Education and Elementary and lead in creating high performing school servicing a diverse community. The salary range for this position is between $90,000.00 to $120, 000.00 and applicants must have a Doctorate degree in Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, with experience in school leadership. 

For each of these positions I will have to have a graduate degree in the field of Early Childhood and experience working with young children. Some of the positions require that I have leadership experience, understand how to work with adults, and develop and implement trainings. I feel that I will be able to meet these standards with the completion of my Master's degree and entering in to the Doctoral program at Walden University for Early Childhood Education in October. I am also entering in to a teacher leadership program, which starts at the end of this month as well as continue to provide professional development sessions for my school and the professional development training coordinator. I was glad to find position outside the norm that meet what I am currently doing and where I feel I can greatly impact the field of early childhood education.   

 

Best Wishes

During the past year, we as a collaborative have grown so much and now that is time for us to venture off the thought of departing is bitter sweet. When I first started I was scared that I would be able to form deep lasting relationships with anyone because everything was online and that I needed to be able to see and hear people to feel connected to them. Today, look back a year ago I know that my fear was wrong and that I was able to establish relationship with other in a positive manner that was critical to my personal and professional development.

As we move on, I want to share how deeply each one of you has enhanced my educational experience, my personal reflection, and my professional well-being. Thank you for being open and honest, providing deep understand of analysis of deep concepts, giving me great feedback, and encouraging me to dig deeper into my own understanding. I wish you all the best in you future educational, personal, and professional paths. Maybe one day our paths will cross and we will be able to, once again, support each other in the fight for equity in the early childhood profession. I can't wait until we all graduate and walk across that stage and that is when we will truly understand what we just went through.  

Adjourning

Forming a great team takes time and dedication as you go through all the five stages of team development and finally making to the last stage of adjourning can be bitter sweet for everyone involved (Abudi, 2010). During my first two years of teaching, I was partnered with the other kindergarten teacher and be immediately collaborated together. Our partnership formed quickly and we few past the stages of forming, storming, and norming. For a long time we operated under the performing stage effectively and accomplish many goals and tasks that were beneficial for the children we served (Abudi, 2010). Our mission became apparent to anyone who knew us as we operated as one. Each one of us having our own talents and skills we brought to the table; we where able to facilitate many successful initiatives. Time came when my partner and her husband decided to move back to their home town and our partnership ended. It was very difficult for me and I was really sad. We both knew that we would miss each and that a partnership like this does not come along everyday. 

One of things I wish we have done was to celebrate our accomplishments and took time to reflect on what really worked well and what we could improved on (Abudi, 2010). This would have helped us in our future partnerships. Since then I have a new kindergarten collaborative partner who is just as awesome as the first. Even though the relationship is different, we still went through the first three steps of the team development phase. We have established a sense of fun, our common goals, and unitize each other skills and talents. I feel that both groups that are high-performing and that have clear established norm are hard to leave. 

As I think about ending my time at Walden University, I know it will be difficult leaving my peers who have help guide me through this learning process. Each one of them has been helpful and supportive and provided me with necessary resources I needed to be successful. I hope that as we venture to the stage of adjournment we are able to celebrate our success and acknowledge that hard work and effort we have put into this cohort during commencement. Adjourning is important because it helps everyone transition and feel like their job was well done; it is a great way to bring closure to a collaborative team.

References

Abudi, G. (2010). The five stages of team development: A case study. Retrieved from http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/the-five-stages-of-team-development-a-case-study.html

Conflict Resolution

This week we were asked to think about a disagreement or conflict we have experienced recently and share at least two strategies that might help us manage or resolve the conflict. I found this topic to be right on time to what I am experiencing in my life and to what is happening all over the world. The ability to resolve conflicts has puzzled man kind for many of years and has caused devastating effects on us all. Why are conflicts so difficult and why can't finding common ground be simple? A conflict is "a negative interaction between two or more interdependent people, rooted in some actual or perceived disagreement" (O'Hair and Wiemann, 2012, pg. 220). Conflicts have to ability to create huge divides or generate positive powerful relationships. The same elements that repels us from conflict is the same element that draws us near. So how do we get to the other side of conflict where we land on the promise of resolve? This week I have become fascinated with the topic of conflict resolution and have made many discoveries but first lets look at my own personal conflict dilemma.

Last week, I engaged in a difficult conversation with my husband about household chores and responsibilities. The conversation left both of us frustrated, mad, and angry in which no resolution was found. For the life of me I couldn't figure why the conversation got so heated and how we got to a point  we no compromise was made. I mean we both live in the house, we both care about making sure household responsibilities are meet, and we both have a shared investment into our relationship. Surely we should have been able to figure our some why to solve this problem. Feeling a little lost and confused to why this conversation went sour; I begin to do some studying to finds some answers. I was able to figure two strategies that could have helped me promote a climate of mutual respect and resolve. The first strategy is the use of non-violence communication which means to communicate with compassion, empathy and assume the good in people (http://www.cnvc.org). The second was the cooperative strategies which are "strategies that benefit the relationship, serve mutual rather than individual goals, and strive to produce solutions that benefit both parties (O'Hair and Wiemann, 2012, pg. 237). 

Both of these strategies require me fist to reflect on my own personal views and see how they influence my reaction to the conflict. I must identify those biases and viewpoints that prevents me from being open minded and understanding of other people perspectives when they differ from my own. I must be able to make connections with the other person and try to find commonalities between our varying perspectives. Then, I must be willing to properly evaluate the problem and figure out collectively how this conflict can be resolve where both parties feel that they are valued and appreciated. "Both participants in a conflict discuss the situation and arrive at a solutions that fully satisfies each of them, the conflict has been resolved in a win-win manner (O'Hair and Wiemann, 2012, pg. 245).

How do you deal with the pressures of conflict? What strategies did you discover this week that will help you improve you conflict resolution skills both professionally and personally? 

Reference

O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.

The Center for Nonviolent Communication. (n.d.). The center for nonviolent communication. Retrieved from http://www.cnvc.org/

Communication Profile

For this week blog assignment we had to take three test; each test evaluated my communication skills in three areas: verbal aggressions, listening style, and communication anxiety. I selected to people to evaluate me as well my sister in-law and my brother. I selected the both of them because I thought it would be interesting to see how they would rate me because of our diverse relationship. I am older then my brother by three years and he is also the youngest child. I wanted to see how he would rate me since I am his big sister and sent most of my life bossing him around. Whereas my sister in-law and I have a very different relationship. We communicate often and spend lots of time with each other, she is in the early childhood field, a teacher, and we have common interests. I also wanted to see if how their husband and wife relationship might reflect in the evaluation scores.  

When I took the tests I scored a 31 on the communication anxiety, my listening style is group 1, and my verbal aggression score was 67 (Runbin, 2009a) (Runbin, 2009b). These scores tells me that feel comfortable communicating with others, I'm empathic to needs and desire of others, I can be too trusting, and that I maintain a good balance with respecting others viewpoint (Runbin, 2009a) (Runbin, 2009b). When my sister in-law took the assessment I fell in the same categories for all areas. Surprisingly, when my brother took the assessments he scored me in the same categories except in the verbal aggression we he scored me in the moderate category (Runbin, 2009a). I was shocked about that because I thought that my brother would rate me as having poor communications skills across the board. Don't get me wrong we have a great relationship but we also play a lot with each other and pick on one another and I thought that aspect of our relationship would impact his interpretation of my communication style. 

I know that I put in extra effort to ensure that I am communicating effectively in a professional setting but when I'm around family I don't make the same conscience effort. I was shocked to now that my family feels that my communication style is effective and that I have learned communication skills that translate in both my personal and professional life.

Reference

• Communication Measures: Rubin, R. B., Palmgreen, P., & Sypher, H. E. (Eds.) (2009a). Communication research measures: A sourcebook. New York: Routledge.
• • "Communication Anxiety Inventory"
  • "Verbal Aggressiveness Scale"
    Copyright 2009 Taylor & Francis Group LLC Books. Used with permission from Routledge via the Copyright Clearance Center.
• Communication Measure: Rubin, R. B., Rubin, A. M., Graham, E. E., Perse, E. M., & Seibold, D. R. (Eds.) (2009b). Communication research measures II: A sourcebook. New York: Routledge.
• • "Listening Styles Profile-16" 
    Copyright 2009 Taylor & Francis Group LLC Books. Used with permission from Taylor & Francis via the Copyright Clearance Center.