Wow, I am not sure what to say about the international challenges. I was very disappointed to not have a contact outside of the United States to share information and resources with. I think it is a fantastic idea and a great way to collaborate with other professionals. I was very interested to read about situations that children have experienced such as natural disasters and how this affects development. At times the scope of thinking about things becomes very narrow. For example, I never considered how the tsunami of the Indian Ocean affected young children's development in terms of early childhood education. I, of course recognized the trauma this would inflict, but not how different age groups had to respond to the tragedy and what the implications for that may have been. I think there are cultural challenges that exist too. As I said maintaining open mindedness and not viewing things so narrowly also comes in terms of ethnocentrism as well. Poverty, religion, culture, norms, mores are all unique to individual societies and interpreting those things in context, as opposed to within the limitations our own culture allows can be challenging. Lastly, at this stage of our professional journey we can make contacts, increase our knowledge base, but ultimately how do we contribute? I suppose I feel a little of my disappointment in not having a contact can be tied to this thought. I know I want to reach out. I want to learn more, I want to contribute to Early Childhood Education regionally, nationally, and internationally. Mentor-ship from established professionals is one way in which this can be accomplished. I feel breaking into that atmosphere can be challenging.
So with regard to the challenges faced and my drive and passion to contribute, my international goal would be to eventually form a type of sister city program linking a program I am working with in combination with a program internationally. I am very interested in The Congo, Angola, or Pakistan for this international resource. There is so much to be learned and even in life when consulting a third party opinion things seem clearer to that other party. I believe having a supportive program to collaborate with, as well as work to enhance young lives strengthens us as professionals. Also, this increases the exposure to cultural diversity for our young children we serve, and hopefully leads to a spirit of altruism later in life.
I admire your large vision. I am not a travelers so linking with a sister city so far away, would definitely be stretching my comfort level. I do appreciate how the elements of similarity and difference have contributed to my understanding of first and second generation immigrants that I have the opportunity to know.
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ReplyDeleteI was also disappointed to not have an international contact. However, I found the podcast so informative. I think your idea of a sister city is wonderful. As we have certainly learned, we share more in common than we have differences around the world. Mandy, we have shared many classes together, hope to see you in many more.
Mandy I hope that the classmates who've had no responses continue on with connecting internationally. This is probably something rarely experienced when advocating for young children. This would be a great disservice and something that could stop or impede success. You have such a great international goal that could help several children and families. I wish you the best of luck and I'm sure I'll see you in another class.
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