Awareness of Microaggressions

A few weeks ago my husband experienced a form of microaggression right in front of my home. My husband was in the yard doing some landscaping ( which is a loved hobby of his) and staining our outdoor bench area when a police officer passed by. He looked up at the officer and waved his hand and went back to doing his work. The police officer came by 15 minutes later and told my husband that he was doing a really nice job and thought the work was beautiful. He then asked my husband how much does he charge for work like that because his wife would love it. My husband stated, "Oh I don't do this for a living, I just like to give the front of my home a makeover from time to time." The officer laughed and said, "Yea this is your home....right". My husband stood there and repeated that this was our home. The officer looked surprised and stated that he assumed that we were renting the home. I was insulted at the remark and walked away.

Through this experience I believe that the officer was not trying to discriminate in any way but he figured that an African American family owning a home in that particular neighborhood was surprising. The fact that he laughed at my husband insisting that we owned the home was the most hurtful. The funny thing about this whole ordeal was that the officer was African American himself and I think that he believed the stereotype of the culture that we live in. He made an assumption about our living situation just based on the neighborhood and the color of our skin.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

For this assignment I spoke with my mother who is a licensed practical counselor, my co-worker Tara Frederick, and my friend April Flugence who is a realtor. I asked each of them specifically what their definition of culture and diversity was. My mother stated, “Culture and diversity a very unique topics and I believe that culture has to do with traditions of family as well as religion. It is the clothes that we wear, the food we eat, and the language we speak. Diversity is what makes us different from one another; it’s our own unique qualities.” My co-worker Tara explained, “Culture is a way of life….your way of life to be specific. It is your beliefs, morals, and your perceptions of the world. Diversity is the difference from one person to the next. It is different races, genders, and it helps to separate us once we have been categorized within a group.”  April stated, “Culture is understanding the roles of family members and family traditions. It is important to understand that what I may feel is normal in my family may be taboo in another. Diversity is what make us who we are, why we laugh, what makes us smile or upsets, and how we handle the world around us.”

After speaking with them I have learned through these conversations and my course readings that we all have the same base line understanding of culture and diversity but we each pulled out our own examples. Some of us realized that the basics of food and traditions while another realized that it has to do with our morals and beliefs. I believe that this exercise helped me develop a better understanding of the way we think as individuals when it comes to culture and diversity and no aspects were omitted in any way. We have to be accepting of differences and respect another person’s traditions, morals, beliefs and languages. My co-worker Tara is the most culturally different from me because I am African American and she is Native American, and I am married with a child on the way and she is a single woman with no children. Although we are different in these ways I felt more connected to her definitions of culture and diversity.

My Family Culture

My Family Culture

The three items that I would bring with me if my family and I had to evacuate would be my family album, my grandmother’s crocheted and last I would bring the families stock pot. The photo album holds pictures of the majority of my family members both present and deceased and in the back of the album is a very detailed family history tree. This album holds information about my family that I would never be able to uncover it were lost or destroyed it also helps to teach the next generation of where they come from. My grandmother’s blanket is something that I hold near and dear to me because as a child and young adult I remember her taking naps with this blanket laid across and when she passed away in 2004 it was the only item I requested from my father to have. It’s like always having a piece of her with me. Last but not least is the family’s stock pot, my family has gathered at my grandparents’ house many Sundays after church to socialize and enjoy a Sunday meal. I remember only good times when it comes to cooking and I how my grandmother still loves to cook for us on Sundays. I would want to bring that same tradition wherever we go.

If I were told that I could only keep one item from my family I would be completely hurt and devastated. Each of these items represents what my family is all about and that is unity, history and tradition. At first I did not consider myself as a person that would hold on to items because I felt that memories was all that I needed but I realized how important certain items are to me because it gives the history of my family. Through these items I would be able to teach my children and future grandchildren about their history and the importance of family.

When I Think of Research

What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?

Before taking this course I will admit that I was completely intimidated when it came to research. I felt that I did not have the experience or enough knowledge to speak about research. After taking this course I realized that research is just another part of learning about our social environment. In reference to children, it helps us to be able to learn different ways to interact with them, the way they learn, what affects them, and how we as professionals can do a better job with helping them. Without such research, we would know less about children's points of view, their wants and needs and their possibilities (Mac Naughton, Rolfe & Siraj-Blatchford, 2010).

In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?

My ideas have changed to be more open minded when it comes to research and less fearful. I have realized that I have learned a tremendous amount of information through this course and I have also learned that research is about putting together ideas with other professionals.

What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?

I have learned that being organized is a key part of being successful in research. You have to take your time plan out every detail of research to make sure that there is no room for error and no room for being bias. Make sure that all sources and information are valid and up to date with current findings. The design for the research must be planned out and you must decided on what methods to you  when investigating your topic.

What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?

I had some difficulty in being specific in what I wanted to focus my project on. I had problems trying to narrow my subject down to one idea to investigate. In research I learned that being to broad with an idea can lead to errors in research and conflicting data.

What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?

Early childhood professionals have an opportunity to change the direction of where the next generation is heading. We have to remain focus on assisting children and their families with providing the best care and advice we can give when it comes to education. By assisting the children we help the families and by assisting the families we can help the children. It is a continuing link that connects children to a positive future.

Mac Naughton, G., Rolfe, S.A., & Siraj-Blatchford, I. (2010). Doing early childhood research: International perspectives on theory and practice (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Research Around the World

European Early Childhood Education Research Journal (EECERJ) holds the most prestigious early childhood journals in the world. It is one of only four early years journals indexed by the Institute of Scientific Information. As I looked thru the website I noticed how this journal holds specific criteria to decide which journal topics to write about, how the conferences are developed and placed, as well as who and what organizations they will link and do partnership with. The current links/partners are with the Korea Institute of Child Care and Education and the Pacific Early Childhood Education Research Association.

As I looked through the several journal topics I learned how much this organization focused on young children. One article that caught my interest was the their most recent issue (Volume 19 Issue3) on children and their participation in research. Because this semester is focusing research and children I felt the need to read this article to see their point of view. The article stated that children are more than capable of participating in research and it valued the type of information that can be received from children.

www.eecera.org

Research That Benefits Children and Families

When it comes to the countless hours someone has put into research to benefit the families that we love we as professionals will most commonly think of deadly diseases that have either been eliminated or there is a vaccine available to the public. Yellow fever is a viral disease spread between humans as well as between certain other primates and humans by the bite of infected mosquitoes. The term yellow fever comes from the jaundice that takes over the entire body of an infected person. The disease cannot be transmitted from human to human and it is mainly passed through and area where there are high level of infected mosquitoes. In history several adults and children have been infected with yellow fever and died before a vaccination was discovered.

The first outbreaks were documented in Charleston, Virgina and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1699. A 1793 outbreak in Philadelphia killed about 10% of the city's population. Once a person  was infected the virus, within 3-4 days it was possible for that person to recover. In some circumstances those who contracted the virus went into a second phase of illness after recovery and died. Vaccines are now available and widely used  that can protect a person as soon as one week after injection and protect for the next 30 years. Sadly however, countries in Latin America and Africa still suffer with this disease and it claims the lives of 200,000 people per year.

www.hisotryofvaccines.org/content/articles/yellowfever

Topic Selection

The topic that I chose is "What is play?". I chose this topic because I have heard all too often parents state that there is no need for play in the classroom because their child needs to learn instead of play. Parents fail to realize that while their children are playing they are learning as well. They are learning about the similarities and differences between them and their classmates and sometimes other cultures. They have the opportunity to learn about music at a young age and the appreciation for art. Yes it may seem like doodling on a piece of paper but in acutality the child is learning how to control their hand for wrting as well as making certain shapes. Play is just a gudie for children to be able to explore.