Hopes and Goals for equity, diversity, and social justice

• One hope I have as I continue my path of education and lifelong learning is teachers have empathy for the families they work with.  As teachers, we are always discussing ways to teach empathy to our students.  I hope that teacher gain this skill within themselves and begin to not be judgmental towards families that are different from themselves.

• One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to set these issues at the top of importance.  When politicians and the government is looking at a program and deciding what to call quality and what is considered not quality, my hope is that a quality center is consistent with  equity, diversity, (not stereotypical surface, cliché diversity lessons, but true integration) and social justice forums. When you walk into a program you see the empathy culture is embedded into the whole classroom/center/school.

• Thanks to my colleagues and instructor I have come to a better understanding about understanding my own biases. This has given me a true understanding of how I cannot be judgmental to others that are not like me.  Everyone has walked a different path in life and by understanding this I feel I can in turn help others to understand how their biases affect their life. I appreciate all of the insight we have shared and the inspirations I have received by listening to others share their personal experiences.  All of this is part of how I view social justice and privileges in the world we live in. 

 

Denmark

·         You receive word that the child of a family who has recently emigrated from a country you know nothing about will join your group soon:

A child from Denmark will be joining our group at preschool.  Since I do not know much about this country I will need to prepare myself in order to make the child and the family feel comfortable.

1.      The first thing I would do would be to learn all I can about Denmark. I would use the internet to research the language that is spoken (Danish) and begin to piece together what everyday life is like in Denmark.

2.      I would then begin to research what early childhood practices are used in Denmark to note any difference that the child may face right away in the classroom. 

3.      I would then make sure the teachers and staff that will be caring for this child have a hand in finding out what they can do to demonstrate a loving caring environment and to make this child feel as if it is not a foreign place.   

4.      Fourth I would send out a letter to the other parents in the class stating that we are welcoming a new student.  This would not be because he is from a different country; this would be because we send out welcoming letters anytime a new student arrives in the middle of the year.  This way the parents will be able to welcome the family at family events as well.

5.      Finally, as a class we would begin to incorporate pedagogues that the child would be used to.  In Denmark they use the word workshop rather than centers and they call their teachers playworkers rather than teachers. These are the types of things we may discuss as a class prior to the child arriving.  They children may help label the different areas in Danish writings.

I would hope that these ideas would help the family and the child feel welcome and included.  I would also hope that these strategies would help the other children in the class adjust to the situation and be a recipe for community building in the classroom.

What boys think about girls- wk6

     Young girls look around at the media, magazines, and the music world and see close to perfect images. They feel that they should look this way and their self-image suffers.  This imagery suppresses a girl’s true identity.  Not only does this hurt girl’s self-images but it tells boys that this is the way girls should look.  I have heard many microaggressions in this area of my life.  I am a red head and therefore when I do not apply make-up I have “no” eyelashes. When people see me without make-up they always comment about how different I look.  When I wear make-up I hear comments about how people like how I look. This makes me feel very insecure when I am without make-up.  The video link below shows all of the touch ups that take place in an add.  Many girls and boys do not know this happens.

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=dove+video+of+girl+touch+up+makeup&qpvt=dove+video+of+girl+touch+up+makeup&FORM=VDRE
         
This type of bias diminishes equality by saying that the stereotypical girl should look one way and this is what boys look for in a girl.  The emphasis seems to be all wrong. Instead of important qualities that make a person who they are, the emphasis is on looks.

When I saw this video that Dove made about the legacy mothers have with their daughters I realized how my actions and words will affect generations that follow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pqknd1ohhT4
      
What an amazing way to help your daughter – confidence. As an educator and mother I want to ensure my biases, attitudes, and actions are positive and good for people who are around me.  Our students are sometimes with us more than their families. I want to influence their thinking in a non-bias way that supports their learning and future.