I recently watched The Help (Taylor, Green, Columbus, Barnathon, Radcliffe, Berkus, Skoll Lunsford ,Blum, Al-Mazrouei & Jones, 2011) remembering that this is the world I grew up in.
There was the overt aggression by the white family of not allowing their African American maid to use the family's washroom. By building her a separate room outside the house, they thought they had done well and were not guilty of racism. Even to the point that they commented on how fortunate she was to have her own space (Taylor, et al. 2011).
One of the privileged ladies commented that all would be right again once 'this whole Civil Rights thing blows over''(Taylor, et al, 2011), This showed show a complete denial of the plight of the African Americans, her fellow citizens.
The 'right' she referred to later was being 'separate but equal' /9taylor, et al., 2011). From her position of privilege she remained completely unaware of the inequity in her own household.
When her journalist friend was taking on the role of advocate for the maids she warned her that there were 'real racists in this town (Taylor, et al, 2011). Again she remained totally unaware of her racists attitudes and actions. She further admonished her advocate friend that things were fine the way they were. That there was no need to make changes.
When the journalist, a white lady, approached the maids about telling their stories she framed her request by saying she wanted to 'understand what it is like from your side' (Taylor, et al., 2011). One of the African American ladies phrased it later as 'what it feels like to be me'.(Taylor, et al., 2011).
A little aside, it was not only racism rampant at this time but also sexism. The femaleness of this journalist was not appreciated. The opening line upon meeting a potential boyfriend was him asking patronizingly what she did with her time.
There was no equity for the African American women here. They were fired/expelled in a moment with no chance of defending themselves with the truth. They were in constant threat physically. There was no question from the white families that they were inferior to the point they didn't matter and were lucky for anything they could receive from the white society.
I was struck with the immensity of the battle for one human to ask respect from another human. The latter being 'Christian' and 'civilized' makes the dilemma all the more difficult to understand.
In this particular case it took an advocate to help the minority get their feet under them. Someone who listened and let their voice be heard. This was a part of a much bigger march to victory that continued to gain advocates from the dominant community. Someone from the dominant culture moving to inform her own and empower the other. Before the oppressed could move forward they needed to rebuild belief in themselves and their inalienable worth.
Reference
Taylor, T., Green, B., Columbus, C., Barnathon, M., Radcliffe, M.A., Berkus, N., Skoll, J., Lunsford, S., Blum, J., Al-Mazrouei, M. K., Jones, D. (Producers), & Taylor, T. (Director). (2011). The Help (Motion Picture). (With E. Stone, V. Davis, B.D. Howard & O. Spencer). United States:DreamWorks.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Respect and Dignity for All
This account is from quite a few years ago now but I think speaks to the ignorance of microagressions. The First Nations people of Canada endured the indignity of Reservations and Residential Schools during the early years of the 20th Century. During my lifetime they were working to reclaim what had been taken from them but were still outcasts in their own country.
One of the 'allowances' the government provided was exemption from sales tax. As a young adult I was unaware of this. I was running in a retail transaction as usual when my First Nations customer quite sharply informed me that he did not have to pay sales tax. He then produced a card with a number that was entered into the system. I apologized for my ignorance and he apologized for the snap. There was an unspoken embarrassment on both of our parts. He left the store to return to his little plot of allotted land.
This token act by the dominant culture went further to marginalize First Nations people as citizens of Canada. What they needed was the freedom to pay taxes, to have equitable education, to have freedom to live where they wanted and enjoy the free social services of our country.
I mention this incident because it was the first time I came face to face and understood the debilitating effects of being treated as different in your own country. It also points out how separated geographically, the First Nations peoples were from my neighborhood so I had very little knowledge and even less contact.
An incident this week fits the category but I am more at a loss to explain. My friend co-runs an organization for Autistic children here in Beijing. Her accountant was meant to pay their taxes by a certain date remembering that the Spring Festival celebrations had to be figured in. The last day of work, my friend checked to see if their taxes had been paid. My friend's next expression was 'You know how Chinese are.'. The accountant had not paid the taxes because she was moving house. To her this was an acceptable explanation. My friend who does not speak Chinese went to the Tax Office, paid the money but the clerk would not stamp her receipt. Apparently it was expected that she give him a red envelope, extra money, for the stamped receipt. My friend did not have this nor was she willing to participate in the activity. She drew attention by raising her foreigner voice and soon the clerk stamped just to move things along.
We need to respect what is important in this country. Yes, the taxes had to be paid but perhaps more follow up in the process, might have helped her understand that the employee felt unable to get to the tax office and make alternative plans. About the act that is essentially bribery, I am not sure. I think the situation was more a learning how to live in this country. However, the prefacing phrase clearly shows that she thinks and obviously thought I did too that this behavior is incompetent.
I think this is a call for us to learn the different definitions of lifestyle, share our own and come to some sort of compromise.
One of the 'allowances' the government provided was exemption from sales tax. As a young adult I was unaware of this. I was running in a retail transaction as usual when my First Nations customer quite sharply informed me that he did not have to pay sales tax. He then produced a card with a number that was entered into the system. I apologized for my ignorance and he apologized for the snap. There was an unspoken embarrassment on both of our parts. He left the store to return to his little plot of allotted land.
This token act by the dominant culture went further to marginalize First Nations people as citizens of Canada. What they needed was the freedom to pay taxes, to have equitable education, to have freedom to live where they wanted and enjoy the free social services of our country.
I mention this incident because it was the first time I came face to face and understood the debilitating effects of being treated as different in your own country. It also points out how separated geographically, the First Nations peoples were from my neighborhood so I had very little knowledge and even less contact.
An incident this week fits the category but I am more at a loss to explain. My friend co-runs an organization for Autistic children here in Beijing. Her accountant was meant to pay their taxes by a certain date remembering that the Spring Festival celebrations had to be figured in. The last day of work, my friend checked to see if their taxes had been paid. My friend's next expression was 'You know how Chinese are.'. The accountant had not paid the taxes because she was moving house. To her this was an acceptable explanation. My friend who does not speak Chinese went to the Tax Office, paid the money but the clerk would not stamp her receipt. Apparently it was expected that she give him a red envelope, extra money, for the stamped receipt. My friend did not have this nor was she willing to participate in the activity. She drew attention by raising her foreigner voice and soon the clerk stamped just to move things along.
We need to respect what is important in this country. Yes, the taxes had to be paid but perhaps more follow up in the process, might have helped her understand that the employee felt unable to get to the tax office and make alternative plans. About the act that is essentially bribery, I am not sure. I think the situation was more a learning how to live in this country. However, the prefacing phrase clearly shows that she thinks and obviously thought I did too that this behavior is incompetent.
I think this is a call for us to learn the different definitions of lifestyle, share our own and come to some sort of compromise.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Culture and Diversity at Large
We are beginning Spring Festival vacation this week so had to hustle to catch people before they were off. Everyone responded except one friend who was off home to Poland and didn't have time to respond. Here are the responses in the order received.
Culture
Traditions, people, food
Language, dress, behavior
A big thing including language and history
Everything related with people: language, food, habits, art, music and how they are used. What people carry
inside to live
Over-arching concept encompassing behavior, mentality, custom that has been established and stabilized by
by a group of people. Can be an organization a city, a country, an age group, etc. This distinguishes and
defines this group from others.
Diversity
Other cultures coming in
Culture within a culture, outsiders coming in
Differences
Differences in a community - a good thing
Variations within a category or a big group. There may be commonalities like geography or race but there are
differences.
Comments
Some of these friends would have researched this subject and given an answer that would have been award material. So I was very careful to ask for only 'off the top of the head' answers.
I think the general idea was that culture was all that is our lives. There was nothing overtly said about dominant and subordinate cultures. However one responder who left her home country when she was 16 uses English exclusively. When I asked her about her mother tongue, she said she would have difficulty interacting with it now. She talks on Skype with her mother because without seeing her mouth and body language she has great difficulty communicating. She said that very early on her travel, that has been more than 25 years, she learned that she needs English to survive.
My Chinese colleague who studied French abroad as a University student, said of differences that is was things like religion. The West has it and the East has no belief. This is an interesting statement and one that I hope I can continue with her after the holiday, because China has very deep spiritual roots. The dominant culture, of which she is a member has adopted an atheistic platform but there are still many religious beliefs. There were a few years when days to honor the dead were cancelled by the mainland government because of their spiritual affiliation . These days have been put back on the holiday calendar.
A comment that she made that speaks to dominance I think. Is that she thinks it is best to study in the West but the Chinese will not adopt that lifestyle. They can continue to study long hours to meet the competition to go to a good Middle School and then High School. She concedes that it may be best for Chinese to study abroad but they will keep the values of their country of hard work.
Another interesting comment came from a colleague whose Spanish mother immigrated to Ireland and married her father and they moved and raised their family in South Africa. My friend is fluent in the languages of all these countries. When speaking of diversity, her comment was that it is best that they try to become like the main culture.
I don't know if it is relevant but I also contacted a Canadian friend. She received the email at her office at the start of the week. She didn't know what to say. I know she has close friends from all over the world so I wonder if we could add to her statement that it is just the way we are. Everyone brings their own culture and makes us all that much richer. Or it could just be a Monday morning!
All the other respondents come from my school. As our studies consider how important it is to acknowledge and represent each culture of our students in the classroom, this is topic we need to look at more closely in the days to come.
Culture
Traditions, people, food
Language, dress, behavior
A big thing including language and history
Everything related with people: language, food, habits, art, music and how they are used. What people carry
inside to live
Over-arching concept encompassing behavior, mentality, custom that has been established and stabilized by
by a group of people. Can be an organization a city, a country, an age group, etc. This distinguishes and
defines this group from others.
Diversity
Other cultures coming in
Culture within a culture, outsiders coming in
Differences
Differences in a community - a good thing
Variations within a category or a big group. There may be commonalities like geography or race but there are
differences.
Comments
Some of these friends would have researched this subject and given an answer that would have been award material. So I was very careful to ask for only 'off the top of the head' answers.
I think the general idea was that culture was all that is our lives. There was nothing overtly said about dominant and subordinate cultures. However one responder who left her home country when she was 16 uses English exclusively. When I asked her about her mother tongue, she said she would have difficulty interacting with it now. She talks on Skype with her mother because without seeing her mouth and body language she has great difficulty communicating. She said that very early on her travel, that has been more than 25 years, she learned that she needs English to survive.
My Chinese colleague who studied French abroad as a University student, said of differences that is was things like religion. The West has it and the East has no belief. This is an interesting statement and one that I hope I can continue with her after the holiday, because China has very deep spiritual roots. The dominant culture, of which she is a member has adopted an atheistic platform but there are still many religious beliefs. There were a few years when days to honor the dead were cancelled by the mainland government because of their spiritual affiliation . These days have been put back on the holiday calendar.
A comment that she made that speaks to dominance I think. Is that she thinks it is best to study in the West but the Chinese will not adopt that lifestyle. They can continue to study long hours to meet the competition to go to a good Middle School and then High School. She concedes that it may be best for Chinese to study abroad but they will keep the values of their country of hard work.
Another interesting comment came from a colleague whose Spanish mother immigrated to Ireland and married her father and they moved and raised their family in South Africa. My friend is fluent in the languages of all these countries. When speaking of diversity, her comment was that it is best that they try to become like the main culture.
I don't know if it is relevant but I also contacted a Canadian friend. She received the email at her office at the start of the week. She didn't know what to say. I know she has close friends from all over the world so I wonder if we could add to her statement that it is just the way we are. Everyone brings their own culture and makes us all that much richer. Or it could just be a Monday morning!
All the other respondents come from my school. As our studies consider how important it is to acknowledge and represent each culture of our students in the classroom, this is topic we need to look at more closely in the days to come.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Hypothetical Re-location after National Disaster
This exercise required me to choose three things that would represent my family culture in a foreign culture. I have resided in China for 12 years. I have given away most everything connected with my Canadian home and have rebuilt a life here. This then became more about finding three things rather than leaving so much behind.
The one item that came immediately to mind is a Bible. Not to appear pious or especially religious, I believe that even though I certainly do not have all the answers, that this book and its Author do. I am aware there may be places where this might not be well received in my luggage. I did not carry that thought through to its conclusion.
The second item is a necklace with my nickname engraved on it, given to me at birth. This was given to me by my father's only living relative in Canada and as it happens my favourite auntie and the one I may most resemble. More than that, I think it represents to me my belonging to a family, to the point that they engraved my name in metal.
The third item is The Secret of Childhood (Montessori, 1966). I have come to recognize over the years that if you care for someone's child you have won their acceptance. This little book was my first introduction to the brilliance of Dr. Maria Montessori and I think it encapsulates all that early childhood education should be. This could help me build a niche in the new culture.
If on arrival the items were reduced to one, it would be the Bible that I would hold on to. This is all about moving on with purpose with an able Guide, Refuge and Someone who has my back.
It was with a bit of surprise, I realize how little I have here from home. I have a brewing idea placed there by a friend in Taiwan. This would mean reducing my life to a carry-on and travelling from place to place doing teacher training and supporting early childhood education in remote areas. I find my life here, other than the responsibility of my job, is easily movable. It is all very much a dream and would I be satisfied in a the long term not having my own space, even if only for a year's contract.
I have shared the idea of this exercise with some of my colleagues. It is coming in to the Chinese New Year celebrations so our campuses are getting to see each other more these days. None of these share my Christian faith and I am reticent of sharing it for the fear of seeming pushy. However, this exercise showed me that my faith is the essence of who I am. So with a little temerity I shared this information with my friends/colleagues. The response was their wanting to do the exercise as well and hear what the rest of my blog partners chose. This does provide a light into what is important to us.
Reference
Montessori, M. (1996). The Secret of Childhood. New York, NY: Fides Publishing Group.
The one item that came immediately to mind is a Bible. Not to appear pious or especially religious, I believe that even though I certainly do not have all the answers, that this book and its Author do. I am aware there may be places where this might not be well received in my luggage. I did not carry that thought through to its conclusion.
The second item is a necklace with my nickname engraved on it, given to me at birth. This was given to me by my father's only living relative in Canada and as it happens my favourite auntie and the one I may most resemble. More than that, I think it represents to me my belonging to a family, to the point that they engraved my name in metal.
The third item is The Secret of Childhood (Montessori, 1966). I have come to recognize over the years that if you care for someone's child you have won their acceptance. This little book was my first introduction to the brilliance of Dr. Maria Montessori and I think it encapsulates all that early childhood education should be. This could help me build a niche in the new culture.
If on arrival the items were reduced to one, it would be the Bible that I would hold on to. This is all about moving on with purpose with an able Guide, Refuge and Someone who has my back.
It was with a bit of surprise, I realize how little I have here from home. I have a brewing idea placed there by a friend in Taiwan. This would mean reducing my life to a carry-on and travelling from place to place doing teacher training and supporting early childhood education in remote areas. I find my life here, other than the responsibility of my job, is easily movable. It is all very much a dream and would I be satisfied in a the long term not having my own space, even if only for a year's contract.
I have shared the idea of this exercise with some of my colleagues. It is coming in to the Chinese New Year celebrations so our campuses are getting to see each other more these days. None of these share my Christian faith and I am reticent of sharing it for the fear of seeming pushy. However, this exercise showed me that my faith is the essence of who I am. So with a little temerity I shared this information with my friends/colleagues. The response was their wanting to do the exercise as well and hear what the rest of my blog partners chose. This does provide a light into what is important to us.
Reference
Montessori, M. (1996). The Secret of Childhood. New York, NY: Fides Publishing Group.
Friday, December 23, 2011
A Reflection on Research
It came as a shock to me to receive the outline of Week 7 and realize this could actually be the beginning of a research project. During the process I had more questions than answers and most of the assignments were sent in a bit of a haze. Now to think this novice could have set the foundation for a workable project is a bit of a surprising discovery - a happy one but none the less a surprise.
I remain with questions of how to set up a team, who could oversee it and keep it accountable and on track. I believe I got a taste of how exhilarating it could be over coffee with my master's in research holding good friend. She called me to critical thinking and put ideas into researchable chunks. i feel a little like this is what grown-ups do and way out of my league. However, I guess it is people like us who do these things.
The fact that research is a long, involved and introspective process has been impressed on me during the past weeks. However, taking each aspect bit by bit and securing each position on the journey by retrospection and accountability a final product is attainable. With this in mind, the subject must be important enough to be worth the time and effort to complete. It seems to me also that it would be possible to lose your way in the maze of doing it right and maintaining validity and respect for the subject.
I have become aware of the importance of making the research credible. In the start of planning the questions must be ones that make a difference and that can be asked and answered honestly and fully. I learned that here are predetermined ways to validate the research. I have been made mindful of the problem of the researcher being set apart from reality as a power figure.
I resonate with the idea of the researcher coming to the situation as a learner and that the date received is a gift from his population. Akin to this idea is that of the researcher and his population finding or constructing the reality together.
I am not certain this could be considered a challenge, but thinking about the difference between equity and equality made my brain hurt! My colleague said that she and her fellow Masters' students spent an entire week bringing these terms to task. This reminds of another idea that has become clearer to me and that is critical thinking. Being good enough is not enough in early childhood research. Each researcher must be held accountable to ask the right question, that the method will bring out that answer and that the interpretation remains true to the information received.
I have gained a deeper respect for the responsibility we have as early childhood educators. To do our job well we need to be aware of our biases. This has come out in previous courses but here we have been encouraged to be critical of our thinking and approaches to what we do. The word reflexive has resonated with me. Putting assumptions away we check what we believe and do in the best interest of the child remembering that the child is a their own social agent and must be respected as such.
I started this course with something like dread, feeling absolutely unable to understand or complete the project. But here I am and here you are. Thank you for sharing your journey this blog and the different stages of the discussions. Thanks for your help.
And Happy Holidays! Wishing you all the goodness that this season has to offer.
Merry Christmas!
I remain with questions of how to set up a team, who could oversee it and keep it accountable and on track. I believe I got a taste of how exhilarating it could be over coffee with my master's in research holding good friend. She called me to critical thinking and put ideas into researchable chunks. i feel a little like this is what grown-ups do and way out of my league. However, I guess it is people like us who do these things.
The fact that research is a long, involved and introspective process has been impressed on me during the past weeks. However, taking each aspect bit by bit and securing each position on the journey by retrospection and accountability a final product is attainable. With this in mind, the subject must be important enough to be worth the time and effort to complete. It seems to me also that it would be possible to lose your way in the maze of doing it right and maintaining validity and respect for the subject.
I have become aware of the importance of making the research credible. In the start of planning the questions must be ones that make a difference and that can be asked and answered honestly and fully. I learned that here are predetermined ways to validate the research. I have been made mindful of the problem of the researcher being set apart from reality as a power figure.
I resonate with the idea of the researcher coming to the situation as a learner and that the date received is a gift from his population. Akin to this idea is that of the researcher and his population finding or constructing the reality together.
I am not certain this could be considered a challenge, but thinking about the difference between equity and equality made my brain hurt! My colleague said that she and her fellow Masters' students spent an entire week bringing these terms to task. This reminds of another idea that has become clearer to me and that is critical thinking. Being good enough is not enough in early childhood research. Each researcher must be held accountable to ask the right question, that the method will bring out that answer and that the interpretation remains true to the information received.
I have gained a deeper respect for the responsibility we have as early childhood educators. To do our job well we need to be aware of our biases. This has come out in previous courses but here we have been encouraged to be critical of our thinking and approaches to what we do. The word reflexive has resonated with me. Putting assumptions away we check what we believe and do in the best interest of the child remembering that the child is a their own social agent and must be respected as such.
I started this course with something like dread, feeling absolutely unable to understand or complete the project. But here I am and here you are. Thank you for sharing your journey this blog and the different stages of the discussions. Thanks for your help.
And Happy Holidays! Wishing you all the goodness that this season has to offer.
Friday, November 18, 2011
RESEARCH BENEFITS
When I started this course, I thought I knew nothing about and had no experience to draw from with regard to research. But the very life I enjoy at this time in history is because someone thought outside the box.
I was born in 1953, so had the benefits of penecillin. Members of my family in years before died from the same infections from which I was quickly and fully healed.
The story from my family that I had not even thought of in relation to research demonstrates positive effects, My mother has passed away so I am unable to verify specifics of this story. I am recalling it from stories heard through my life. My brother and sister were both very young at the time and I had not yet been born. But with all those qualifications, here goes:
Due, it is thought to complications during pregnancy and at delivery, my brother had some paralysis on his right side and he experienced seizures. So little was understood about epilepsy in 1948, especially in a tiny province on the east coast of Canada . Somehow and this is a question I wish I had the answer to, but certainly due to my mother's ingenuity and tenacious bent to get answers, she heard of research that had or was going on at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. My mother grew up on a farm in rural New Brunswick. She went to work in the 'city' when she was sixteen. This 'city' was reached by a bridge that her father had helped build and its dimensions were wide enough to allow two loads of hay to pass. You get the picture.
From this environment, she took my brother who I believe was in his third year on a train to Montreal. She left her probably 5 or 6 year old daughter and husband behind. I know how difficult it was to move outside the norm in our family and community in my life time, so I can only imagine the opposition she received. One comment I remember her saying is 'You're just wasting your husband's money.'
This is the part I remember the most - she found someone who understood the symptoms she described. Someone who listened to her, showed her images of my brother's brain, meeting her where she was. These doctors were leading the way, thinking outside the known or expected. They asked questions that had either unacceptable or inadequate answers. They helped give definition to my mother's dilemma.
There were still many years of struggle during my brother's growing years with dosage changes. However, having been given this clear understanding, she was able to operate way above her education and experience. I do not know all it took to get to this point of medicine but it surely benefited my family.
The other research that immediately came to mind for this assignment if Dr. Brazelton's (1978) neo-natal research. While reading a paper in an earlier course, I came across a statement about assessing an infant's mental health. I was immediately intrigued and in the search found Dr. Brazelton. Many mothers have difficulty connecting with their newborn and naturally blame themselves. Dr. Brazelton's research shows that because of the intrauterine environment as well as the special blend of DNA each child is born with, his unique temperament that may not be what the mother is expecting. This kind of information can support her in those early days when she is forming attachment to her little one. His idea is to start out right rather than waiting for something that needs to be fixed Brazelton & Sparrow, 2003). He is so absolutely right but until him the medical world did not work that way. His research spread light into many tense nurseries. Thank you, Dr. Brazelton.
References
Brazelton. T. B., (1978). Organization and Staility of Newborn Behavior: a Commentary on the
Brazelton Neonatal behavior assessment Scale. (Mongraphs of the Society for Research in
Child Development, Vol. 43, No. 5/6). Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1165847.
Brazelton, T. B., & Sparrow, J., (2003). The Touchpoints model of Development. Retrieved from
www.touchpoints.org.
I was born in 1953, so had the benefits of penecillin. Members of my family in years before died from the same infections from which I was quickly and fully healed.
The story from my family that I had not even thought of in relation to research demonstrates positive effects, My mother has passed away so I am unable to verify specifics of this story. I am recalling it from stories heard through my life. My brother and sister were both very young at the time and I had not yet been born. But with all those qualifications, here goes:
Due, it is thought to complications during pregnancy and at delivery, my brother had some paralysis on his right side and he experienced seizures. So little was understood about epilepsy in 1948, especially in a tiny province on the east coast of Canada . Somehow and this is a question I wish I had the answer to, but certainly due to my mother's ingenuity and tenacious bent to get answers, she heard of research that had or was going on at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. My mother grew up on a farm in rural New Brunswick. She went to work in the 'city' when she was sixteen. This 'city' was reached by a bridge that her father had helped build and its dimensions were wide enough to allow two loads of hay to pass. You get the picture.
From this environment, she took my brother who I believe was in his third year on a train to Montreal. She left her probably 5 or 6 year old daughter and husband behind. I know how difficult it was to move outside the norm in our family and community in my life time, so I can only imagine the opposition she received. One comment I remember her saying is 'You're just wasting your husband's money.'
This is the part I remember the most - she found someone who understood the symptoms she described. Someone who listened to her, showed her images of my brother's brain, meeting her where she was. These doctors were leading the way, thinking outside the known or expected. They asked questions that had either unacceptable or inadequate answers. They helped give definition to my mother's dilemma.
There were still many years of struggle during my brother's growing years with dosage changes. However, having been given this clear understanding, she was able to operate way above her education and experience. I do not know all it took to get to this point of medicine but it surely benefited my family.
The other research that immediately came to mind for this assignment if Dr. Brazelton's (1978) neo-natal research. While reading a paper in an earlier course, I came across a statement about assessing an infant's mental health. I was immediately intrigued and in the search found Dr. Brazelton. Many mothers have difficulty connecting with their newborn and naturally blame themselves. Dr. Brazelton's research shows that because of the intrauterine environment as well as the special blend of DNA each child is born with, his unique temperament that may not be what the mother is expecting. This kind of information can support her in those early days when she is forming attachment to her little one. His idea is to start out right rather than waiting for something that needs to be fixed Brazelton & Sparrow, 2003). He is so absolutely right but until him the medical world did not work that way. His research spread light into many tense nurseries. Thank you, Dr. Brazelton.
References
Brazelton. T. B., (1978). Organization and Staility of Newborn Behavior: a Commentary on the
Brazelton Neonatal behavior assessment Scale. (Mongraphs of the Society for Research in
Child Development, Vol. 43, No. 5/6). Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1165847.
Brazelton, T. B., & Sparrow, J., (2003). The Touchpoints model of Development. Retrieved from
www.touchpoints.org.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
LET THE RESEARCH BEGIN
The question for the exercise in research is:
Can the sensitivity of the teacher ease the stress of separation anxiety in early childhood?
I will look at three groups: 1-2 yrs; 2-3 yrs; 3-6 yrs.
The events that sparked this interest have to do with the crying, especially at the start of the school year. Questions of how much should be permitted before the parents are called have come up often. We find ourselves on uncertain ground and with differing perspectives.
I initially thought defining the physical and associated social and academic effects of this behavior would be be the way to prove the point. To test this, resources and skills beyond my present situation would be needed.
My purpose now is to show how steps taken by the teacher to form secure attachments with the child will lessen his stress during his early days and also on 'not so great' days. In the process, secure attachment will be defined. The importance and possibility of secure attachments formed apart from the family will be stated.
There is much written about the importance of secure attachment in the early years and its lifelong effects. As a child gets older and his play is interactive some security can be gained from his peers. I am expecting to show that at each of these age levels a sensitive teacher who takes the initiative to secure the child in this new environment provides a necessary service to his well being.
I have chosen these three groups because that is how our classrooms are set apart at my school. The purpose will be primarily for improving the life at our school. It may also move to a statement of policy on some aspects of this issue. My principal has asked that I forward pertinent papers to her.
I would be interested on knowing if anyone has comments on whether this is a workable and/or needed question to be asked. Also if anyone has experience with this or works with schools that have existing policies, I would be appreciative of your input. Also, if in your reading you have come across some articles that speak to this, could you pass the url along.
Thanks everyone and Good luck!
Can the sensitivity of the teacher ease the stress of separation anxiety in early childhood?
I will look at three groups: 1-2 yrs; 2-3 yrs; 3-6 yrs.
The events that sparked this interest have to do with the crying, especially at the start of the school year. Questions of how much should be permitted before the parents are called have come up often. We find ourselves on uncertain ground and with differing perspectives.
I initially thought defining the physical and associated social and academic effects of this behavior would be be the way to prove the point. To test this, resources and skills beyond my present situation would be needed.
My purpose now is to show how steps taken by the teacher to form secure attachments with the child will lessen his stress during his early days and also on 'not so great' days. In the process, secure attachment will be defined. The importance and possibility of secure attachments formed apart from the family will be stated.
There is much written about the importance of secure attachment in the early years and its lifelong effects. As a child gets older and his play is interactive some security can be gained from his peers. I am expecting to show that at each of these age levels a sensitive teacher who takes the initiative to secure the child in this new environment provides a necessary service to his well being.
I have chosen these three groups because that is how our classrooms are set apart at my school. The purpose will be primarily for improving the life at our school. It may also move to a statement of policy on some aspects of this issue. My principal has asked that I forward pertinent papers to her.
I would be interested on knowing if anyone has comments on whether this is a workable and/or needed question to be asked. Also if anyone has experience with this or works with schools that have existing policies, I would be appreciative of your input. Also, if in your reading you have come across some articles that speak to this, could you pass the url along.
Thanks everyone and Good luck!
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