Professional Hopes and Goals

The one hope that I would have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is that they are welcomed and happy to be in their new environment. I hope that they get the same opportunities as every one who is from this country and that these families and children will always embrace there differences with confidence and smiles.

The one goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field that is related to the issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is that there is more training on tolerance for teachers in the early childhood field so that everyone (families, children, and co-workers) can be treated with the respect and love they deserve.

I would like to thank my colleagues for all the wonderful new information that I have learned through out this course. I would like to wish everyone Good Luck on their careers and on their education.

Welcoming Families From Around the World

The family that I would be welcoming into my childcare is from Russia.

The five ways that I would prepare myself to be culturally responsive is to:

1. Learn how many members are in the family and do they speak English.
2. To learn what childcare schools are like in Russia and if the child or children were in a childcare facility in Russia.
3. I would try to learn some of the cultural differences.
4. I would learn about the country Russia itself so I can talk to them about their home country and be able to ask the appropriate questions.
5. I would also try to learn a few words in their language, just incase the child or children don't speak English.

I think that with these preparations it will help and benefit me and the family by making them feel more comfortable in a new country and it will make the child or children feel more comfortable in a new school. I also believe that when you learn about a new family and where they are coming from it makes them feel wanted and if you ask question it will make them feel happy, because everyone likes to talk about their home and their family.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice and Oppression

The memory that I have of an incident when I experienced prejudice was when I was in high school and a boy in my class thought that Jewish people were workers for the devil and that we had horns that would come out of our heads at night. When he said this to me I was shocked and I asked him who told him that. He said his parents did. Of course I told him that his parents were wrong and stupid and that he was stupid for believing them. I was very mad and hurt by what he said and I remember being very angry for awhile afterwards. It was a long time before I told any new people that I meant that I was Jewish.

This particular prejudice had nothing to do with equity. I still had my friends and they stood by me when this happened and did everything they could to make me feel better.

The feelings that this incident brought up for me were anger, confused, sad and alone. It was the first time I had ever dealt with something like that and I didn't know how to respond. I was 16 years old and like most teenagers I yelled first and felt later.

I think that if we would have had a class about tolerance and acceptance, I think that I would not have had to deal with that kind of ignorance if a class  like that was mandatory in my school.