Assessing

Different disabilities require different assessments.  Working with special needs students I use an assessment tool called Brigance.  This assessment comes in levels from toddler to adulthood.  When using this assessment I look at daily living, independent hygiene, and life skills versus the reading, writing/language, math skills that are assessed in the general education population.  As for standardized  testing I do an alternate assessment on my students based on their ability levels and they are not compared to a national norm.  Students in the general education populations are required to take the Terra Nova stndardized test that compares them to national norms.  Children should be assessed to see what they are learning across all academic areas.  If they are not able to pass these assessments then the teacher may need to reevaluate the way they are teaching to the children.  Assessments are also good in the fact that child who are having difficulty can be identified and receive the necessary support to be successful in school.  The negative side of standardize assessments is that there is so much weight placed on the test for students to pass.  This can be harmful stress.  I have seen children that become sick during the week of standardized testing, from worrying about whether they will pass or fail the test.  Teachers are also teaching more to the test than teaching the curriculum.

The assessment used in South Korea is the National Assessment of Educational Achievement (NAEA) (NCEE, 2011). Korean children are tested twice a year in two subject areas in grades six, nine and ten (NCEE, 2011).  Student school records or student activity records are keep on file and used as part of a child’s admission into senior secondary and university level of education.   South Korean students have to take an exam demonstration what they learn in junior high school as well as an admission exam to process in the senior high school (NCEE, 2011).  Students who want to continue into college must take a College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), which does have an impact on their higher education prospects (NCEE, 2011). Before this exam students will engage in some form of rigorous study.  The culture refers to this time “examination hell” as there is an incredible amount of pressure about their performance on this exam.

Center on international education benchmarking. 2011. South Korea - instructional systems.  Retrived from http://www.ncee.org/programs-affiliates/center-on-international-education-benchmarking/top-performing-countries/south-korea-overview/south-korea-instructional-systems/

Other Links:

“Korean Youth Study Longest Hours in OECD,” The Chosunilbo, Aug. 10, 2009.
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. (2008). Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. (2006). Rules on the General Education Development Test for Qualifications to Enter High School.
Korea Institute of Curriculum and Evaluation.  (n.d.) The PISA Results and the Education System in Korea. (PDF)

Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

Poverty -

In 5th grade I meet a girl who was living in poverty.  At first I didn’t how to help her.  In class she always stayed to herself and away from everyone.  Other kids in the class always picked on her.  Her clothes and hair were not always clean so she had a body odor.  Befriending her was the best thing that I could have done to help her.  When she would come over to the house she would bring extra clothes.  We would wash her clothes and hair, so that she had fresh clothes to wear and did not have an odor.  This was a difficult time for her as she wanted to fit in and have friends like everyone else.  I remember that she would study very hard so that she got good grades.  She always had the answers to the teacher’s questions.  At the end of the school year her family moved closer to other family members in hoping they could offer assistance to them financially.  I asked my mom is I could give her a gift of friendship to remember us.  We went to the store and bought her a brush and comb; along with other personal hygiene items and some items for her hair.  She was excited about the gift but embarrassed at the same time.  She told has that she had not gotten a gift for a long time.

The number of children under six living in poverty rose to 5.9 million in 2010 from 5.7 million in 2009 (Berman, 2011). The number of American children living in poverty has grown by 2.6 million since the recession began (Berman, 2011).  The rate for child poverty has increased in 38 states over the past 10 years (Berman, 2011).   The southern states have the highest rate of child poverty with Mississippi having the highest (Berman, 2011).

Berman, J. (2011). One in four young U.S. children living in poverty, study finds. Huff Post Business. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/22/children-in-poverty-us_n_976868.html

Nutrition/Malnutrition

This is a topic of great concern for me.  When your children show up to school hungry, they do not receive the same education as the other students.  Their mind is focused on what they didn’t have for breakfast and will I have any dinner tonight.  So when this issue starts at an early age their little bodies are underdeveloped and delayed making life a struggle.  All children need to eat healthy to be happy and successful.  Children should not have to go hungry!

Nutrition/Malnutrition in Asia

Asia is home to more than two-thirds of the 148 million children who are under 5 years and underweight for their age (Nutrition, 2009, p2).  Asia still accounts for nearly half of the world’s deaths in these young children (Nutrition, 2009, p2).  Childhood malnutrition can lead to growth stunting, poor cognitive development, and delayed motor development (Nutrition, 2009, p2).  Programs can be set up to assist and manage malnutrition through insuring clear water supply, health education for healthy diets, and improve access to healthy food (Nutrition, 2009, p3).

Healthy food will always be in my classroom and offered to any student who has not eaten breakfast.  This will ensure that each child has had something to eat to start their day off energized. Each child should be afforded the appropriate nourishment to have a successful day at school.

Nutrition Advocacy. (2009). Clinical Nutrition News, p1-8. Retrieved from

       http://anhi.org/learning/PDFs/Clinical/Abbott%20Clinical%208.5x11b.pdf

Birthing experience and Comparison to Korea birthing

The birthing experience I was involved in was for an extended family member overseas.  She had a fairly normal pregnancy up until her 37th week and she developed toxemia.  From this point on she had to be hospitalized.  At 38 weeks the doctors decided to take the baby by caesarian section.  She asked me to sit with her during the procedure.  I wasn't sure if I could handle seeing someone having surgery.  I agreed to it knowing if I didn't she would stress out and cause her blood pressure to rise even higher than it already was.  Having never been in the operating room or such a procedure I couldn't image that she would be awake during the c-section.  To my amazement she was sedated from the rib cage down.  She never felt a thing until they pulled the baby out.  Needless to say I was the kid with their mouth wide open in Ah!  Thanks to modern medicine and technology the baby was born with no complications.  They monitored the baby for the first 24 hours and then released the both of them within 72 hours after delivery.  I have to say this was the most amazing thing to have witnessed.

Since my experience took place in Korea I reviewed their procedures on birthing.  Some of the differences are the doctors are not used to taking instructions from the patient, explaining what is going to happen or answer any questions (Korea, 2011).  Korean fathers are not traditionally present during delivery like they are with American births.  Korean hospitals are being more aware of foreign customs with delivery procedures and automatically assume that is what foreign patients want (Korea, 2011).  If parents want something different then have to voice their desires to the doctor and hospital.  The big difference between the two countries is that it is common for Korean for women to restrict their movement for two weeks after the deliver, often checking into a "maternity hotels" for one to two months (Korea, 2011).  This is one custom that I won't mind sharing.  However, when does the father have the opportunity to start bonding with the baby, if the mother has the child for the first two months alone? 

I am thankful that we are afforded the opportunity to have our children in a hospital in privacy with appropriate family members present during the delivery.  

Having a baby in Korea – giving birth. Published 2011. Retrieved from 

    http://www.korea4expats.com/article-giving-birth-in-korea.html on March 1, 2012.

Reflections

I would like to thank everyone who answered my calls for assistance with creating and posting to the blog. Blogging is a new experience and I'm learning a lot.  The information that everyone has shared through  their discussions and blog postings has been very informative.  I look forward to future courses with everyone.  Thank you again for your support through our newly developed networking team.

Code of Ethics

We shall demonstrate the highest standards of personal integrity, truthfulness, and honesty in all our professional activities in order to inspire the trust and confidence of the children and families and of those with whom we work.

 We shall demonstrate our respect and appreciation for all families’ beliefs, values, customs, languages, and culture relative to their nurturance and support of their children toward achieving meaningful and relevant priorities and outcomes families’ desire for themselves and their children.

To create and maintain safe and healthy settings that foster children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development and that respect their dignity and their contributions.

If we do not show our parents respect through their beliefs, customs, and values we will not develop a relationship based on integrity, honest, and trust.   A healthy relationship with the parents will foster a learning environment to promote adequate growth and development of the child. 

Early Childhood Resources

Statements and Influential Practices

• NAEYC. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/dap
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on child abuse prevention. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/ChildAbuseStand.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on school readiness. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Readiness.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on responding to linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf
• NAEYC. (2003). Early childhood curriculum, assessment, and program evaluation: Building an effective, accountable system in programs for children birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/pscape.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009, April). Early childhood inclusion: A summary. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/DEC_NAEYC_ECSummary_A.pdf
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families. (2010). Infant-toddler policy agenda. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://main.zerotothree.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ter_pub_infanttodller
• FPG Child Development Institute. (2006, September). Evidence-based practice empowers early childhood professionals and families. (FPG Snapshot, No. 33). Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~snapshots/snap33.pdf
  
  Note: The following article can be found in the Walden University Library databases.
• Turnbull, A., Zuna, N., Hong, J. Y., Hu, X., Kyzar, K., Obremski, S., et al.  (2010). Knowledge-to-action guides. Teaching Exceptional Children, 42(3), 42–53.
  Use the Academic Search Complete database, and search using the article's title. 

Global Support for Children’s Rights and Well-Being

• Article: UNICEF (n.d.). Fact sheet: A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf
   
• Websites:
• World Forum Foundation
  http://worldforumfoundation.org/wf/wp/about-us
• World Organization for Early Childhood Education
  http://www.omep-usnc.org/
• Association for Childhood Education International
  http://acei.org/about/ 

Note: Explore the resources in Parts 3 and 4 in preparation for this week’s Application assignment.

Selected Early Childhood Organizations

• National Association for the Education of Young Children
  http://www.naeyc.org/
• The Division for Early Childhood
  http://www.dec-sped.org/
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
  http://www.zerotothree.org/
• WESTED
  http://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm
• Harvard Education Letter
  http://www.hepg.org/hel/topic/85
• FPG Child Development Institute
  http://www.fpg.unc.edu/main/about.cfm
• Administration for Children and Families Headstart’s National Research Conference
  http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hsrc/
• HighScope
  http://www.highscope.org/ 
• Children’s Defense Fund
  http://www.childrensdefense.org/
• Center for Child Care Workforce
  http://www.ccw.org/
• Council for Exceptional Children
  http://www.cec.sped.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home
• Institute for Women’s Policy Research
  http://www.iwpr.org/index.cfm
• National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education
  http://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/
• National Child Care Association
• http://www.nccanet.org/
• National Institute for Early Education Research
  http://nieer.org/
• Pre[K]Now
  http://www.preknow.org/
• Voices for America’s Children
  http://www.voices.org/
• The Erikson Institute
• http://www.erikson.edu/

Selected Professional Journals Available in the Walden Library

• YC Young Children
• Childhood
• Journal of Child & Family Studies
• Child Study Journal
• Multicultural Education
• Early Childhood Education Journal
• Journal of Early Childhood Research
• International Journal of Early Childhood
• Early Childhood Research Quarterly
• Developmental Psychology
• Social Studies
• Maternal & Child Health Journal
• International Journal of Early Years Education
     

Other Resources Used

http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/ei.index.htm
I use this site for further clarification on issue dealing with children and families.

http://www.cec.sped.org/
Provides information on dealing with individuals with special needs.

http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/
DCF was able to provide information on health and wellness.