Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

This week, I have seen a tremendous amount of microaggressions openly displayed in the daily news. I am typically not a political person, but I have been very disheartened to Donald Trump's reactions to the riots in Charlotte, NC. To even make the comment , "Wow, here we go again" in response to people being outraged about the attack that they have felt in the African American community. That was not only a microaggression but also a slap in the face. People have the right to be outraged, and yes being unruly and bring about hatred will not assist in the situation, but to have an attitude of , 'just another group of black people that are mad' is just unacceptable.


At this point, race is not even the factor. This could have been any person, father, son, husband, wife, daughter, or mother of any race, but the fact of how the situation was handled lead people to believe that race is a factor on the ending results on responsibility. These perceptions of discrimination and prejudice have made my heart so heavy and filled with pain. All these years, we speak of how far we have come as a country and a nation, but have we really come as far as we think? Seems like we have not gone anywhere, but have stayed stagnate and ignored issues that now can not be overlooked.

Perspectives and Diversity on Culture

I asked three people (my coworker, my cousin, and my God mother) their definition of culture and diversity and these were their replies: My co-worker is Puerto Rican, my cousin is African American, and my God mother is biracial. Their ages range from 24-45 years old and all from various classes and walks of life.

My Co-Worker (Jammy) - "culture is traditions and food that has been passed from older generations and diversity is the differences that we all display that make us unique."

My Cousin (Kemisha) - "culture is behaviors influenced by different factors like time, race, and religion and diversity is differences."

My God mother (Jwandra) - "culture is your surroundings, environment, knowledge, morals, achievements, genetic makeup and beliefs and diversity is a blend of different people, backgrounds, cultures working together."




All of the answers include some form of the things that have been discussed with us in response to diversity and culture. I believe that we all have our differing of opinions but collaboratively they all have the same symbolic meanings. There haven't been any points of omission in my opinion among the responses that were given to me.

These answers to what culture and diversity are have just shown how uniform our opinions of the meanings are. It shows that we pretty much have a mutual understand for the words and what they mean to us individually.

My Family Culture

If a catastrophic even occurred and I could only bring three items with me, they would be:

- My family scrapbook
- The recipe to my grandfather's bar-b-que sauce
- A Bible

These three things reach so deeply into my culture and they would be the only three things that would be of value to me. The scrapbook represents memories. Every member of my family is within that book and it is so valuable that money could not buy it. It hold the laughter, tears, hopes, dreams, and fears that have been felt and lives by members of my family. It shows generations of family and how we are linked together and have lived through the years. The recipe to my grandfather's bar-b-que sauce represents food and tradition. Food is the soul of our family and always seems to be the key that can bring us together and have a great time. No matter the occasion: graduation, funeral, weddings, family reunions, etc., food is always at the center. And last, but not least, a Bible. Religion is something we cherish and all know too well. We, as a family, have all been raised in the church and hold our values of being a Christian dear to our hearts. Living the life of helping and giving is what we stand for and practice in our day to day lives.

If I had to only keep one item, it would be the scrapbook. Those are memories and photos that could never be replaced or found again if they were destroyed. They give a visual to the times and stories that I could only speak about.

Through this exercise, I have had to dig deep and realized the finest things in my culture that speak volumes and mean so much more than anything else. Often we cherish the things that shall come to pass, but the love and tradition that grows within a family brings unspeakable joy.

When I Think of Research

This course has been a tremendous eye opener for me when it comes to research. I have learned how to find the appropriate articles in relation to my study topic, and how to ensure that those articles are from reliable resources. I have been able to look at myself and ensure that my own personal biases do not interfere with the work that is being conducted, and that I am giving the best possible information to readers. My viewpoints have changed because I know that now I can not just rely on "Google" to give me the adequate information that I need. I have learned that when working with children and conducting research, I have to ensure that I have not only the consent of the parents but also of the participants. I do not think that I had any challenges other than recognizing my own personal biases and that the period of time I had to conduct research was limited. With school ending for summer vacation, I had to carefully plan to ensure that I could do my observations. I have just recognized, even more than before, how important early childhood education is and what impact early childhood can have on a child's adult life.  I have really enjoyed this course and wish everyone success in the future!

Research Around the World

http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/

• What are some of the current international research topics?
• What surprising facts/insights/new ideas about early childhood did you gain from exploring this international early childhood website?
• What other noteworthy information did you find on this website?

This website shared that Australia needs more funding dedicated to early childhood education. They have campaigns to raise awareness, create media attention, and even have publications that share the deficit that they have in the realm of early childhood education. I think it was surprising to me that early childhood lacks the appropriate funding that it needs even internationally. This is a global shortage that is making a tremendous impact on our children. I see that we must all continue advocating for our children so that our governments will see the importance of investing into our future generations. I think it is worth noting that the website share various topics with parents for their general knowledge. This is important to always have resources available for parents in regard to best practices for their children.

Research that Benefits Children and Families

If I could personally research a topic in Early Childhood, I would chose to research the consequences associated with late diagnosis for children with disabilities. I know that this is a subject area that has previously been thoroughly assessed, but for my own personal benefit this would be the topic of choice. It is imperative that children are diagnosed by the age of 3, but if possible even earlier. That way families are able to prepare for the proper accommodations and implement the therapies and treatments associated with the disorder.



The topic of special education is a huge interest of mine. Having a brother
with autism, and literally finding out two days ago I have a sister with down syndrome, special education has become near and dear to my heart. My father just had another child 3 weeks ago, and after they concluded her testing she was diagnosed with down syndrome. I have always been intrigued by learning about various disabilities and disorders and the proper treatments and therapy that needs to be implemented.

Your Personal Research Journey

My topic for early childhood is special needs children in early childhood. I have been interested in exploring the use of inclusive practices and seeing what resources are available for parents when their child has been diagnosed with a disorder. The family needs the proper support as well as the educator needs the tools and resources to shape the education journey of the child. The best practices need to be implemented for the particular disorder that the child has in order for them to reach their maximum success. I personally have connections with this topic because I have a younger brother with autism. It is important to me to ensure that the families are surrounded by the adequate amount of people who have familiarity with the topic. It is difficult to hear that your child may be different from "typical" children and that they need extra accommodations. I found a PDF article that had some good insights to the educator of children with special needs http://www.personnelcenter.org/pdf/earlychildspec.pdf