Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

On a television show I watched this week, a young boy was becoming involved with a young girl who was very protected.  She wasn't allowed to watch TV except for one-half hour once a week, was homeschooled, and had a strict curfew when at the boy's house.  The boy was letting the girl believe he had done several bad things in his life because she was impressed by them.  Her parents, which happened to be lesbians, appeared at his door one night to tell the boy he couldn't see the girl anymore because he was a bad influence.  As he was trying to find the right words to explain that he wasn't a bad person and that the stories he had been telling weren't true, he said he was willing to follow the rules of their lesbian, then corrected himself and said family, home.  He used a microinsult by labeling their home a lesbian home first before correcting himself. 
I thought it was obvious he was nervous meeting the parents for the first time under the set of circumstances and corrected himself appropriately.  His character doesn't have a lot of dating experience so he verbally stumbles when he is around authority figures. 
I tried to focus on what people were saying to each other as I was observing this week, but didn't hear any microaggressions.  It has heightened my listening skills to learn about this topic and I'm sure I will be aware of interactions between people as a result of the information learned as I watched the resource video.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

For this assignment I interviewed my daughter (26 years old), her boyfriend's mother (55 years old), and the mother's daughter (12 years old).  My daughter defined culture as a group of people who share the same beliefs and diversity as multiple cultures that come together.  The mother said culture was everything that goes with an ethnic group such as their social norms and living environment.  The 12 year old said culture is different religions and different countries and the word diversity reminded her of Martin Luther King's I have a dream speech.

Surface culture was evident in the answers I received such as religion, beliefs, and social norms.  Some aspects that were omitted were deep culture aspects such as values, recreation, work, intergenerational relationships, and extended family relationships (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010).

In thinking about how other people's definition of culture and diversity, I realize that I have learned a lot about these topics.  I had limited definitions for these terms before this class as well. Now, I know there is so much to learn about individuals past what can be seen.  I know that there is so much that influences one's culture and the practices, beliefs, and customs a group may practice.  I also know that it is not appropriate to infer that a person follows every practice, belief, or custom just because they may be a member of a particular group of people.  Everyone is an individual first. 

My Family Culture

In the event I had to quickly move to another country, I would take only two things-my cell phone and pictures of my children.  I'm not attached to too many materials objects so everything, but these, could stay behind.  I would explain that my phone can give me access to my children and mom who are the most important people in my life.  Pictures of my children would give me memories of them throughout their lives.  If told I had to give up one of the items I had been able to bring, I would feel as if I had totally lost control of my ability to make my own choices for my life.  It would be very frustrating and hard to understand why I couldn't keep the few personal things I had.  I would have a hard time understanding how my possessions would affect anyone else.

I realize that immigrants who relocate to other countries have to make choices about their possessions.  My family doesn't put importance on things but on relationships so leaving things behind wouldn't be too hard for me but leaving those I love would be.  I lived 2000 miles away from my family for 8 years and it was the lowest point in my life.  Being close to family is what is important in my life, having things is not.

When I think of Research...

My ideas of research has changed as a result of taking this course.  Before I became familiar with the terms and process associated with doing a research study, I felt rather uninspired about what researchers do.  Now, even though I don't think researching is an area I will find myself, I don't feel as negative towards the word research.  I feel I can now read a study with confidence and understanding.  I have resources, now, about how to evaluate honest, authentic research when I see it and also know when I don't.  I understand the process better and respect those who undertake such an involved process.  Realizing all that went into our simulation and thinking about the work needed to actually initiate my study gives me a new appreciation for researchers and the time and effort they commit to their work.

The challenges I encountered were mostly at the beginning of the course when I didn't have much interest in the research process because it wasn't a priority for me.  I decided to commit to each week's assignments and do the best I could, even though my sister was hospitalized waiting for a liver transplant in Omaha, NE.  My mind wasn't always focused on the work I needed to do but I knew I did what I had time to do, even with little sleep at times, when I wasn't driving back and forth to see her. 

As an early childhood professional, I have learned that studies can benefit a single classroom or an entire school of thought.  I know that I could do a research study on my students if a question needed answered and an insightful study would answer it.  I feel that I could do the job if the situation arose.

Research Around the World

I looked at the EECERA website.  I found two links listed for Korea Institute of Child Care and

Education and Pacific Early Childhood Research Association.  Some of the major research projects under the Korea link were:  1)  the Curriculum Articulation between Nuri Curriculum for 5 year olds and Elementary school & Nuri curriculum for 3, 4 year olds, 2)  Recommendations for policy proposals for improving fertility rate and reconciling work and family life; a focus on in-home care for infants and suggested support measures, and 3)   A Research on an Integrated Support System for Child-rearing of the Socially Vulnerable(IV): Developing Character Education Programs in the Early Years.  

I learned that the organization is well-governed and has an extensive editorial board.  I learned that other countries around the world are concerned about some of the same early childhood issues as we are and are trying to provide the best for their children's education.

Research that Benefits Children and Families

If I could conduct a research study without restrictions, I would choose to research parenting styles and the  affect each style observed has on the child's behavior.  I am a believer that parents are the child's first and most influential teacher.  Seeing the correlation between parenting style and behavior would be very interesting to me.  As I gain more experience as a teacher (17 years so far), I see how many parents are very lax in their parenting responsibilities.  Children, then, come to school with expectations of getting their way or not having to follow directions.  It is a tough battle, at times.  I would hope through a study on this topic, parents would be able to see that children need parameters to feel safe and free to explore their environments and that for society to operate efficiently and fairly, all citizens need to adhere to the same rules.  Parents can begin to instill these concepts in their children before they ever begin school. 

My Personal Research Journey

My chosen topic for our research simulation during this course will be the benefits and challenges of a universal approach to early childhood education in our country as a way of improving programs and offering quality to all children.  The articles we read in the courses "Effective Programs and Practices" and "Current Trends and Issues in Early Childhood" got me thinking about the current way we approach early childhood programming, recent efforts to raise the bar of quality, and how going to a universal system may or may not be the answer.  I previously gave my opinion that a universal system would be a good idea, but I want to research it further to see what has been written to determine if I could fully support such an effort. 

So far in our research simulation project, I found the first step of narrowing my question down to three sub-topics to be thought provoking and somewhat difficult.  There is so much to consider with the topic of universality.  It took me quite a while to zero in on what I really wanted to know more about.  My other sub-topics were to research the effects state quality rating systems and NAEYC accreditation has had on program quality and how a universal system could be merged into what is currently being done for quality enhancement.  I felt the effects of becoming accredited through a state effort or NAEYC has already been documented and well-known and because a universal system isn't in place yet, there might not be enough information about how to merge it with current efforts.  Although, I would like to know about these things, I will leave them for future research. 

The resources so far in this class has been very beneficial to me.  Reading research has always been like reading another language for me, with the exception of the beginning and ending information.  I felt relieved to know that the middle part wasn't crucial to read for novices.  Putting the information into the chart helped me gain better understanding of how to look at an article and get the most important, and relevant, information from it. 

I hope as this course progresses, we will all be better at reading and understanding the articles of research that will help us become better educators.  I would be interested to know what others' processes were in choosing their sub-topics and if has led to any clarity about your chosen topic.