When I Reflect About My Collegial, Professional Learning Community

Post at least three consequences of your experience being a part of a caring, collaborative learning community for your professional growth and development. Use any format you choose.

One consequence of being part of a caring, collaborative learning community for my professional growth and development has to learn information about families that I may not want to know.  If I find out a child in my class is having issues at home such as neglect from the parent, it makes it difficult to see past it.  I want to do everything I can to help the child.

Another consequence is not being able to help every child.  I have a few children in my class that need additional resources to help them succeed.  Due to their insurance or the resources being too far, many of them are unable to get the help.  It breaks everyone’s heart who is involved knowing that the child could get everything they need but due to the parent’s financial or transportation issues they cannot get their children there.

The final consequence is that too many people try to get involved.  When there are a lot of people involved, although they all have good intentions, it becomes too much for the family and the child.  They can become overwhelmed with information, especially if everyone is telling them something different.  It may be best for only a few individuals to be informed and understand the situation that a family is in or any problems that they may be having.

Post one goal for using this collegial experience to enhance your advocacy, policy, and/or system development work on behalf of young children, families, and the early childhood community.

One goal that I have to enhance my advocacy, policy and system development work is to become more familiar with the resources that are available in my area.  By doing this, I will be able to provide the families and their children with the information that will help them.  I will also be able to help them find additional services that they might not be aware of.  By advocating for them, I will provide them with a safe person to turn to whenever they have any questions or concerns.

My Hypothetical Family Situation

The family that I created is one containing a father and mother with a baby on the way.  The unborn child will be born with downs syndrome as confirmed by a prenatal test.  My family’s socioecomic situation is a very poor one.  The father is a day laborer and only picks up odd jobs with no steady pay.  I stay at home taking care of the house and resting until the baby is born.  Neither one of us speaks English and struggle even more as a result.  We have little money and struggle to put food on the table and provide ourselves with a home to live in.  The family situation has been impacted by the sociocultural, economic, and politics of the community.  We are living similar to many other families in the community where only one adult works odd jobs and they can barely get by.  It is a result of where we live that many of the families we interact with have the same problems.  The economic status of the town is poor.  There is little money for education for the public schools and funds for the community to help those less fortunate.  The politics in the town is torn. The leaders of the community focus on the other members of the town who are able to provide for their families and focus on other problems such as having multiple children and continuing their education. They do not worry or acknowledge the less fortunate members of the town.

Due to the current financial situation, there is no money for in-home child care.  We are hoping to have help and support from the friends that we have made in the community.  When the baby is born, we will be trying to get my sister to move in with us for additional help.  Another problem is that neither one of us has a driver’s license.  We must rely on taxi’s or friends in order to get around.  This will become a problem when the baby is born and we must attend doctor’s appointments.

The three sectors of comprehensive systems would benefit my child now and in the future.  The health services would inform us of how to care for the child since it will be our first along with any obstacles that will arise due to the downs syndrome.  The early learning and development will keep us informed of what developmental signs to look for and how to help our newborn keep on track with their needs.  The family leadership and support will help inform us and any other people that are able to help with what we need to do to keep our baby help and striving.  It will allow us to stand up as a leader with a child with special needs and how they need additional services.  One of the major early childhood related services that would support me and my family is Early Head Start.  They provide services about how to properly care for children and how to keep on track with doctor’s appointments.  Some will often provide transportation to the appointments to provide extra services.

The Political Will to Improve Early Childhood Systems

Share one or more strategies you have discovered as you worked on the assignments in this course, and particularly this week, that are currently being used by advocates or organizations to influence the political will toward improving early childhood systems in order to foster the well-being of young children and their families.

The one strategy that I saw being utilized is more bills being passed by people of power.  Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania put a bill into act that opens up the opportunity for more children to have access to preschool of higher quality.  This helps improve the early childhood systems in order to foster the wellbeing of young children and their families.  By someone standing up and speaking out about the programs, they are making the public more aware of how important the early childcare programs are.  People who use their power in the positive manner influence others to do the same.

What part of this work appeals to you most and why?

This aspect appeals to me.  I like seeing people of power using it in a positive way.  Too often we hear about political figures using their power to influence people to do what they want rather than what is right for the public.  Having someone like Bon Casey represent the field in a positive way helps shed light on its importance and how the community as well as the families that they need to help their children at an early age.