Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

A SECOND CHANCE IN THE FIELD YOU LOVE

WHAT WILL YOU CHOOSE?

 

In the early childhood field, I would like to be a director of a center-base program. The director has a challenge of ensuring that the program offers developmentally appropriate experiences for the children are supportive of the needs of families and operate with sound administrative and fiscal management. This job requires hard work and dedication, as any other position, but it also requires for an individual to make executive decisions at any given time.

I chose this program because I have a passion for servicing families. I see and hear the complaints of many individuals, I will not cater to all complaints because we will always have individuals who are never satisfied. My goal is to ensure that the quality of the program is operated effectively according to the best interest of the children.

The responsibilities for this job are to have a graduate degree in child care administration. The effectiveness of the courses will have to be implemented in order for an effective program to run.

Another job that I can see myself taking part in is a Family Service Worker. A family service worker have a first-hand experience of working with families. The family service workers have the opportunity to hear from the parents to see the actual need and concerns they have about their children and the environment that their child will be attending.

The requirements for a FSW is to obtain a bachelor’s degree in human service and at least two years of experience working in the field or one closely related. I chose this field because I want that close relationship with parents where I am able to see exactly what the parents’ needs are. This position also helps build trust between the parents who are leaving their children in our care.

Lastly, I have dreamed of being a fiscal manager in the early childhood field. I have only had a glimpsed of looking at a budget for an early childhood program. The logistics of the financial portion of the program hold a manager part of staying open and I want to understand how the money can be stretch to sustain.

The qualifications of the field are BA or BS in Accounting or Finance. One-to-five years’ experience in accounting, preferably in nonprofit organizations or a Head Start program. Familiarity with grants/funding applications. Ability to work independently, manage deadlines and adapt to changing work demands.

Reference

http://www.childcareservices.org/_downloads/CareersInEarlyChildhoodGuide_NC.pdf

Below is the wordle that I posted in my discussion. I chose to share it again because it is a constant reminder that the words having meaning in my life.

Welcome to my blog page!

I pray our experiences together will be great!

THANK YOU!!!!

I would like to thank each and everyone of my colleagues for you thoughtful insights on my discussions and on my blog. Reading your points of view and having the chance to read your post to see how you see certain situations helped me to see that I am never alone in this journey. It is a good feeling to know that their are others who have similar views as myself.

I would like to personally thank Dr. Parrish. You have been a tremendous professor and have pushed me to think critically and consider the "what if's." I appreciate everything that you have instilled in me and I look forward to doing the same to the students that I may service in my later journey.

I would also like to thank Amal Mukhis, Temika McCann and Gena Puckett, who have shown me through their discussion post that they are faced with similar situations in their leadership roles. I hope that we can continue to support each other through this journey.

To everyone else that I did not personally name, I thank you as well. I do not view anyone greater than the other. I valued each and every one of your insights that you have provided to me. I wish you all great success and hopefully we will cross each others past sooner than later.

Best Wishes,

TaShanna Norrell

Working Together

Being involved in group settings can be beneficial and difficult at times, especially if the groups have not had the proper introduction. From recent trainings and group settings adjourning can have many effects. For those that are known as high-performing makes it hard to adjourn because they have left an amazing mark on the lives of the individuals that have taking part in the experience. For example, I am taking a training for trainers course and the instructors have left an amazing mark on our lives. The instructor has us to take part in a closing activity that gives us that "ah ha" that we need to want more from the next training.
In every activity that we take part in we need to have a positive adjourning activity or encouragement. The activities that did not have closure left the colleagues with a sense of this was a waste of time. I think of this process as an ending to a new beginning. When a positive closure is given than the individuals have something to take back with them to try on other group sessions.
During the Walden experience I feel our adjourning experience is recapping what we have learned and sharing that information with other colleagues in our blogs. Being able to have the opportunity for the other colleagues to respond to what you have posted and reading their comments can make one feel that someone has appreciated what you have done and shared with them. It is obvious that relationships are being developed educationally and this is a process that is beneficial in the early childhood field.

Conflicts/Disagreements

In implementing teaching strategies, I had a minor conflict with one of my teaching team members. I was doing an observation in the classroom and I noticed that the teacher was drilling the children and using the message board inappropriately. Within our school we implement the HighScope curriculum and nothing that she was doing was HighScope. At the end of the day I asked to speak with the teaching team as a whole. I asked the team to explain why they were implementing a strategy that does not go along with our current curriculum strategy. I the response I received was, "I am a HighScope certified teacher and I was teaching using the HighScope strategies that were taught at my last school."

My first reaction was to just say that what she was doing was far from HighScope, but I remembered the strategies learned about conflict resolutions. I considered using the approach, Listening for the Thirdside, I put myself in the shoes of the person I was speaking with. I had to understand what if this was me sitting in the office of my supervisor. The last thing I want is to make sitting in the office for a conference a negative. I aloud the teacher to speak her mind and explain what she was doing. Afterward I encouraged her to try a different approach and I demonstrated the next day in the classroom so she was able to see the difference and how the children would engage more.

The teaching staff received a better understanding of what I was speaking of an was more receptive to doing something different. The approach I used was not demeaning and it did not make anyone feel unease by their approach, it helped them to explore something different. Afterwards I asked the teaching team to come up with different techniques similar to what I did to change up the activities so the children would not become bored.

Communicators

For your blog this week, think about the similarities and differences between how you evaluated yourself as a communicator and how others evaluated you. What is the one thing that surprised you the most? Why? What other insights about communication did you gain this week? Choose at least two to share with others through your blog and consider how each might inform your professional work and personal life.

As a communicator I usually evaluate myself pretty hard. I have learned that as an individual you are your biggest critic. Before I present in any environment I always read over, read aloud and review the topic and information that I am going to state. I feel this is the best way for me to present and stay within a timeframe. 

When I spoke with others, I found out that others seem to give me an excellent review when it comes to communicating. That have stated that I am extremely energetic and present in a way that those who are not comfortable in large crowds can feel comfortable. This was shocking because that was always my hopes, but I wasn't sure if I was actually meeting my own expectations.

After reading the selection this week, I learned that I am self-denigration. "Self-denigration is criticizing or attacking yourself. I often pinpoint on what I did wrong or what I could have done better. Pinpointing on the negative does not improve or add to my success.

The next session that I learned that was sparking to me is self-actualization. "Self-actualization is the feelings and thoughts you get when you know that you have negotiated a communication situation as well as you possibly could." For example, I have a teacher who does not understand the purpose for incorporating the HighScope curriculum in a head start classroom. She has not received the proper training and have only received negative comments from seasoned teachers who believe the way they were taught is better.

Reference

 O'Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2012). Real communication: An introduction. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.