Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 3

 

My conversation partner this week was V. Loras, an English teacher and a presenter in Switzerland. I have sent her an email asking her various questions related to our topic this week, and she shared with me the following:

Loras disclosed that the major topic currently being discussed in her work environment is not having enough qualified professionals specialized in early childhood. The reason for that is because daycare is a trend that is not quite common in Switzerland; children are more likely to stay at home until they are 5 or 6 years old, and go straight to Kindergarten (V. Loras, personal communication, February 23). More and more mothers are entering the workforce now as there are a lot of non-Swiss nationals, working mothers who seek daycare for their children. There are very few public daycares at the present, which are not free. The private ones are too expensive for most of the families to afford. Loras expressed that this is causing serious challenges for a growing number of families (V. Loras, personal communication, February 23). 

With respect to opportunities for professional development, Loras shared that they have an association called ETAS (English Tecahers' Association of Switzerland), which is responsible for organizing various events; conferences, workshops, and other means of presentations on professional development. ETAS also issues a journal that includes publications that assist and support teachers (V. Loras, personal communication, February 23). Loras was generous to share some of her aspirations with me and wrote that one of her short-term goals is to pursue her MA in Applied Linguistics. Furthermore, she plans to press forward when she is done and seek a PhD in the near future (V. Loras, personal communication, February 23).
 

Sharing Web Resources: UNGEI

External links I have explored leads to numerous events, press releases, and global reports on various issues and trends in education. I have examined the Girls' Education Links, which directed me to several projects and organizations that focus on girls’ education and gender equity, such as ActionAid, Care and Global Campaign For Education.

The site is rich in topics and information mainly about gender equality in education. When I explored deeper, I learned that it tackles many related issues to equity in education, worldwide. There is a link Information by Country that leads to global issues in numerous countries, and we can choose the country of our interest to examine at length. Topics like bridging the education gap, inclusion, and others vital to reach quality education are deeply addressed in the site.

There is an extensive focus on equity of education in this site, but I found that its main concern is in developing countries. They stress on the need to improve girls’ rights and advocate for their equal treatment in their school environments, and provide support to educators so that they can implement developmentally appropriate teaching strategies.

There is a rich collection of reports and research on awareness, accessibility, and availability in many parts of the world. However, I have noticed that these issues are tackled differently across the world. The focus differs from that in reports I was reading on issues that concern USA this week. For example, while awareness in the states might refer to informing immigrants and low-income families about their rights and eligibility rules, awareness in other countries denotes to educating parents about the importance of education and prompts governments to develop an education structures that are appropriate and safe for girls. Some of the issues that UNGEI is confronting with regard to gender equity are the low expectations of girls ‘intellectual skills; from others as well as from the individual herself and not enough initiative to provide space for girls to learn or practice sports.  

It is well documented that inequality in providing quality education to all children engenders serious risks that affect children, families, and the whole nation, yet the new insight that I have gained this week is related to the dissimilarity in the perception of inequity. While accessibility, availability, and affordability are key areas of equity worldwide, each has a different weighted priority, depending on the location. A major challenge for advocates in the early childhood field is to acknowledge the existing gaps and understand the nature of inadequacies existing in their local community; to be better equipped to examine current policies that address them and advocate for effective future initiatives.

Getting to Know My International Contacts-Part 2

This week, my conversation partner was P. Vogt, a former English teacher and Deputy Campus manager at a renowned university in Saudi Arabia. She worked with students participating in numerous preparatory programs, and has noted a tangible difference between students coming from well off families and children who are less advantaged. She shared with me a common trend that often surfaced during her work in the preparatory programs, which was  the notable disparity in student performance . She explained that there is a serious inequity present within public and private schools in Saudi Arabia, and the reason for her inference was mainly students' academic achievement. She disclosed that students graduating from public schools were usually placed in lower levels than their peers from private schools, and  teachers were asked to "lower the expectations for these students" ( P. Vogt, personal communication, February, 2013). In order to enhance the quality of education provided for the less advantaged , Vogt  saw an urgent need to invest in post graduate teacher programs and implement policies that set quality standards for staff serving at public schools. Additionally, she tackled the issue of teacher compensation and curriculum enhancement- Two key elements that play a vital role in improving the level of education  ( P. Vogt, personal communication, February, 2013).This will decrease the learning gaps and provide children in public schools with better opportunities to rise to the standards  ( P. Vogt, personal communication, February, 2013). I would like to add that the best place to start implementing these policies is at the preschool level, as it is the very foundation that paves the way for future learning. 

Sharing Web Resources

The UNGEI website is constantly widening my perspectives and significantly contributing to my professional growth. So far, it has helped me understand the various effects of poverty on education and the multi-facets of gender discrimination. Through the thought-provoking topics it strongly tackles and the meaningful discussions that revolve around the challenges children face in many parts of the world, I have added a wealth of information that is invaluable to my better understanding of the implications for policies, and how to effectively advocate for the future development of the community-a skill that I deeply need to master. As I was exploring the website, I came across a UNICEF podcast that discussed investment policies and This topic has sparked my attention because it is the focal point of our studies this week.

Despite major success in enabling young children to reach their potential, there are still more than 200 million children under the age of 5 who are denied the opportunity to achieve cognitive development, due to many factors. These include poverty, gender discrimination, malnutrition, and conflict. That's why advocates call for government actions towards ensuring early childhood care and education for all children (UNICEF, 2012). To this end, UNICEF turns to scientists and other experts to show the importance of early childhood experiences, and how investing early in children's education engenders many positive returns. It sheds light on the effects of toxic stress on the brain. Dr. Shonkoff (UNICEF, 2012) explained the significance of investing early in education programs because they play a significant role in enriching childhood experiences. He explained how adversity results in toxic stress and how, in turn, it affects the physiology of the brain and leads to impeding the healthy cognitive development in children. He named some of the skills that get seriously affected, such as problem-solving, following directions, focusing attention, etc… (As cited in UNICEF, 2012).

Learning more from neuroscientists about increasing means in which children’s learning experiences can be enriched, has further affirmed the notion that experts from outside the early childhood field can have a notable impact on policy making, particularly with regard to education.

 

Reference

UNICEF. (Producer). (2012, April). Podcast #56: Global Action Week promotes early childhood education [Podcast]. In Beyond School Books.  Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/audio/podcast/10755_globalactionweekecdbsb56_podcast.mp3