Farewell

                When I began this journey towards my Master’s degree, I had no idea what to expect. I have learned so much during the past year and a half.

                The first big topic of learning was on the subject of anti-bias teaching. It was during this section of my class that I delved more deeply into culture and ethnicity and how both conscious and unconscious biases can impact our interactions with children and their families.

                I probably learned the most from the classes that specifically addressed the teaching of adults. I was concerned about how I would transition from teaching young children to teaching adults. These classes have provided me with the knowledge necessary to accomplish this goal and to approach it with confidence.

                The third area of significant learning was in the arena of Community of Practice. It was during this course that I grew to understand the parameters needed to be established and the type of leadership necessary for a group such as this.

                I would like to thank my classmates and Dr. E. for helping my hone my ideas into a feasible capstone project. Good luck to you all as you continue to follow your dreams.

                                                                   Teacher's Prayer

                                                    Lord, Please bless my students

                                                    And help them as they grow;

                                                    May I teach them faithfully

                                                    The things they need to know.

                                                    So they may face the future

                                                    Knowing they're prepared,

                                                    And when they think of school days,

                                                   May they know their teacher cared.

International Organizations Addressing Early Childhood Ed.

This week’s blog assignment was to check out international organizations in which I may be able to use my degree in Early Childhood Education. I looked into five different organizations and share information about three of them here. Although I found the missions of each of these t be interesting, I don’t believe any of them to be viable options for me for two reasons: I am not bi-lingual and my age precludes me from gaining the type of experience needed to fulfill the requirements needed.

United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) UNESCO’s mission is to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information. The Organization focuses, in particular, on two global priorities:  Africa, and gender equality.  A major objective for UNESCO is education for all.  Although I did not find any job openings for the education department of UNESCO, I did find a description of the requirements for anyone filling these positions. UNESCO education employees are required to have an advanced degree in education, must be fluent in either English or French with a working knowledge of the other, must have a minimum of two year’s experience, must possess integrity, professionalism, and a commitment to diversity.

The International Step by Step Association was established in the Netherlands in 1999. ISSA connects professionals and non-profit organizations working in the field of early childhood education. They believe in: equal access for all children; promoting high-quality and professionalism in early years services and empowering parents and communities to be part of children’s development and learning. I could not find a link that shared information about the requirements that must be met in order to work for this organization.

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has a position open for Early Childhood Development Specialist (Preschool – 4^th grade) in Uganda. Requirements include: an advanced degree in Early Childhood Development or Social Sciences field related to international development assistance, a minimum of eight (8) years of progressively professional work experience at the national and international levels, in fields relevant to Early Childhood Development programmes is required, work experience in a field relevant to development assistance, experience working in the UN or other international development organization is considered an asset, fluency in English (verbal and written) is required, and knowledge of an additional UN Language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish) and local working language of the duty station are considered an asset.