Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

My Blog by Josie Zbaeren (WK1Assign2) EDUC 6162

For part one of this assignment I decided look into the World Forum Foundation. I listened to a podcast on World Forum Radio about the work a principal in Canada is doing at an Indigenous charter school. She speaks of the troubles the school has including the turn over rate of super attendants of the school. She admits it is tough program to work for and lead. The children come from broken backgrounds and face hunger, depression and lack of hope. She has decided to stick with it because the children deserve a leader that can show them how to believe in themselves and see they are worth something. She wants the children to learn to build relationships, aspire to be something and follow their dreams.

The second podcast I listened to was also from the World Forum Foundation also on their radio. This podcast was delivered by Barnabas Otaala the Dean of education at Uganda Martyr’s University. The podcast focused on children suffering from HIV/Aids in Namibia. He emphasized the importance of families having the opportunity to partner with doctors as well as early educators to help children diagnosed with HIV or Aids get the services they need. He believes that it is important for early educators to pay attention to signs of ailment in children and share concerns with parents while also supporting them and encouraging them to take their children to the doctor. 

World Forum Foundation. "A foundation whose mission is to promote an on-going global exchange of ideas on the delivery of quality services for young children in diverse settings." http://www.worldforumfoundation.org/wf/about.php

For the second part of the Blog assignment I decided to look into Harlem Children’s Zone. I was not able to access their newsletter it was unavailable however I did check out their website and they are working hard for children. They have a parent educational piece to their program, which includes helping parents set up their homes to become a place for children to learn. I encourage everyone to check them out I am impressed with what I have seen thus far. See link below. 

Harlem Children's Zone
http://www.hcz.org/
(Newsletter: http://support.hcz.org/site/PageServer?pagename=signup )

My Supports!

I have daily supports both at home and at work. I see my husband and my mom as home supports. My husband helps out around the house with the cleaning and cooking. He is very active in our children's lives and we work together to run a happy household. My mom is also a huge support for my family. I work early in the morning and my mom provides transportation for my girls when my husband cannot. She will take my girls to appointments when we need help and she will also take the girls to the library or out to eat while we are working. I love my husband and I would be wreck without him. If something happened to him I would of course do my best to take care of my children and provide for them however I think it would be very difficult.

My work supports are my boss and my co-workers. I feel my boss is my "go to" person when I have questions or concerns. She has many years of experience in the early childhood field and I value her expertise. My co-workers are supports because they  are the people I work closely with on assessing children, creating curriculum, and bouncing ideas off of. I know that our program needs to have a director and a number of staff so I will always have someone to work with which I think is comforting. I would feel lost if I were the only person running the show.

There are a number of challenges I could face in the future including hearing loss which a several of my family members have faced. I would want my husband to continue to support me by listening to my concerns and understanding my feelings. I would see my doctor as a support because he or she would be able to answer my questions and give me options. I would also see technology as a support such as closed caption on the television, hearing aids to help me hear, and the computer to help me stay current on research related to my challenge. The computer and phone would allow me to communicate effectively as well. The benefits of my husbands support is to make me feel loved regardless of a challenge. The benefits of the doctor is health and the benefits of technology is to keep current. Without these supports I would feel less hopeful and probably sad.

Josie Zbaeren