This week I have chosen to highlight three organizations that are dedicated to providing early childhood educators with professional development opportunities. They have created innovative teacher training programs that are convenient and affordable. These organizations are doing the work that I believe in, which is ensuring that all children are taught by highly qualified, well-trained, and well-educated early childhood professionals.
National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies ( NACCRRA) http://www.naccrra.org/
This organization is devoted to making sure that quality care is available to all young children in every local community in the United States. They train child care professionals regarding the best practices in early childhood education. Specifically, they have a training academy that makes available affordable training to child care professionals online. Furthermore, their conferences and publications equip educators with the information they need to improve their work and the education that young children receive.
The position that interests me within this organization is the chief of member relations and services. The responsibilities of this job include creating a valuable and engaging experience for members. One must maintain communication with local and state staff and members. The skills and qualifications for this job are at least ten years of experience as a manager and five years as a member of the organization. In addition, this position requires one to have knowledge about the NACCRRA and excellent written and verbal communication skills. The educational requirement is a bachelor's degree in early childhood education, child development, family studies, or business and public administration. However, a master's is preferred.
HighScope Educational Research Foundation http://www.highscope.org/
This nonprofit organization conducts early childhood research and provides training to early childhood educators. They believe that they can promote high quality education by developing early childhood curriculum, publishing materials, presenting conferences, operating a demonstration preschool, and a training program. They pride themselves on offering training that caters to the diverse learning styles and interests of adult learners. No matter what curriculum teachers use, this training program can be useful to their practice.
The job that is of interest to me within this organization is the center for early education evaluation research assistant. The responsibilities of this job title include processing data for researching projects, conducting child assessments, classroom observations, and staff and family interviews. This job requires individuals to have a four year degree in education. They must also have experience with data entry and 1- 2 years experience in a child care setting.
Child Care Services Association http://www.childcareservices.org/
Child Care Services Association is a nonprofit organization that is working to ensure that all young children have access to high quality early childhood education and care. They offer technical assistance to early childhood programs and provide educational scholarships and salary supplements to education professionals. They provide workshops throughout the year for early childhood professionals to improve their quality. Their annual Advancing Skills and Knowledge conference is an all day event that offers over 100 training and workshop sessions for educators to choose from.
The job that is of interest to me within this organization is specialist-infant, toddler. The specialist works with quality improvement staff and early childhood providers to improve quality of care available to infants and toddlers in a specific region. Some other responsibilities are collecting data on availability of quality care in the region, disbursing needed materials to programs and families, and attending local, state, and agency meetings. The requirements for this job are a bachelor's degree in early childhood education and three years experience working with infants and toddlers OR a master's degree with two years experience. One must also have effective communication skills, the ability to handle many tasks at once, and the ability to work with diverse individuals.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels
This week I have put much thought into organizations that I would like to be a part of my ideal community of practice. Below is a list of those organizations and why I chose them. I have also included job opportunities that I would like to explore in each of these organizations.
1. Vision for Children at Risk http://visionforchildren.org/
This nonprofit organization informs the community about the needs of children in the St. Louis area. They govern over the St. Louis Metropolitan Children's Agenda, which is composed of children's agencies that work to meet the needs of at risk children in the area. The VCR's mission is to serve economically disadvantaged young people and ensure their well-being. Specifically, they research the needs of St. Louis children at risk, collaborate with others, and advocate on their behalf. The reason I chose to highlight this organization is because they state that they are committed to being an agent for positive social change in St. Louis. Being a part of the Walden community, I also share this same passion. Children who are at risk benefit most from quality education and care. This organization recognizes this and aims to address this issue in my community.
The job that interests me within this organization is project coordinator. The project coordinator works closely with the St. Louis Family and Community Partnership to plan initiatives and strategies to address issues related to children and their families. A person in this position would need to know the needs and issues related to children and their families in the St. Louis area. One should have experience working with children and families and collaborating with other organizations.
2. Association for the Education of Young Children- Missouri (AEYC-MO) http://www.aeyc-mo.org/
AEYC-MO is an affiliate of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. This organization focuses on educating the community and policymakers about issues related to the early childhood field. They develop policy briefs that focus on topics of interest in the state of Missouri. Along with developing policies, this organization provides access to professional development for those who work with young children. I chose this organization because it was created for early childhood professionals who want to foster the healthy development and well-being of young children through quality education and other services. Like me, their vision is to ensure that all young children are well-prepared for school.
The job that is of interest to me in this organization is the quality: outreach, support, and accreditation committee chair. This person helps early childhood programs through the NAEYC accreditation process. The position requires that one know the accreditation process thoroughly and understands what represents quality in early childhood education and care. In addition, one would have to have good organizational and communication skills in order to assist early childhood programs effectively. All documents would have to be organized and explained clearly so that program directors will know exactly what to do to improve the quality of their program and receive accreditation from the NAEYC.
3. YMCA of Greater St. Louis (Y) http://www.ymcastlouis.org/
I have chosen to include The YMCA of Greater St. Louis because they are involved with several other organizations that advocate for young children. The Y believes in using developmentally appropriate practices to educate and foster the healthy development of young children. Their early childhood education centers and preschools provide a safe atmosphere and emphasize the development of social skills. They offer quality services to young children from low income families.
The job that interests me the most is early childhood education center director. The director is responsible for overseeing the staff and making sure that the children and their families are receiving quality care. The director should have several years of experience in the early childhood field and have knowledge about young children's growth and development. Also, this position requires that one works well with adults. The center director should be able to train the staff and willingly offer their support on a regular basis. I am interested in this position because I am eager to share the knowledge that I have received from Walden and my years in the field with others to improve early childhood care and education in my community.
1. Vision for Children at Risk http://visionforchildren.org/
This nonprofit organization informs the community about the needs of children in the St. Louis area. They govern over the St. Louis Metropolitan Children's Agenda, which is composed of children's agencies that work to meet the needs of at risk children in the area. The VCR's mission is to serve economically disadvantaged young people and ensure their well-being. Specifically, they research the needs of St. Louis children at risk, collaborate with others, and advocate on their behalf. The reason I chose to highlight this organization is because they state that they are committed to being an agent for positive social change in St. Louis. Being a part of the Walden community, I also share this same passion. Children who are at risk benefit most from quality education and care. This organization recognizes this and aims to address this issue in my community.
The job that interests me within this organization is project coordinator. The project coordinator works closely with the St. Louis Family and Community Partnership to plan initiatives and strategies to address issues related to children and their families. A person in this position would need to know the needs and issues related to children and their families in the St. Louis area. One should have experience working with children and families and collaborating with other organizations.
2. Association for the Education of Young Children- Missouri (AEYC-MO) http://www.aeyc-mo.org/
AEYC-MO is an affiliate of the National Association for the Education of Young Children. This organization focuses on educating the community and policymakers about issues related to the early childhood field. They develop policy briefs that focus on topics of interest in the state of Missouri. Along with developing policies, this organization provides access to professional development for those who work with young children. I chose this organization because it was created for early childhood professionals who want to foster the healthy development and well-being of young children through quality education and other services. Like me, their vision is to ensure that all young children are well-prepared for school.
The job that is of interest to me in this organization is the quality: outreach, support, and accreditation committee chair. This person helps early childhood programs through the NAEYC accreditation process. The position requires that one know the accreditation process thoroughly and understands what represents quality in early childhood education and care. In addition, one would have to have good organizational and communication skills in order to assist early childhood programs effectively. All documents would have to be organized and explained clearly so that program directors will know exactly what to do to improve the quality of their program and receive accreditation from the NAEYC.
3. YMCA of Greater St. Louis (Y) http://www.ymcastlouis.org/
I have chosen to include The YMCA of Greater St. Louis because they are involved with several other organizations that advocate for young children. The Y believes in using developmentally appropriate practices to educate and foster the healthy development of young children. Their early childhood education centers and preschools provide a safe atmosphere and emphasize the development of social skills. They offer quality services to young children from low income families.
The job that interests me the most is early childhood education center director. The director is responsible for overseeing the staff and making sure that the children and their families are receiving quality care. The director should have several years of experience in the early childhood field and have knowledge about young children's growth and development. Also, this position requires that one works well with adults. The center director should be able to train the staff and willingly offer their support on a regular basis. I am interested in this position because I am eager to share the knowledge that I have received from Walden and my years in the field with others to improve early childhood care and education in my community.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Week 1: Mission Almost Accomplished!!!
Hello to all of my colleagues in EDUC 6990!
Can you believe that we are almost finished with our goal of completing the M.S. Program? I am so glad that I once again have the opportunity to communicate and learn from you through our blogs. (I did not have blog assignments in my last two classes.) I wish you much success as we complete this last course and feel free to ask me questions along the way (f.krista83@yahoo.com).
Can you believe that we are almost finished with our goal of completing the M.S. Program? I am so glad that I once again have the opportunity to communicate and learn from you through our blogs. (I did not have blog assignments in my last two classes.) I wish you much success as we complete this last course and feel free to ask me questions along the way (f.krista83@yahoo.com).
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