What is Communication

                                     Rev. Father Boniface Hardin

There are two different people who demonstrate competent communication. The first is the  founder of Martin University Rev. Father Boniface Hardin. The second is my oldest brother Charles Guynn, These two men are very articulate when speaking to an audience there demeanor demands your attention. They both use word that will stretch you vocabulary but not so much that you do not understand what they are saying, more like I wish I would remember to use that word when I am speaking to my parents. 

                             
                      Charles Guynn and My Mom and my
                          Sister Frances in the background.

Professional Hopes and Goals

One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come for diverse backgrounds is that I will continue to lean about different diverse backgrounds of all people around the world, and to make sure that my entire staff are educated to these backgrounds. I also hope that the children and their families that attend our school will learn that many different kinds of families exist in our world and to stop any bias feeling that may have already developed and also prevent any new ones that may develop.

One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is in an area that we did not focus on as much and that is the area of children that have social emotional disorders and their families. In most cases I do not feel that these children and their families with these divers’ disorders are treated with equity, and social justice. I feel they are our throw away children who no one wants to have in their classrooms or in many cases their schools. These are the children who quit school or are expelled from school or even put out of school and even the unthinkable children who commit suicide. I would like that the early childhood field make it mandatory that all staff have training when working with children and their parents with this kind of disorders.  I feel we must start early before these children get into the elementary and high schools.

I would like to thank all of my colleagues for all of you insightful posting on our blogs as well in our discussions. I have leaned a lot from all of you. I will take your ideas and use them. I also like to thank Dr. Morgan for all of your help. I hope to have you all for classmates in our next class.  

Welcoming Families From Around the World

The name of my families country or origin is from many differ areas of the world. I consider myself African American. However I have a grandfather who is half American Indian and Caucasian, who married an African American woman. I also have a great-grand-father who is Italian who married a African Italian and a great-grand-mother who is half African American and half Caucasian.  My father was fair skin and my mother is fair skin also all of my brothers and sisters are fair skin. However we all can see who pick up which ethnic genes some of us have blonde hair and blue eyes some have light brown hair with green hazel eyes and some have dark brown hair with dark brown eyes. My dad had dark brown hair with gray hazel eyes and my mom has dark brown hair with dark brown hair.

The story in our text tell a story about a little girl name Beth who brought a CD if country music to school to share with her class and her mother became embarrassed, but Beth told her mother that the CD was part of her culture that she wanted to share. The teacher went on to explain to Beth’s mom that she had encourage the children to bring things from home that reflect their daily life and that they called it Culture Share. She went on to let Beth’s mom know that the class enjoyed listening to the music that Beth loves.  I love this ideal, this is something I would encourage all of my teachers to incorporate in their lesson plans.  I would also educate myself as well as my staff about the different cultures in our community that would be apart of our school through research. We would also have parent’s night out at least six times or more a year to share their different cultures such as  food, music, dancing, language, holidays and the country of their origin or anything else that the parents wants to share about their cultures. I would also have guess speakers from different country of origin come in as in house field trips to share their cultures. I will also have foods added to the menus form all the different cultures around the world and the families in our school as well as books, toys and dress up clothing in the dramatic  for the child to play with on an everyday basses.

My hopes for these preparations is that the children as well as their parent feel apart of our school. I also want the parent to feel that their children are happy to be at our school and that they will lean the same as all the children in the school, and as it stated in our text that “Teachers and families should work toward developing mutual respect—with families recognizing that teachers may well know more about children in groups and children’s development in general, and with teachers recognizing that families know more about their child in particular. Both types of knowledge are necessary for children to flourish.”

Reference

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? Keep in mind that one can encounter such incidents in real contexts, including online environments, as well as in fictional ones, such as movies, books, television shows, and the like.

In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

I experience bias, prejudice, and oppression very early in my life. I am an African American woman who is very fair. I feel most of the prejudices came from some of the children who I attended school with. I was called names such as “you white/black girl”, “You yellow girl”, “you mustard girl”, but what I think that want hurt me the most was that who I thought were my friends would say “ You just think you are cutie because you have long hair, green eyes, and have white skin” I remember going home and asking my mom if I was white,  she reassure me that I was not white but that I had many different  nationally  that flow through my blood.  She then explain that grandpa Long who was her father was half American Indian and half Caucasian, and that my other grandpa Guynn my father’s father was half Italian and half African Italian. After my mother explain my nationally it seem to be OK with being fair skin. I was still called names so I just punched them in the mouth. I was some what of a fighter. I guess growing up with so many brothers I learn how to rascal and fight if I had too.  

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

This incident brought up to me trying to understand racism not only with in my own race but all racism all around me. I went from an all black grade school to a majority white school. I heard how white people were not fair to people of color, and I experience some of that in high school. In high school is where I was first called the “N” word. I was so confuse because I did not want to dislike white people because my grandfather was half white. But I did because my grandfather did not clam to be white he told everyone he was a black. I ask my mother why grandpa said he was black and she said because of the way he was treated by white people and how my grandmother, mother and her brothers and sisters were treated. So I grew up not trusting Caucasian. As I grew up I did develop some friends that are Caucasian but I never looked at them as Caucasian but good friends.

What and/or who would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

I guess I would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity of greater equity. As I grew into an adult I know that all Caucasian are not closed minded to different cultures. I do sometimes have trust issues this is something I need to work on.