Parent, Family, and Community Engagement

The satisfaction I derived from families and their children benefitting in major or minor ways from Head Start is inspirational. It gives me joy to know that some children and their families were helped because of the care invested by the Head Start staff. The desire of professionals to help is altruistic, and the testimonies that we do makes all the hard days bearable.

When the policy makers and government officials realize that the families appreciated the opportunities to be involved, and the successful impact it has had on their children throughout their lives; it will solidify the reasons Head Start must continue to exist.  If families and former student attribute their progress in life to Head Start, then this is proof that it can and has had a positive impact from childhood to adulthood.

One parent is thankful for the nutritional guidelines, the nutritional meals, and the wellness checks that proved her child was healthy. That her child’s obesity was not due to some disease, but her diet and exercise needed more information which Head Start shared.

Would these children be successful without the influence of Head Start, it is possible, but why should that chance be taken? Because Head Start motivates families to work together with their teachers to ensure that their children are progressing forward. Families are the other half of the teachers and the children, it takes all of us working towards the goal, it is a joint effort that would fail if one party was missing.

Quality Programs for All Children

Public opinion about childcare is very important because their opinions are transformed at the voting poll, and through their representatives. Getting the public behind an idea is paramount to changing the world.

There are numerous trends affecting early childhood, today scientists, politicians, and economists are supporting the value of early childhood education. Although, we have some who do not use or care about early childhood education. These parents have their own system of educating their children. The homeschoolers are more than I previously thought. According to Autumn Burke (2018):” In 2007 the U.S. Department of Education reported that the number of homeschooling students had climbed from 850,000 in 1999 to 1.1 million in 2003” (Fagan,2007). If this trend continues to grow, we will have fewer children using early childhood care, in five years it could change if we offered quality child care.

One public perception about men being early childcare professionals is that they are not to be trusted. I personally disagree with that beliefs and would advocate that change of perception. As Tim Cooke (2018) in “The Guardian” expressed: “We need to strive for a much better gender balance among early years teachers”. At my center, we had two male teachers and they were very good teachers, the children loved and respected them. Nevertheless, they both had to leave because of the very low pay. I would advocate for more male teachers, and hopefully, in five years public opinion will change.

Speaking of low pay, this is something that affects all teachers as they try to care for their families.  I hope to change that fact by advocating the worth of early childhood professionals. The movement is rapidly growing that early childhood education should be accessible for all children. According to “First Five Years Fund”:” …89% of Trump voters and 79% of Clinton voters want Congress and the administration to work together to improve the quality of child care and preschool and make it more affordable for parents”. This is encouraging, and I advocate free early childcare for all children. I hope that in the next five years it is a national mandate that all early childhood children are granted quality care. However, advocating for quality salaries for the teachers is a goal I plan to pursue. Quality care for children and quality salaries for early childhood professionals.

I imagine that the children, families, and communities will finally get the total benefits of early childhood care. The male teachers will have a positive effect on male and female children. The public will not arbitrarily dismiss the influence of male role models in early childhood. And finally, professional teachers will be appreciated, and the teachers will thrive enough that teachers will not have to work part-time jobs. And male and female teachers can take care of their families without leaving the field of early childhood. Peace of mind will influence all parties to be and do better, parents will have their quality care, children will receive the best from their well-paid teachers, and then and only then will the children’s future benefit from early childhood education.

References

Burke, A. (6 April 2018). Why homeschooling is on the rise. ThoughtCo. Retrieved

    from  https://www.thoughtco.com/why-homeschooling-is-on-the-rise-1832549

Cooke, T. (19 July 2018). I’m one of the few male nursery teachers. There should be

    more of us. The Guardian.  Retrieved from

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jul/19/under-fives-male-teachers-men-early-years

First Five Years Fund (20 June 2017). 2017 National poll: Research summary. 

    Retrieved from  https://www.ffyf.org/2017-national-poll-research-summary/

An Early Childhood Advocate

           I am interested in advocating for reform in the existing state systems. We have the fortune to have three grant-based programs in our center, Georgia Pre-K Lottery, Early Head Start, and Quality Rated Subsidy Grant, along with a subsidy Children and Parents Subsidy (CAPS). However, I have witness abuse of these programs in preparing the children and their families for lifelong progress. Some loopholes allow children to attend ten days out of a month and still be in good standing, and to come to school after instructional time has begun, and breakfast is over. We must feed these children because they are usually hungry for their first meal, and the children have no control over their tardiness. One parent kept his son out of school because he had a hair appointment, another one overslept because she was up late along with her child. These programs are designed to provide a service for families who cannot afford childcare, a way to give their children a head start in early learning. I must help parents to practice methods of success, attendance and being on time is required on jobs, and in public schools. The earlier these families adopt these methods, the easier the transition from early childcare to public school will be.

       Lack of attendance and tardiness is very discouraging, and I want to help now before those habits ruin their children’s beliefs. According to Kieff (2009), one part of being an advocate is the:’ …proactive stance taken by individuals in response to particular issues that concern them” (p.7).   The early childhood professional sees what is happening and sometimes what is needed to improve an issue.

       I want to learn how to approach an established state system with my concerns in a way that induces change. I want to find an alternative method to encourage parents who participate in free programs of the need to attend each day and to be on time. I want to help families, and state systems see the parallel of what a child sees are predicated to what he does. How can I help a family place more value on school than going to a barber, and that it is never to early or young to value school?

                                             

                                                Reference

Kieff, J.(2009). Informed advocacy in early childhood care and education: Making a

   difference for young children and families. Upper Saddle, NJ : Pearson Education, Inc.