Exploring Roles in the EC Community: Local and State Levels

                              Exploring Roles in the EC Community: Local and State Levels


Considering professional organizations that appeal to my personal desires for a community of practice came quite easily to me.  Currently, my family is in the process of relocating a month after completing my master’s degree and I am making these conscious decisions about my real professional life now.  The top three areas of interest that I have sought employment through and am anxiously waiting to hear back from are diverse, yet all are aligned with my personal philosophies and practices.  With an emphasis on how adults learn as my graduate focus, I have chosen positions that include instructing early childhood courses at a local community college, a regional quality consultant, and an area early childhood specialist (0-3 yrs).  In the following paragraphs each position will be discussed further and how they meet personal beliefs and professional goals.

Fostering early childhood teachers has become a new passion to strive for in my professional career.  Mentoring and coaching others has developed into a personal strength and has inspired me to continue the path of adult education is some form.  My last course, Instructional Strategies for Adult Learners, encouraged my desire to facilitate adult classrooms even more upon gaining specific approaches and methods to utilize in creating effective learning opportunities for adult learners.  The local college, West Shore Community College, offers a NAEYC accredited early childhood program for students to obtain specific early childhood certifications and/or associates degree options (West Shore Community College, 2018).  Additionally, the college is connected to early childhood professionals that are of personal interest regarding my capstone research.  The college hosted a summit this past fall featuring, Dan Hodgins, who is a well-known early childhood advocate for understanding children’s behavior and creating resilience (West Shore Community College, 2018).  It would be an honor to have the opportunity to collaborate with such individuals as an instructor.

            Another opportunity that would allow for me to work with early childhood teachers directly would be the position of a quality consultant.  In my past, I have been deeply connected with our local Great Start to Quality organization and am seeking out employment with them in the area of my next home.  This organization is regionally offered; however, it is a statewide program.  Ensuring providers and programs have access to assistance in achieving the highest quality possible in educational opportunities requires community support.  Great Start to Quality (n.d.) has a mission of promoting programs in providing every child with the ability to build strong foundations within high-quality care settings.  The role of quality consultants is to assess quality using research-based educational standards, provide professional development for providers, and to assist families in securing high-quality care (Early Childhood Investment Corporation, n.d.).  This would be a rewarding employment opportunity with a plentiful variation in tasks and individuals supported.

            The final employment opportunity of interest is an early childhood specialist, specifically working with families and children from birth to age three.  Majority of my classroom experience and personal research focuses are specialized in children under the age of three and I feel quite confident in my knowledge and expertise in this area of development.  Families of our youngest children require the most support from community resources.  Serving as a specialist with the community action agency, FIVECAP, INC, would entail family visits with pregnant mothers and families with infants and toddlers, and additionally providing community training in relation to early childhood development (FIVECAP, n.d.).  Providing home visits in not foreign in anyway personally.  I have conducted them as a professional, as well as received them in my own home as a mother of a premature at-risk infant.  My professional and personal experience with these types of community resources would greatly support transitioning into an early childhood specialist community of practice quite easily.

            Reflecting upon the future employment opportunities that are possible is energizing.  Developing a community of practice positively supports an individual in numerous ways, including building confidence in previous knowledge and encouraging the ability to take risks to gain a deeper understanding of the field of interest (Wenger, 1998).  Each position highlighted was unique in the role played in early childhood education.  Yet, they all shared commonalities, such as the passion to work with others to improve quality in early childhood education settings through professional development, quality assessment, and family involvement programs.  With a clear vision of my personal and professional passion and knowledge, I am eager to see what the next role will be in my professional career.





References

FIVECAP, INC. (n.d.). Community action agency: serving Mason, Manistee, Lake and Newaygo counties, Michigan. Retrieved from http://www.fivecap.org/

Early Childhood Investment Corporation. (n.d.). Why high-quality matters. Retrieved from http://greatstarttoquality.org/why-high-quality-matters

Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning as a social system. Systems Thinker. Retrieved from https://wenger-trayner.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/09-10-27-CoPs-and-systems-v2.01.pdf

West Shore Community College. (2018). Early childhood education.  Retrieved from https://www.westshore.edu/academics/degree-programs/social-science/early-childhood-education/

Comments

  1. Kelysha WMarch 16, 2019 at 9:03 PM

    Hi Crystal,

    I liked that you did not limit yourself to one profession, but you found who another line of work correlated with your philosophy. The Great Start to Quality position that you mentioned stood out to me. My capstone project is making sure that rural communities can have access to high-quality child care. In a sense, that position would be working towards the same goal. “Such programs have been found to have particularly large benefits for children who are economically disadvantaged” (Nores & Barnett, 2014, p. 5).
    Reference

    Nores, M., Barnett, W., S. (2014) Access to high quality early care and education: Readiness and opportunity gaps in america. Retrieved from http://ceelo.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/ceelo_policy_report_access_quality_ece.pdf

    ReplyDelete
  2. NatalieMarch 17, 2019 at 9:22 AM

    Hi Crystal,
    I think this blog was tough for me to write because of all the work Practitioners do in the early childhood sectors. I practice advocating healthy beginnings and happiness. I absolutely love working with families however, some areas of the field I believe are in need for practitioners like the mental health service and family services to make a better future for families suffering. For years I have wanted to work with Zero to Three organization just like you do with FIVECAP. Through my experience I have realized that my passion and devotion are with special needs, mental health, and social work. I also enjoy research! I wish you all the best in your journey and all the happiness.
    Natalie

    ReplyDelete

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