Time Well Spent

 

Time Well Spent

It is a surreal experience to be writing my final blog entry for my master’s degree at Walden University.  The past two years have transformed my personal and professional being, every moment has broadened my perspectives and ways of thinking when considering education.  I have gained lifelong lessons that will support my future successes.  I have found a greater understanding of learning through direct experience, for considering all ways of thinking, and have developed an appreciation for the opportunity to collaborate with diverse thinkers.  Additionally, I have clarified my personal philosophy and established a professional long-term goal for my career.

            Learning occurs through direct experiences that challenge an individual’s way of knowing, transforming their current knowledge and thinking (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007).  Upon beginning the master’s program, I was under a falsehood that I was already a “master” and was quite surprised when I found that I still had a great deal to learn.  Through continuous reflections and efforts to dig deeper and deeper into my personal awareness, I explored unconscious biases from the way I perceived concepts, and they changed and evolved towards a more open-ended manner.  The learning process that I experienced was transformative and has forever changed how I view the process of learning and my role as an educator (Merriam, Baumgartner, 2007).

            Through our blog assignments, I found that my thinking had begun to narrow and forget to dream of possibilities.  Walden challenged me to consider national and global organizations and efforts when discussing universal trends and issues, such as Save the Children and The Children’s Defense Fund.  In the most recent weeks, we have been asked to envision our future and the work we want to be doing to support the early childhood field the most effectively.  These assignments brought an awareness of the passions I would like to pursue into the future and opened my thinking to possibilities I had never considered before.  I am leaving this program with a sense of the sky is the limit because of the support I received from my peers, instructors, and family.

            Completing my master’s what not a solo act by any means.  Participating in an online program from the first time forced myself to rely on others in a different way than I had ever experienced.  Quickly, I found comfort in the peer discussion boards and blog pages to bond with my fellow peers.  The feedback from my peers and instructors was overwhelmingly beneficial to my experience at Walden and developing a rich understanding of the course content.  We were able to communicate authentically with one another, even though we all have different roles, are from different demographics, and have previous backgrounds, yet we share the same passion for advocating for children and their families (O'Hair, Wiemann, Mullin, & Teven, 2015).  I found a comfort and excitement in seeing what my peers thought about my insights weekly and looked forward to seeing what others had to say about the assigned weekly topic of interest.  And lastly, my family has cheered me on along the way and are ever excited to celebrate my accomplishment with me.  

            This has been quite the experience to say the least.  As many say, it takes a village to raise a person.  I want to extend my gratitude to my village: to my peers, instructors, colleagues, and family members.  I have received the support I have needed to be successful and am now prepared to transition to the next stage of my professional career.  My ambitions have been ignited and I am eager to contribute to the early childhood field, and ultimately my real passion for providing high-quality experiences and ensuring the well-being of children and families.  

With such a great support system I have been able to commit to a long-term professional goal into my future.  I plan to do exactly what I chose to specialize in for my master’s degree: adult learning.  My overarching goal has always been to teach teachers.  To share my wisdom and share the journey in learning together regarding early childhood programs and practices.  I have made this my long-term goal because I believe it will take numerous experiences in instructing to become effective in an adult learning classroom (Merriam, Caffarella, & Baumgartner, 2007).  And it is a professional goal I am willing to commit to because I believe learning occurs throughout a lifetime, for both the student and teacher.  I have included my contact information below, feel free to contact me into the future. 

Best Wishes,

Crystal Park

Assistant Director/Head Infant-Toddler Teacher

Gretchen’s House, Inc.

906-487-3528

Crystal.park@gretchenshouse.com

References

Children’s Defense Fund. (n.d.).  Retrieved from https://www.childrensdefense.org/

Merriam, S. B., Caffarella, R. S., & Baumgartner, L. M. (2007). Learning in adulthood: A comprehensive guide (3rd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Wiley.

O'Hair, D., Wiemann, M., Mullin, D. I., & Teven, J. (2015). Real communication (3rd. ed). New York: Bedford/St. Martin's. 

Save The Children (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.savethechildren.org/