Professional Hopes and Goals

I hope that I am able to be an example for colleagues as I work with children and families from diverse backgrounds and also to the children and families themselves. This class has given me so much information and knowledge and so many new perspectives to issues that I can hopefully pass on. I hope to use this information to provide a more respectful and culturally rich learning environment for children.

One goal for the early childhood field would be to require more diversity training for staff members. I do not think I have ever had diversity training before or at least not more than a brief hour at the beginning of the school year. Yet, in this class there were so many concepts such as microaggressions and the many different -isms that I had never heard about before that have a major impact on working with children and families from diverse backgrounds. These can also impact relationships with coworkers. I think training is very important for the staff members to provide the best anti-bias and respectful environment for children.

I want to thank all my classmates for sharing each week discussions and blog posts. This class showed me how diverse we all are and no matter if we are the same gender or race we are still culturally diverse and unique in our experiences and perspectives. Each week I have been able to think about each topic from different angles due to the fact that everyone has been so willing to be open and share. It has really helped enhance the topics and I am so grateful for everything I have learned. 

Welcoming Families From Around the World

I am working in an early childcare center and just received word that a young girl will be joining my class who just emigrated from Somalia. There are many ways our country differs from Somalia so I will need to prepare myself and my classroom for the arrival.

• The majority of people in Somalia are Muslim. We will need to add in celebrations for Muslim holidays and also ensure we do not focus only on Christian holidays.
• Muslims do not eat pork so we will have to ensure the cook is aware and make accommodations if any meal has pork in it. They may also be issues with the fact that the food prepared will not be halal so we will have to discuss this issue with the family prior. The type of food and seasonings we use will differ greatly so we will have to remember she may not eat that much at school. We can discuss with the families popular meals they had in Somalia to see if we could add a few into the menu at school.
• The mother will probably wear a Hijab and there is a possibility that little girl will as well so I will talk to the other children in the class to explain to them what it is and why she will wear it beforehand.
• I will have to remember to not initiate shaking hands with the father as contact between the opposite sex is considered obscene.
• We will need to check with the family to see if we are allowed to take pictures of the little girl.
• I will add their language to labels in the classroom and make flashcards with common phrases to better communicate with the parents and the child. 

It was very interesting to learn about another country. Once I learned about the country, I then had to also learn about religious customs as most people from that country are a different religion than I am. Hopefully, with all this information I can ensure the family feels respected. I also want the child to get a good impression of school that will hopefully stay with her. This preparation showed me that there is a lot of information out there about Somalia and Muslim culture and beliefs, but there is no way to learn it all and it may depend on the family's preference. It will be important to discuss with the family any concerns or issues they may have and develop a good relationship so they feel comfortable coming to me in the event something comes up throughout the year.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Somalia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Somalia

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

The situation that came to mind is not a specific one-time incident, but one that has played out through several conversations and over a period of time. My husband's parents divorced around two years ago and within a few months, they were both dating other people seriously. Both people are actually the same age and are only two years older than my husband. Family members have had very interesting opinions on the fact that both my mother-in-law and father-in-law are dating people 12-14 years younger than them and the opinions have been very sexist and definitely not equal. They call my father-in-law's girlfriend a golddigger, even though she does have her own job, but they congratulate him for getting a younger woman. They call my mother-in-law a cougar and make fun of the fact that her boyfriend is so much younger. Even though her boyfriend does not have a job and is completely supported by my mother-in-law, they do not call him a golddigger.

My and I both feel uncomfortable around both of them mainly because they are so close in age to us. It just seems weird to date someone with such a huge age gap. However, we are both of the opinion that it is not our life so not our choice. Saying this and actually feeling it are two different things, but I am a little more understanding after this class. I think my feelings are based more on my personal opinion of what is an appropriate age gap especially for those who are older. 

I see now how my opinions and family members' reactions are related to sexism and even ageism. It seems it is ok for an older man to date a much younger women, but the woman is probably in it for financial reasons and it is not ok for a woman to date a much younger man. These opinions do have an impact on family members' interactions with each of their significant. It does make me wonder why we have these differences in wording for men and women who date someone much younger. I think in this situation for there to be greater equity, society would have to change the negative views on women dating much older men and women dating much younger men. Everyone needs to be more accepting and less apt to jump to assumptions about why two people are together.