Saturday, April 23, 2016

Time Well Spent

I have learned more than quite a few things from my graduate studies. Some of those things I have already discussed either in my discussion posts or blogs. Two primary things I have talked about in Week 8 Discussion post. There are other things I have learned and appreciated about my Walden graduate experience.

I was in for a surprise when I learned how little I know and how much I love learning. With my personal experiences, I intended to study just to get my Masters. But from the first class to this very class, I have been on a whirlwind of learning. I have developed a professional base of knowledge to match my personal experiences. That’s one of some things I have come to deeply appreciate. I am currently taking a Child Language Acquisition class and learning about how we generally acquire a language. I highly recommend it.

Secondly, I have learned some fundamental principles of Early Childhood that I had not realized before and that I have applied in my advocacy efforts. I learned things and wondered why they were not being utilized with Deaf children ages 0-5. Important stuff like not developing exclusionary policies, research involving the people that it studies, and, most importantly, the essential involvement of the community in early childhood programs.

Finally, it feels good to have a suffix. I am going to pursue my doctorate this fall and looking forward to learning some greater stuff from great Walden teachers.

As I look back on my graduate studies, I remember my colleagues whom I recognize as going through the same stress and experiences as me and my teachers whom I appreciate for their candor and input. I would upload a video but nobody would understand my American Sign Language. Thank you for listening to me every time I stand on my soapbox. It is much appreciated.

We all have lofty goals, and I have no doubt that each one of us will accomplish our Capstone projects. Maybe I will bump into some of you in the doctoral program.

Good luck!



Saturday, April 9, 2016

Jobs/Roles in the International ECE Community

It would be quite an adventure to travel to other countries and help Deaf children and their families. I would need to know the language and culture of the particular country before I can really become involved with them. Only one of those three international organizations had a page of employment opportunities. Unfortunately, it currently has no job openings.

Deaf Child Hope

Although the main goals are to support ministry opportunities that work with Deaf children around the world, I am drawn to two of their four initiatives. One is to provide scholarships for Deaf children who wish to further their education, and the second is to be an advocate for Deaf children by bringing attention to the plights of Deaf children in developing countries. Furthermore, they are focused on Deaf children because they are frequently overlooked by global humanitarian relief efforts. It is rare for Deaf children to receive an education. Unfortunately, there are no listed employment opportunities.

Help the Children: We Help Deaf Students!

Helping Deaf Children is one of their many programs. One of their missions is to help set up schools for Deaf children and provide them and their families with better health care.

Deaf Child Worldwide

It is an international arm of the National Deaf Children’s Society based in England. Their goal is to remove all barriers to the achievement of Deaf children throughout the world by empowering deaf children and their families, increasing awareness of the needs of Deaf children, and influencing and challenging key decision makers to make Deaf children a political priority. Their last goal meets my objective of being an advocate influencing policy, and unfortunately, there are no current employment opportunities. I need to keep an eye on this website for potential employment in the future.