Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

Speak with at least three friends, family members, acquaintances, and/or colleagues. Ask each person to share:

• Their definition of culture
• Their definition of diversity

When I talked to my people about these questions their answers were all very similar. 

The response to the question of what is culture was described, as what a person wore, the way that they were raised and that there are different traditions that they practiced. All three mentioned that language and dialect of the language has much to do with the culture that a person is from. Some mentioned the different foods and ways that prayer was an important part of their culture.

The response to the question of what they thought diversity was, most answered with the same answer as inclusion of all. That all should accept and respect each other for what they believe and their opinions and feedback.

From what I have studied so far in this class I can see that most people think the same way.  For example, language is a huge cultural action.  How they are raised, the parenting skills are very different and they way we eat.

I really do not see much omission in these statements. Culture and Diversity can go so deep. 

What I have learned from talking to these other people and finding out what they think about these two words, has me thinking that there is so much to learn in order to understand people and why they do things.  I know that in my class we had some differences.  We try to teach independence and let the children do things themselves.  There are several groups of families that were enabling their children.  I talked to my family advocate and she explained to me why they do it and it was part of the culture.  So we brainstormed so that we could create a balance and a win/win for all.

So talking and knowing is going to make me have a better understanding of what all involved are thinking and where they came from as not to judge or single out.

My Family Culture

January 20, 2013

Scenario:

A major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country. The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees. You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event. However, you have absolutely no input into the final destination or in any other evacuation details. You are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently. You are further told that, in addition to one change of clothes, you can only take 3 small items with you. You decide to take three items that you hold dear and that represent your family culture.

The three items that I would take that are dear to me would be my picture albums and the hard drive that has all my pictures and documents on them.  There are pictures of my biological parents, my family as I was growing up and of my children and family. Along with this I would grab my computer.  I would also grab the American flag that was on my dad’s casket.

There is much information and stories on this hard drive and in the photo album that I would bring. I would share the experiences that are important to me and how that created the culture and traditions in my life that I have learned and lived.  The documents that are on the hard drive are stories and facts that would educate others of how I lived in my life and important information that might be helpful to others.

It would be a very hard choice if I had to give something up.  Especially just having the three items. I would keep the photo albums.  In these albums there are many stories and facts that I could share forever.  It would also keep me sane as to allowing me to remind me of where I came from and who I am. 

What I have learned from this exercise is that I take advantage of life and how I live it. It seem that I just want people to know who I am and my identity that I am an individual. I have done some deep thinking lately of how I think and pre judge people.  We are all made of different traditions, cultures, color and personality.  If I do not understand I should not judge.  I really thought about this and to tell you the truth I think that I would be very scared at first if this scenario happened.  As I see in today’s world here in the United States and in my community, most really do not want to know or their ignorance causes pre judgment and then the stereotyping begins.  I am going to try and find out before I judge.  We are all of one, just with different upbringings, which we all need to respect. After all there is so much that can be learned from each other and if we all combine our cultures and beliefs in a positive way we can have and create a win/win experience in life.

Perspectives on Diversity and Equity EDUC - 6164

Hello Friends and Colleagues,
I am excited to hear about your knowledge and expereinces with this class.  I use tabs to post in my blog.  So each week there will be a different tab with my posts. Please look into the tabs and share your knowledge. I am looking forward to reading and sharing all the  great information among all of us.  I am looking forward to hearing from all of you.

Week 8 Building Research Compentency

In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?

I really enjoy research.  I have been in market research my whole life.  My mother owned and operated her own market research company.  This research that we did in this class was very challenging.  Learning how to read studies was a huge discovery for me.  Research is very important and learning that there are specific ways to reach the outcome was very interesting. I know that research is a very needed part of developing theories, especially for the early childhood field.

What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?

There are many technical terms in doing research.  There has to be precise accuracy to reach the ultimate goal. I found that most of the designing is not as hard as it is to read.  I know that I had to break the different designs down into little pieces for me to understand.

What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?

This subject has been very challenging to me.  There were many words that I could not pronounce and understanding the meanings were a challenge as well.  I used the internet and the book, Doing Early Childhood Research as a reference with everything. Comprehending the complicated reading was a huge challenge for me.  After breaking many of the readings down into several different parts, I think I am starting t understand it more.

I know that if I get involved in the research aspect of this, I will be the idealist and I will have to have another person on the team to help decode and design the project. I think research is not a strong strength of mine. 

What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?

I think that the only perception that I have is that I want to learn more.  Reading everyone’s posts and what they were researching and their interests, I will continue to research and teach myself how to the best I can to get the results that I am looking for so that I can be the best leader in the field of Early Childhood! 

Thank you everyone for all your wisdom.  Thank you Dr. Davis for your knowledge.

Effective Programs and Practices EDUC 6161

Well here is my post!  A week late.  This online school is still new to  me.  I just want to say hello to everyone.  I am excited to learn from this class.  I feel that the relationship with families is important in the growth and development of children.  I am looking forward to learning from each one of you. Thank you again for your patience.

I just want to thank everyone for all their knowledge shared. Thank you for an outstanding advisor for taking the time and patience to teach me and allow me to explore new views of how to make the world a better place for children to learn, explore, experience and live!

I want to thank everyone from this class for all the support.  This has been an awesome class.  I have learned so much from the different leaders that spoke and from all the class participants.  You are all leaders yourself and I have learned so much from you.  I am going to take this information and add it to the resources and continue to grow and excel in this early childhood field.  Thank you again! : )