I never heard back from any of my international colleagues. I listened to the podcast on the World Forum Foundation website. Susan Lyons discussed the "Innovative Teacher Project" (World Forum Foundation, 2011). This project was based on Susan Lyons and other teachers coming up with a new approach regarding learning in the public schools becoming a diverse population. The approach that they came up with to early education is the Reggio Emilia Approach. The Reggio Emilia program was established in Italy and is not a curriculum. The program is an approach to learning. The program is designed to encourage children to be creative, practice critical thinking skills, problem solving and to interact within their community.
I looked up the website “Global Children’s Initiative” from Harvard University. I read the article called, “Experiences Build Brain Architecture". The article talked about how the experience of children’s development skills affects the brain and is the largest growth spurt time frame. High quality experience has been known to be a factor that causes a positive brain development. Global initiative has partnered with the Early Childhood Innovation Project to come up with an assessment tool to improve early childhood programs and give the children the opportunity of quality education.
This section focused on this particular program that was developed in 2006. The center focuses on building a unified science of health, learning, and behavior. Global Children’s Initiative has three domains:
1. Early childhood development
2. Mental health
3. Children in crisis and conflict situations.
The center focuses on these areas to help improve in these areas. These domains are broken down into these 3 categories and faculty and students research and try to research there domain.
The web cast and the website provided me with a lot of information on high quality solutions and programs that are available in the early childhood education. High quality schools are the focus to be available to all children and there are many programs that are trying to help improve the quality of education. I feel that it is important that all children be given the opportunity to experience quality education. Research is important to me and should continue to help improve the education and understanding our children in the early childhood field.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2010). Global children’s initiative. http://developingchild.harvard.edu/initiatives/global_initiative/
World Forum Foundation Radio, (n.d.). http://www.worldforumfoundation.org/wf/radio.php
World Forum Foundation Radio, (n.d.). http://www.worldforumfoundation.org/wf/radio.php
Your information was very informative. I agree that every child should experience a quality education and care. I am delighted more and more resources are becoming available to provide just that. Good post.
ReplyDeleteI think the approach to providing children with what they need relies on research. The three domains are very delicate especially the Mental Health and Children in Crisis and Conflict domains. To be effective, we have to be knowledgeable. Thanks for sharing this philosophy.
ReplyDelete