Time Well Spent

I have learned so much from this program, the most being the important role I can play in making a difference in my local community through my efforts of being an advocate for the early childhood field. Discovering the importance of a community of practice and how you can work with others to make a change opened my eyes to who we work with and what we can do together. The last thing I learned from this program is that the purpose behind my want to achieve a master’s degree in early childhood was not only for myself but for all the children I can reach with the knowledge I have gained.

One of my long term goals is to help my child development center become more trained on inclusion. After working on my capstone project on inclusion, I still feel very passionate about the change that can be made and hope to start the changes in my center. I would like to help all my staff have a passion for inclusion and create a better learning environment for all our children.

Thank you all for such a great learning experiencing. Most of us have had the pleasure of working together throughout our journeys of our masters. I hope for the best for everyone in your future endeavors and that you all continue to learn more about early childhood development and continue to do great things in the field.

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

International Organizations:
Association for Childhood Education International 

"Bright futures for every child, every nation" ("Association for childhood," 2013.) This very statement is the reason I selected this international agency to focus on. Children are the future of this world and as an educator it is my job to brighten their future with every day I spend with them. I hope that as I work with children in my community, I can also help children around the world to make the world a brighter place in the future. 

UNICEF
UNICEF is focused on the child as a whole. They work for the rights of children, to provide food and shelter for all children and provide a stable environment for children around the world. I selected this organization because as an advocate for children, I am focused on the child as a whole and want to make every child's life better to the best of my ability.

Education International
 "All children have the right to education"("Education international ," 2013.) This statement is the basis of wanting to work internationally for the education of children. Since so many children do not have the opportunity to experience a proper education, I feel as an advocate I should work towards making sure they are all given these chances. 


Job Opportunity: Early Childhood Development Specialist, P-4, Nairobi, Kenya (UNICEF)Supporting the planning, development and implementation of Early Childhood Development Programmes in ESARO, including support for  (a) scaling up national UNICEF programmes towards achieving MTSP targets, contributing to all relevant millennium development goals and effectively supporting UNICEF`s contribution to poverty reduction; (b) leveraging resources in support of developing ECD policy and practice, partnerships and mobilisation, as well as advocacy; (c) coordinating with all outcome areas as indicated in the OMP and MTSP  child survival and development, basic education and girls` empowerment, child protection, HIV/AIDS and social policy.  Linkages will be forged to enhance synergy and holistic planning and policy development for early childhood development, (d) providing leadership for education interventions in ECD in ESARO linked to the overall Basic Education and Gender Programme objectives, ensuring that these are clearly linked to government priorities in policy and planning for ECD across sectors.
Skills or qualifications: Inorder to meet the demands of this job, I beleive that I will need a lot more time and experience working as an advocate for children. I also think that working with UNICEF to understand more of their methods and techniques would help in a job like this. 

References:
Association for childhood education international. (2013, August 06). Retrieved from http://acei.org/about-us/about-us.html


Education international . (2013, August 06). Retrieved from http://www.ei-ie.org/en/websections/content_detail/3265


United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2011, from http://www.unicef.org/

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

National/federal organizations or communities:
Association for Early Learning Leaders: I selected this national association because its focus is to help teachers and leaders in the early childhood field. Teachers of young children can never have enough resources or support to help make their job more meaningful. http://www.naccp.org/
National Head Start Association: This organization believes in the same basics of what children need from a center and what they can do that I do. The children are always my main focus and this organization feels the same way and provides tools to help other teachers make this possible. http://www.nhsa.org
National Association of Early Childhood Teachers Educators: This organization promotes growth amongst the educators in the early childhood field. They promote advocacy and and development of teachers and children. http://www.naecte.org/ 

Job opportunities:
Child Development Center Director
CYS Training Specialist 

Skills and experience needed:
I believe that the skills needed to do these jobs is a passion for working with children and helping staff members see the importance they bring to these children's lives. I feel as a leader you must bring as much information and experience as possible and through this program I feel that I am certainly adding to my knowledge. 

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State Levels

Organizations that appeal to me:

• NAEYC: this organization has several links and tools to use to learn more about the early childhood field and ways to help the center you are currently working in. I have found this website very helpful during my studies and while working in my current center. 
• http://www.naeyc.org/
• County of San Bernardino: Preschool Services Department: this department is in place to benefit all head start programs in the county. The goal of the department is to empower families and children and this is exactly what I want to do everyday working with children. 
• http://hss.sbcounty.gov/psd/aboutus/aboutus.aspx
• First 5 San Bernardino: this organization is a great tool to providing help to parents of children 0-5 years old. Their emphasis is to give children what they need to succeed. Programs like these are what make me love the field I work in. Children in these age ranges need the most help and that's what I want to do. 
• http://www.first5sanbernardino.org/programs/programs.aspx

Job Opportunities:

• CYS Program Assistant Director
• Skills and abilities: manage a center of 300 children. Bachelors degree in Early Childhood Education. Supervising the operation of a CYS center. 
• CYS Program Associate Instructor
• Skills and abilities: provides group or individual lesson plans. Works with the coordinator to create work schedule. Be able to evaluate children with their needs and disabilities.