Public Health

Public Health-Access to Healthy Water

I have to admit that I was one person that took the earth’s most natural resource for granted.  I was very wasteful of water.  I had no problem leaving the water running while washing my dishes and brushing my teeth.  I used to wash my clothes with the highest water level for a small load.  I didn’t care anything about water until one day my water was so rusty that it was the color of my skin and black grit was left in the bottom of my tub.  This happened one morning as I was preparing to go to work.  There was nothing I could do, the longer I ran the water the darker it turned.   There was no way I was going to bath or cook using that water.  I was fortunate enough that I was able to go to someone else’s house to prepare for work.   It was that day that I realized that some people have no other choice but to use water that I refused to use.

While researching this topic I remembered an episode of the Potter’s House that talked about missionary work that was done in Africa.  It stated that they went to Kenya, Africa to drill water wells to help the people in that nation receive clean drinking water.  The people in West Pokot were walking 17 kilometers one way in order to obtain contaminated water for their families. http://www.megacaremissions.org/humanitarian/fieldstory

In impoverished areas of the world such as Kenya, Africa they are facing a severe drought.  The drought has caused the animals and people to search for the water.  People have walked as far away as 20 kilometers a day just to get water for cooking. In their quest for water they are sharing the water as a source of drinking, bathing and cooking with animals.  Furthermore, the water they have is polluted from chemicals from miners, farmers and others that have their buildings to close to the rivers and steams.  

The missionaries were able to strike a mega well and they were able to dig a 12 kilometer pipeline to reach the tribes. To service the pipelines, they hired and trained 100 men from two local tribes.  The pipeline supplies water to thousands of people, goats, sheep, cattle, wild life and crops.

Due to clean water the people are healthier, the women can stay home with their young and the children can get an education because they do not have to spend their day carrying water for 20 kilometers one way. http://www.megacaremissions.org

Ever since I realized that I took having water for granted, and watching the episode on the Potter’s House about their missionary work in Africa, I have been more aware of my wastefulness. I try not to be too careless. I have donated money to the Potter’s House to help them continue their missionary work.  

In my school I have talked to my students about ways they can help people that are less fortunate than them.  We have had numerous penny drives so we could donate money to different organizations.
             

Childbirth In My Life.

The birthing experience that I choose to write about is my own birth. The information I have about my birth is very limited because my father was stationed in Thailand when I was born. Unfortunately, my mother passed away when I was 10 years old and no one knows the complete medical history of why I was born early.


I was born October 5,  to Arthur and Louise Cooke. I decided to enter the world early at 7 1/2 months. I weighed only 2lbs and 6oz.  As a preterm baby I had a few complications with my breathing, my right eye is underdeveloped and I had a hernia. As of today I have asthma and wear glasses.


It is very hard for me to believe that I was a preterm baby.  I can not imagine weighing only 2lbs. Besides the issues I have with asthma and wearing glasses the only distinguishing marks I have is on my hand were the I.V. was placed at and scars from the hernia operation.


I choose my birth as an example because I do not have children of my own and because we have read information about premature babies and I was one.  From what was told to me my mother did not smoke or consume alcohol so I was wondering what caused me to be born early?




For the second part of our assignment I asked my coworker for her help.  She is from Sierra Leone.  She gave birth to her first born in Africa and her second was born the United States.  She basically said that her childbirth experiences were the same.  In Africa, she was from the city so she had prenatal care.  She gave birth in a hospital with a physician present.  My co worker stated that while she was pregnant she would take daily walks and did her normal house work. After giving birth to her son she had to stay at home for a week.  During that week she had to keep her body covered, including her ears.  Also,  she had to "band" her stomach with a piece of cloth.  The cloth was to help you get back in shape.  After 8 days the baby was introduced to the world.  That was when the baby was named in a ceremony.  This ceremony was done in the morning.   She also stated that she did not have a baby shower.

Only The Beginning

I just want to take this opportunity to say "Thank You" to all of my classmates.  This class was a success for me. In the beginning I was afraid and didn't know what to expect.  My first application paper was written in total fear of APA style!  Now I am confident and am looking forward to the next class.  I have shared so much information with my coworkers and have referred them to Walden University.  I wish you guys much success with all of your future endeavors.  KEEP BLOGGING!!

Examining Codes of Ethics

Ideals contained in the National Association for the Education of Young Children and in the Division for Early Childhood that are meaningful to me are:

National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)

Ethical Responsibilities to Children
1-1.3-To recognize and respect the unique qualities, abilities and potential of each child.
1-1.10-To ensure that each child's culture, language, ethnicity and family structure are recognized and valued in the program.

I choose these two because I work in a district that has a diverse population of Hispanic, Afro-American, and Asian communities. It has been very beneficial to me to learn about each culture so that I can teach them effectively.

Ethical Responsibilities to Families
1-2.7-To share information about each child's education and development with families and to help them understand and appreciate the current knowledge base of the early childhood profession.

A lot of people believe that Pre-K is a highly paid babysitting service.  When I demonstrate and inform the parents about the curriculum we follow and invite them to participate in the classroom and in different workshops they gain a different point of view and recognize what their child is really being exposed to.

Ethical Responsibilities to Colleagues
1-3A.1-To establish and maintain relationships of respect, trust, confidentiality, collaboration and cooperation with co-workers.

Being Grade Level Chairperson means I have to know how to work effectively with my co-workers.



Division of Early Childhood (DEC)


Enhancement of Children's and Families Quality of Lives
2. We shall recognize our responsibility to improve the developmental outcomes of children and to provide services and supports in a fair and equitable manner to all families and children.

3. We shall recognize and respect the dignity, diversity and autonomy of the families and children we serve.

In order to serve the children better we have to work with their family's.  We need to be aware of their family make up, respect their customs and traditions.  We must collaborate in order to serve the children effectively.

Additional resources that I would like to share.

NJEA.org/parents-and-community/families-and-schools-together
NJEA.org-NJEA convention
www.eirc.org
scholastic.com
teachingstrategies.com

Course Resources

• NAEYC. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, fromhttp://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/dap
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on child abuse prevention. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/ChildAbuseStand.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on school readiness. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Readiness.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on responding to linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf
• NAEYC. (2003). Early childhood curriculum, assessment, and program evaluation: Building an effective, accountable system in programs for children birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/pscape.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009, April). Early childhood inclusion: A summary. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/DEC_NAEYC_ECSummary_A.pdf
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families. (2010). Infant-toddler policy agenda. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://main.zerotothree.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ter_pub_infanttodller
• FPG Child Development Institute. (2006, September). Evidence-based practice empowers early childhood professionals and families. (FPG Snapshot, No. 33). Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~snapshots/snap33.pdf
  
  
  
• Global Support for Children’s Rights and Well-Being

• Article: UNICEF (n.d.). Fact sheet: A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Retrieved May 26, 2010, fromhttp://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf
   
• Websites:
• World Forum Foundation
  http://worldforumfoundation.org/wf/wp/about-us
  This link connects you to the mission statement of this organization. Make sure to watch the video on this webpage 
• World Organization for Early Childhood Education
  http://www.omep-usnc.org/
  Read about OMEP’s mission. 
• Association for Childhood Education International
  http://acei.org/about/
  Click on “Mission/Vision” and “Guiding Principles and Beliefs” and read these statements. 

 Selected Early Childhood Organizations

• National Association for the Education of Young Children
  http://www.naeyc.org/
• The Division for Early Childhood
  http://www.dec-sped.org/
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
  http://www.zerotothree.org/
• WESTED
  http://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm
• Harvard Education Letter
  http://www.hepg.org/hel/topic/85
• FPG Child Development Institute
  http://www.fpg.unc.edu/main/about.cfm
• Administration for Children and Families Headstart’s National Research Conference
  http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hsrc/
• HighScope
  http://www.highscope.org/
• Children’s Defense Fund
  http://www.childrensdefense.org/
• Center for Child Care Workforce
  http://www.ccw.org/
• Council for Exceptional Children
  http://www.cec.sped.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home
• Institute for Women’s Policy Research
  http://www.iwpr.org/index.cfm
• National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education
  http://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/
• National Child Care Association
  http://www.nccanet.org/
• National Institute for Early Education Research
  http://nieer.org/
• Pre[K]Now
  http://www.preknow.org/
• Voices for America’s Children
  http://www.voices.org/
• The Erikson Institute
  http://www.erikson.edu/   

Words of Inspiration and Motivation

Marian Wright Edelman-"As I have grown older and wearier trying to help get our nation to put children first and become more worried about my own and other people's children growing up in an America where moral and common sense and family and community values are disintegrating, I pray more and more." Guide My Feet Prayers and Meditations For Our Children (1995)

Lilian Katz-“Curriculum, “should help children make deeper and fuller understanding of their own experience.” Going outside the classroom – and observing what is right there – that is where meaningful learning happens. Words of Wisdom

Louise Derman Sparks said in her interview that her passion is, "To make sure that all children were taught in environments and in ways that truly nurtured their ability to grow and develop to their fullest ability."