Time Well Spent

I cannot believe the journey is coming to an end. It has been a long and exhausting trip but well worth the effort! Time well spent, indeed.

Deeply felt learnings:

· My passion for teaching adults is burning stronger than ever. I have felt a significant shift in my focus from early childhood education to teaching adults in the early childhood field.

· Collaboration with classmates was critical to my learning and process, especially in the final capstone project.




· Leadership development in early childhood is a focus area that needs serious consideration. There are too many gaps in learning for those in leadership positions in this field.

Each of these spurs my long term goal of providing high-quality adult education for leaders of early education across the country (and maybe beyond). I hope to collaborate with many capable and passionate professionals to bring my capstone project to life.

I bid a fond farewell to my colleagues and Dr. E. I know you all have exciting adventures ahead of you.

I wish you all the best as you continue your work and advocacy in the early education field.

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

The first international organization I researched and found intriguing is the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI). ACEI is "an international organization driven by the belief that education is essential to human development." I am interested in this organization because I believe that human development is dependent upon education. As a life-long learner I believe that education is important to our global health. It is through education that we understand the world and all who set foot on this earth.

A position I found within this organization is the role of Country Liaison. This is a volunteer position but one that I believe is critically important for the sake of informing the global conversation through a local lens. Liaisons represent countries from around the globe and provide information bi-annually to ACEI which is shared with the global community. These liaisons must have the following knowledge and experience: "A Country Liaison should have experience in a nation's or region's education, economic, and/or social systems, and have professional experience in global education, international development, child and human rights, or related disciplines."

The second organization that I find fascinating is the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC). This international organization "builds relationships between educators who are working with special and gifted education children. The CEC is dedicated to improving education for children with disabilities  in addition to children demonstrating unique gifts and talents" (Rasmussen College, 2012). I found this to be interesting because we often hear about organizations for children with varying disabilities but infrequently do I learn of one that also focuses on gifted and talented education.

There are no currently available jobs at CEC but one that sounds interesting is the Manager of Professional Development and Standards. The person in this role manages the organizations "webinars, online learning, Professional Development Hours, and Professional Standards and Practice program reviewers and web page." I think to fulfill this role one would need knowledge and experience in exceptional education as well as distance learning and adult education.

The third organization that is interesting to me is Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE). I have seen many teachers who have education from other countries who struggle to have those credits recognized by local agencies and organizations. Below you will see how ECE aims to ensure that all education is recognized whether obtained in the US or abroad.

Although this organization is not specific to early childhood I do see a need for this type of service for early education professionals. Many teachers in my community come from other countries and have trouble obtaining credit for their education which was completed in their country of origin. In my role as an early childhood coach I would love to have the ability to look at those transcripts and support the teachers in their ability to identify the amount of credit that will be given within my state on the AZ Early Childhood Workforce Registry. No career opportunities are currently available at this organization. However, I would love to know more about becoming a member of their team as an educational evaluator.

References

Association for Childhood Education International. (n.d.) Who we are. Retrieved from https://www.acei.org/about/

Council for Exceptional Children. (2018). Headquarters staff. Retrieved from https://www.cec.sped.org/About-Us/Contact-Us/Headquarters-Staff

Educational Credential Evaluators. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.ece.org/ECE

Rasmussen College. (2012, Dec. 28) 5 Professional ECE associations you can't ignore. Retrieved from https://www.rasmussen.edu/degrees/education/blog/5-professional-ece-assocations-you-cant-ignore/

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

One organization that interests and appeals to me is the Council for Professional Recognition. This is the organization that provides varying levels of support to early childhood educators who are seeking to obtain a Child Development Certificate (CDA). I am interested in the organization because my current and future focus in the field is to provide adult education to early childhood professionals. This is my area of focus in this MSECS program. As I conducted research for one of our classmates this week it occurred to me that providing this adult education in non-conventional ways appeals to me. It mirrors what I am currently doing as a coach for the QRIS in Arizona- non-conventional adult education. Therefore, I am interested in the role of CDA Professional Development Specialist. This is a national council so it would be possible for me to engage in this role across the country or only in my local area.

The skills and experience required for this position include personal attributes, formal education, and experience in the field (as well as access to internet and email). Below are the requirements from the website. Additionally, one is required to complete an application to become a PD Specialist and once approved a specific training is required.

A second organization is the Global Partnership for Education. This international organization interests me because their work support the availability of education for children in developing countries and those affected by conflict and extreme poverty. If I was not focused on teacher education I would move toward a focus in international advocacy for early childhood education in impoverished areas of the world. A job which is currently available and interesting to me is the role of Consultant on the Global Advocacy Team.

The requirements for this role are as follows.

  

Third, the National Association of Early Childhood Trainers (NAECT) is appealing to me. My passion for providing high-quality adult education to ECE teachers and leaders attracts me to an organization which is focused on this aspect of the ECE field. Too often I recognize that training for ECE professionals is not rooted in adult learning theory. "The National Association of Early Childhood Trainers is committed to enhancing the professional growth and development of individuals that serve as trainers in the early care and education field for teachers who work with children from birth through age eight" (NAECT, n.d., para. 2). I would be interested in beginning my work as a train-the-trainer facilitator to provide support for those who work as adult educators in the early childhood field.

Unfortunately, I cannot find any information about how to become employed with this organization. For this reason I will explain what I believe should be the requirements and skills necessary. First, I would suggest that each of the requirements for the PD Specialist I have listed above would be necessary for this position. Additionally, I would need to have education in teaching adults and adult learning theory. Finally, experience in teaching adults in the early childhood field would be necessary. One would need to have experience in facilitating professional development based on adult learning theory if they are going to train others to do so.

Council for Professional Recognition- PD Specialist: http://www.cdacouncil.org/pd-specialists/eligibility-criteria

Global Partnership for Education: https://www.globalpartnership.org/jobs

National Association of  Early Childhood Trainers: http://www.naect.org/

Communities of Practice of Interest to Me

First, I want to highlight a group of communities of practice (CoPs) which are funded through the same initiative as the Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS) in Arizona. This group of CoPs is titled Great Expectations for Teachers, Children, and Families. There are CoPs related to many topics in the early childhood field. I am interested in this group of CoPs because I noticed that there are none related to leadership.

This relates to a job of interest to me. I would be interested in facilitating my capstone project, a CoP for early childhood leaders, within the group of CoPs. It would be a great opportunity for me to implement the project I am compiling and it would serve a great need in my community. In order to qualify for this position I would need experience and education in early childhood education (ECE), leadership development, and adult education.

https://www.getcf.org/communities-of-practice/

Another organization in my community is the Southern Arizona affiliate of NAEYC- SAzAEYC. This community of practice provides several opportunities for education, advocacy, and community building in the field of ECE in the Southern Arizona community. I have served as a board member for this organization and found the work we did to be inspiring and effective.

A job I would be interested in is the Executive Director of SAzAEYC. This role provides solid leadership for the board and other aspects of the association. Skills and experience for this position are knowledge about our local ECE community, ECE best practices, and grant writing and fundraising experience to ensure secure funding for the association.

https://sazaeyc.org/

Quality First Academy is a CoP for technical assistance providers of the QRIS in my state. This CoP interests me because I am a member of it and it has great potential for supporting collaboration and education of the TAPs who work with adults in the ECE field. In my experience, this CoP is missing components of high quality adult education practices.

For this reason, I would be interested in the position of coordinator for this CoP. I would like to infuse adult learning theory into the sessions for TAPs. In order to qualify for this position I would need extensive understanding of the challenges TAPs face in the field, adult learning theory, and the QRIS system structure.

https://pll.asu.edu/p/search?f%5B0%5D=type%3Acourse

A Passion Word Cloud

Below is the word cloud I have created to express my passion in the early childhood field. Providing high quality learning opportunities, for leaders in the field, focused on leadership development.

A note of gratitude...

This week I am pondering how fortunate I have been to engage with a group of bright and talented women. I feel empowered in my own journey, in adult education, when I have the opportunity to have reflective and engaging conversations with folks like you. All the best in your continued journey!

Wendy

Adjourning... Goodbyes are Necessary

I have had very little experience with adjourning as it is described by Abudi (2010). Most of the groups or teams I have been involved in continued on after I left. Or I continued on after another member left. I have served on governing boards; I worked at the same preschool for 12 years; and I gathered a cohort of directors from a school district to create a community of learners. In each of these cases when I left the greater part of the entity continued on without me. However, in each of these cases it was difficult for me to leave the few members of the group I had become close with, those who I worked well with, those whose passion and drive mirrored my own for the mission of the group.

This week I shared with you, in the discussion board, about a group I was involved in for a class during my bachelor's degree program. There was dysfunction and a lack of direction. This group was not hard to leave. Without meaning any offense to the individuals in the group I have to say it was a relief to be on my own again in my schoolwork. I think this is often true- when a group or team is dysfunctional and lacks cohesion leaving is a liberation.

As I have navigated through this degree program I have often wished that we had been a true cohort, a community of learners, which stayed together throughout the journey. I feel as though I have had a chance to get to know some of you along the way. However, with others this is our first class together and the journey is almost over. There have been students who have come in and out of classes with me throughout the past year or so. Many of them were also just passing through, so to speak. Because of this fractured group dynamic I feel that it is hard to know how I will feel when we disperse from this program. On the one hand, I will miss the chance for professional conversations with all of you. On the other hand, I will be so excited to be done and mastered (is that a thing?) that I feel the relief will come even without the dysfunction.

So, whether there is a big ceremony, as in the case of graduation, or there is little fanfare- such as when I left the directors' cohort group- adjourning is essential in almost all cases. I did not walk for my graduation when I earned my bachelor's degree and I am not sure if I will for this master's program either. However, just as with my previous graduation, there will be a HUGE party and many of you will be there with me in spirit.

References
Abudi, G. (2010). The five stages of team development: A case study. Retrieved from http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/the-five-stages-of-team-development-a-case-study.html