My Collegial, Professional Learning Community

Being among other professionals in this learning community has made me much more aware of the wealth of knowledge we can gain from each other as we share our knowledge and experiences with one another. I have gained new perspective from my colleagues in the community about various systems and services that are offered in other states. This community has given me a great opportunity to learn from fellow early childhood professionals and fueled my passion to continue my own work knowing that there are others striving for the same overall goal.

I also feel that my professional development has been impacted by gaining an overall understanding of how early childhood systems are created and supported yet still require the passion and motivation to make continuous improvements from all professionals like us. As colleagues in the field, we all can provide the necessary motivation for each other to make a positive impact on policies and advocate for change. I feel that this community has awarded me the chance to learn about the field with the confidence that I can communicate with others to ask questions or gain advice on various topics and ideas.

The ability to collaborate among other colleagues in this learning community shows the benefit to collaborating among colleagues within any community. I feel that I have an understanding of how each community can benefit to use collaboration techniques in their efforts toward advocacy and policy issues or simply to support each other within the field.

My goal from this point is to always maintain my passion for the early childhood field. When I am able to maintain my passion, I am able to work at my strongest level and to advocate for young children and their families. If I let my passion filter out, then I risk losing my interest in the field and my ability to make a difference in the lives of young children. My passion for the early childhood field is what enables me to educate others on the importance of educating and caring for young children and advocating for their needs. My passion is what gives me the ability to fuel the passion of others and inspire them to improve their work within this field.

Hypothetical Family Situation

I am a 31 year-old woman expecting a baby boy in early October. I live with my boyfriend and we have been ecstatic to be having our first child even though we had planned to wait until after we get married. I work for the local hospital making about $30,000 per year as a family support worker. My boyfriend, Chris, is an accountant and makes a bit more than me at about $45,000 per year. We both love our jobs but we are a little tight on finances due to our student loans. I am also finishing up my Master’s degree and will soon be having those loans to add to the pile. We live close to both of our families and are hoping to get a lot of help and guidance from them as we raise our son, Jack.

After having a non-stress test and subsequent following tests, we found out that our baby boy has a malformation in his lung, called congenital lung malformation. Because of my own childhood history of severe asthma I am blaming myself for this condition occurring in Jack. I am completely beside myself because I know that we will likely have to have surgery to correct the malformation. The doctors have explained that doing surgery once he is born may help before it takes over his chest causing problems with oxygen levels and issues with blood flow to other organs. Even though our family speaks English, this all seems like a foreign language of medical terms to me. It feels like I need a translator to explain what I need to do to help my son live a healthy life. I am also scared that other conditions/issues may have erupted due to any lack of oxygen to his body. I have taken such good care of my body during this pregnancy. How could this be happening to our baby boy?

Chris and I were planning to take Jack to the child care center where my sister works once he is old enough to attend. However, given his lung condition, we will have to wait to determine if it will be safe and appropriate care for him. Given the amount of illnesses that can run through a child care center I am scared Jack will be more susceptible to getting an infection which may lead to pneumonia much more easily. What if his lung causes severe asthma where an attack can cause difficulty breathing at a moment’s notice? Will the staff be able to handle something like this?

Now that we are aware of this condition, Chris and I must take a look at how we will prepare for Jack’s arrival in just over a month. First we must look at who will be caring for Jack’s health. We need to work closely with his pediatrician and discuss steps in setting up care with a pediatric pulmonologist. I also think we will need to make sure that we have someone who will help us understand the medical terms and steps that we will be taking in the near future. After I am released from maternity leave, how will we ensure that Jack is properly cared for? If I quit my job to stay home with him we will lose the good medical coverage with the hospital. Maybe I can have our parents care for him during the day while we work (although they also work full-time jobs). Is there a day care service for children with special needs in this area? Or can I somehow ensure that his teachers are properly trained with his medical needs? Someone please help me find our way through what is about to come!

Questions/Concerns

                I believe this hypothetical family situation is very realistic. I have based it mainly on my current family situation because it is what truly may happen. While I have considered the future of a family with my boyfriend, I have not thought about some of our own health conditions that may affect our own child, which is how I came across the condition of congenital lung malformation. Given the details of my hypothetical family situation please provide any insight you have. I appreciate the advice and suggestions J

Have I given a complete picture of my family, or are there details missing that I should include in order to complete the assignment successfully? If so, what are your suggestions?

Are there any specific websites I should be reviewing with regard to learning about quality services and programs for my child and family in this hypothetical family situation?

Does anyone have any thoughts, based on my specific family situation, that will affect the early childhood system I am creating?

References

Seattle Children’s Hospital, Research, and Foundation. (n.d.) Congenital lung malformations. Retrieved from http://www.seattlechildrens.org/medical-conditions/airway/congenital-lung-malformations/

The Political Will to Improve Early Childhood Systems

Throughout my courses, I have noticed that many of the early childhood professionals seeking to bring awareness or change to policies use educational strategies. Educational strategies seek to inform and target a specific audience while maintaining high credibility. Based on a policy’s particular needs or actions, an educational strategy can be used through providing fact sheets, reports, position papers, websites, letters or opinion pages, and multimedia presentations.

The reason this strategy works so well is because it is used in a manner which provides researched details of importance while also persuading the audience to understand particular factors involved in policies. Educational strategies use intentional methods in a strategic way to advocate an issue. This strategy appeals to me in my work so that I may better advocate for families based on the information they present to me and that I may take further to speak or inform others on their behalf. I also enjoy that this work allows me the opportunity to take part in making positive changes that effect children and families in the current day and age. As an advocate I am looking at how policies effect a family today, where I can use the information from fifty years ago to better influence the decision-makers for today’s policies and issues.