Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Childhood Quote

While we try to teach our children all about life, Our children teach us what life is all about. ~Angela Schwindt
Posted by at 1 comment:

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Assessments in Australia

From early childhood through to late adolescence, education and pathways to employment have a strong influence on the future outcomes of children and young people.1
The measures reported here are aimed at highlighting the educational journey for children and young people.
The companion report  contains information about programs which are effective in improving the wellbeing of children and young people in the Education domain.
1Participation in pre-compulsory education
  • Children developmentally vulnerable on entering school
  • Students achieving at or above national minimum standards (NAPLAN)

    • Why this measure has been included

      Literacy and numeracy are fundamental skills for operating in the modern world.  Getting the best start for a child includes ensuring that they have grounding in these important skills.
      Commencing in 2008, all students in Australia in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are tested annually using a common assessment tool under the National Assessment Program — Literary and Numeracy (NAPLAN).  This tool is administered by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).

      What is this measure?

      This measure reports on the percentages of children and young people who achieve at or above the national minimum standards for achievement. The data used in this measure is the NAPLAN test results for students in each year group by state and territory. Data 1on the individual results of female, male, Aboriginal and language background other than English (LBOTE) students in WA is also included. show the percentage of students who are achieving at or above the national minimum standard for reading, writing, and numeracy for 2010 show the percentage of students in WA achieving at or above the national minimum standard for reading and numeracy by gender, Aboriginal status and LBOTE for the period 2008 to 2 WA compared against the Australian average and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average in the three subjects. 

      Commentary

      The NAPLAN results for 2010 show that a smaller percentage of WA students achieve the national minimum standard than in Australia as a whole. This applies to the subject areas reading, writing and numeracy2 in all assessed year groups The NAPLAN results in reading and numeracy for female, male, Aboriginal and LBOTE students in WA show a largely consistent pattern across all tested subject areas for 2010 with the following characteristics:
      • A greater percentage of female students than male students achieve at or above the national minimum standard in all subject areas and year groups except in numeracy in Year 9.
      • A significantly smaller percentage of Aboriginal students than all students achieve at or above the national minimum standard in all subject areas and year groups.
      • A smaller percentage of LBOTE students than all students achieve at or above the national minimum standard in all subject areas and year groups.
      For international comparison, Australia participates in the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which assesses a representative sample of 15 year-old students across most industrialised countries for reading, mathematical literacy and scientific literacy. The results allow for comparison of Australian and WA results against participant countries.
      In 2009 the study showed that Australia performed significantly above the OECD average in all areas. WA performed slightly better than the Australian average in all areas. For reading literacy WA was the highest and for mathematical and scientific literacy the second highest.3WA and Australia were both consistently in the top quarter of participating countries.
      There is a similar result in the subject areas spelling and grammar and punctuation
      References

      Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth 2008, The Wellbeing of Young Australians:  Report Card, Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth, p. 6.

Posted by at No comments:

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Natural Disasters - Hurricaine Katrina



Living in Mississippi, The hurricane had a great impact on me.  Residing and working in northern Mississippi I became a vessel for some of the people escaping the storm.  I also became interested in the effects of the storm on the children that were entering the school where I was employed.
Several studies have been done in an attempt to describe Hurricane Katrina. Studies have found that the hurricane resulted in many people being separated from their children, friends, neighbors, and relatives. Many people had their homes destroyed or were displaced from their homes for long periods of time. People were also exposed to increased crime and violence as a result of the hurricane.
Given these experiences, it is not surprising that many people developed Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and Depression following Hurricane Katrina, including having upsetting memories and thoughts about the hurricane, feeling upset when being reminded of the hurricane, trying to avoid thoughts and feelings about the hurricane, having worries about future hurricanes, and feeling on edge and tense. However, less is known about the effect of Hurricane Katrina on children specifically.
Depression and Posttraumatic Stress Due to Hurricane Katrina in Children
Children may be particularly vulnerable to experience posttraumatic stress following exposure to a natural disaster, such as Hurricane Katrina. One group of researchers from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center looked at this. They surveyed 2,362 4th to 12th grade children in the 2005-2006 school year and 4,896 4th to 12th grade children in 2006-2007 school year. All children were from schools in Louisiana parishes that were affected by Hurricane Katrina.
They found that many children had experienced a great deal of stress as a result of the hurricane. Most had been displaced by the hurricane, had seen their neighborhood destroyed or damaged, and had lost personal belongings. In addition, around a third had been separated from a caregiver and/or a pet during the storm or evacuation. Children also reported, to a lesser extent, seeing family members or friends injured or killed.
Given the stress that these children were exposed to, it makes sense that many experienced severe symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress. In fact, this study found that about half of the children experienced high levels of depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Currently being separated from a caregiver, living in a trailer, having to stay in a shelter, younger age, being female, having previous loss or trauma, having had family members or friends killed as a result of the hurricane, and having personal belongings destroyed or damaged seemed to increase risk for these symptoms.

Sources:
Mcleish, A.C., & Del Ben, K.S. (2008). Symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress disorder in an outpatient population before and after Hurricane Katrina. Depression and Anxiety, 25, 416-421.
Osofsky, H.J., Osofsky, J.D., Kronenberg, M., Brennan, A., & Hansel, T.C. (2009). Posttraumatic stress symptoms in children after Hurricane Katrina: Predicting the need for mental health services. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 79, 212-220.
Weems, C.F., Watts, S.E., Marsee, M.A., Taylor, L.K., Costa, N.M., Cannon, M.F., Carrion, V.G., & Pina, A.A. (2007). The psychosocial impact
Posted by at 1 comment:

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Childhood Obesity

Childhood Obesity Facts

  • Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years.1, 2
  • The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2010. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to 18% over the same period.1, 2
  • In 2010, more than one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese.1
  • Overweight is defined as having excess body weight for a particular height from fat, muscle, bone, water, or a combination of these factors.3 Obesity is defined as having excess body fat.4
  • Overweight and obesity are the result of “caloric imbalance”—too few calories expended for the amount of calories consumed—and are affected by various genetic, behavioral, and environmental factors.5,6


Health Effects of Childhood Obesity



Obese Youth Over Time: Selected U.S. States
 
Childhood obesity has both immediate and long-term effects on health and well-being.
Immediate health effects:
  • Obese youth are more likely to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure. In a population-based sample of 5- to 17-year-olds, 70% of obese youth had at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease.7
  • Obese adolescents are more likely to have prediabetes, a condition in which blood glucose levels indicate a high risk for development of diabetes.8,9
  • Children and adolescents who are obese are at greater risk for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem.5,6,10
Long-term health effects:
  • Children and adolescents who are obese are likely to be obese as adults11-14 and are therefore more at risk for adult health problems such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.6  One study showed that children who became obese as early as age 2 were more likely to be obese as adults.12
  • Overweight and obesity are associated with increased risk for many types of cancer, including cancer of the breast, colon, endometrium, esophagus, kidney, pancreas, gall bladder, thyroid, ovary, cervix, and prostate, as well as multiple myeloma and Hodgkin’s lymphoma.15

Prevention

  • Healthy lifestyle habits, including healthy eating and physical activity, can lower the risk of becoming obese and developing related diseases.6
  • The dietary and physical activity behaviors of children and adolescents are influenced by many sectors of society, including families, communities, schools, child care settings, medical care providers, faith-based institutions, government agencies, the media, and the food and beverage industries and entertainment industries.
  • Schools play a particularly critical role by establishing a safe and supportive environment with policies and practices that support healthy behaviors. Schools also provide opportunities for students to learn about and practice healthy eating and physical activity behaviors
Posted by at 1 comment:

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Birth Experiences

  • Write about a personal birthing experience. It can be your own birth, your child's birth, or one you took part in. What do you remember about the event? Why did you choose this example? What are your thoughts regarding birth and its impact on child development?
  •  I can remember that one of my children was born in the am and one in the pm.  Their births were pretty normal and so is their development. 
  •  
  •  
  • Choose a region of the world or a country, other than the U.S., and find out how births happen there. Write about what you learned, and the differences and similarities with your experience (in the personal example you provided). What additional insights, if any, about the impact of the birthing experience on development, did you gain from this comparison


  • I chose to examine Africa.  Very few births are in the hospital,  There are a lot of low birth babies because certain parts of the country suffers with disease, and famine.
Posted by at 2 comments:

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Code of Ethiics Early Childhood



AEYC AND DEC CODE OF ETHICS
NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct

I-1.3—To recognize and respect the unique qualities, abilities, and potential of each child. If we come into a child care center with this in focus we will be able to help children develop appropriately.  Children are unique and they all learn at different levels.

I-1.4—To appreciate the vulnerability of children and their dependence on adults. Children are very vulnerable so we must be careful what we do as adults as we shape the lives of children.  Taking careful notice of their vulnerability will keep us in line.

I-1.5—To create and maintain safe and healthy settings that foster children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development and that respect their dignity and their contributions.  Environment is so important to children’s learning.  If the environment is conducive to learning for children more creativity will happen the classroom setting.


The Code of Ethics of the Division for Early Childhood (DEC)

Professional and Interpersonal Behavior
  1. We shall demonstrate in our behavior and language respect and appreciation for the unique value and human potential of each child.  This is important because children model the behavior of adults.  We must be conscience that children are watching and learning from everything that we do.
  2. We shall demonstrate the highest standards of personal integrity, truthfulness, and honesty in all our professional activities in order to inspire the trust and confidence of the children and families and of those with whom we work.  This is vitally important to me it all speaks to have respect for oneself in turn it will cause families to gain trust.  Once trust is gained from families it becomes easier to help the children and family.

Enhancement of Children’s and Families’ Quality of Lives
       3.  We shall demonstrate our respect and concern for children, families, colleagues, and others with whom we work,   honoring their beliefs, values, customs, languages, and culture.  Again, we cannot be advocates without respect.  We all learn from each other and children teach us as well through their innocence.

References
NAEYC. (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf
The Division for Early Childhood. (2000, August). Code of ethics. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from
http://www.dec-sped.org/
Posted by at 3 comments:

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Early Childhood Studies Resources

Part 2: Global Support for Children's Rights and Well-Being
Note: Explore the resources in Parts 3 and 4 in preparation for this week's Application assignment.
Part 3: Selected Early Childhood Organizations
  • YC Young Children
  • Childhood
  • Journal of Child & Family Studies
  • Child Study Journal
  • Multicultural Education
  • Early Childhood Education Journal
  • Journal of Early Childhood Research
  • International Journal of Early Childhood
  • Early Childhood Research Quarterly
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Social Studies
  • Maternal & Child Health Journal
  • International Journal of Early Years Education
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)