Final Blog Post

1.       Learning about international early childhood informed my learning and reinforced the fact that early childhood is important globally.  From the websites I explored, I was able to learn more about what is being done to advance the well-being of children across the world.   

2.       Reviewing the international websites provided me with insight into what organizations such as UNICEF and UNESCO are doing world-wide.  The variety of initiatives these organizations sponsor and/or support is staggering.  Learning about the Education for All Children initiative opened my eyes to how limited children in some countries really are.

3.       The importance of the early childhood field is becoming widely recognized around the world.  Each country or region is tackling the issues of literacy, teacher preparation, poverty and achievement gaps differently.  I believe there are lessons each country can present to the world.  If each country accepts those lessons, perhaps we would see creative solutions to these issues.

I appreciated the opportunity to learn about other countries and how they are addressing early childhood.  It is important for students to gain a global perspective.  I was frustrated by the lack of responses from professional organizations in the beginning of the course.  Some had e-mail addresses that were no longer valid, others simply did not respond.  I did receive some information from one of the podcast presenters. However, she did not respond when I sent follow-up questions.  I appreciated having access to the various websites as an alternative.

In addition, I appreciated the blog postings of my colleagues.  Reading about their contacts and website reviews increased my learning and served to help me gain a stronger perspective of global trends and issues!