The Power of Electronic Resources

    To refresh...The website and newsletter I chose was ZERO TO THREE.

     Challenging Behaviors is a section of the website and was also addressed in the newsletter for April. This is relevant to my current professional experience because I have been dealing with a particular child who has tantrums and has been hitting and biting.  This is pretty common for a two year old, however that doesn't make the situation any easier to deal with.  Studying and learning effective methods of dealing with this behavior is necessary for any early childhood professional.  We need to begin at the lowest level of behavior to understand why children react the way they do.  Looking at their history, family environment, and many other factors allows us to gain a clearer picture of challenging behaviors.

     One section I found particularly interesting and made me look at home visiting programs in a new way was the section on depression in families during home visits.  This is a very common disease and many families and children suffer from depression, anxiety, and others.  Home visits need to be noted in detail and observations should be thorough.  This involves training professionals to know what to look for and how to identify depression and other chronic illnesses in a child's environment.  This will also lead to a better understanding of how families interact and why children may be acting out or more reclusive.

    The Public Policy section of the website is adds to my understanding of how politicians are influenced by media and how their decision affect early childhood education.  Many of the resources we use, including ZERO TO THREE, are initially started to bring to light issues and trends to politicians.  The federal, state, and community levels of public policy are all discussed.  The agendas are made clear and will be submitted to administration and congress for review.  Having this information available is such a great feature and allows for a better understanding of current legislative issues.

 

Exploring Childhood Poverty in Nepal

     This week I chose to look at the childhood poverty issues in Nepal.  I found many interesting facts about this topic, however I am just going to share a few with you.  First, lets start out with some basic facts regarding Nepal:

• Children under the age of 15 make up about 40% of Nepal's population
• More than 1/3 of the population lives in poverty
• There are approximately 75,000 neo-natal and post-natal deaths every year
• Majority of children are not provided with any education

A couple of interesting insights I found while perusing the website are as follows:

1. Nepal was plagued with violence for nearly a decade over political rule and rebel fighters.  This has led to unrest and numerous deaths.  The people of Nepal are beginning to see some political stability which should help address issues of poverty and childhood fatality and hopefully begin to bring awareness to the people.
2. The growing health concerns include increased prevalence of STD's and the fight against HIV and AIDS.  There is a commercial sex trade that has been identified as a direct cause of the disease growing.
3. Poor and marginalized women are the focus of education initiatives. Many of the primary school programs are focused on girls and the underprivileged.  By creating awareness for all women, they are more capable of making the most of what learning opportunities they do have access to.  

The link to the Save the Children site:  http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.6150545/k.B8DE/Nepal.htm#challenges

A brief overview of Nepal's history was retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-12499391

Web Resources

ZERO TO THREE (http://www.zerotothree.org/)

This organization is the National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families.  It focuses on all areas of early childhood development including: behavior and development, maltreatment, care and education, and public policy.  It serves as a resource for parents, educators, and people in general.

One issue that caught my eye on the website was the press release for response to the 2014 Budget Proposal.  Many of the politicians today, Hillary Clinton for example, have advocated on early childhood funding and care. This press release applauds the President for his efforts in bringing attention to the importance of early childhood care.  Funding starts with the communities however it ends with the politicians and the national budget.  This is a great step forward for the future of early childhood development and the future of our nation.