The National Association for the Education of Young Children
(NAEYC)
The NAEYC website is an excellent resource with information
about a broad range of topics related to the early childhood field. “The
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is the world’s
largest organization working on behalf of young children” (http://www.naeyc.org/content/about-naeyc).
The NAEYC provides professional development opportunities, including a national
conference for early childhood professionals and by becoming a member you can
receive a periodical with research articles related to current topics and
issues.
The organizations policy statements are available on their
website and provide a great resource for creating your own policies and for
learning about what is considered best practices on topics varying from
technology to school readiness and literacy. One issue that caught my attention
was the position statement on “responding to linguistic and cultural
diversity” (NAEYC, 2009). The statement reminds early childhood
professionals of the importance of maintaining the child’s home language and
the value of involving parents in the program. It is a teacher’s responsibility
to make sure families feel respected and valued (NAEYC, 2009). Another position
statement that caught my attention was on the topic of violence in the media.
The statement explained that the research shows that exposure to violence in
the media has three proven negative effects on children, “children become less
sensitive to the pain and suffering of others; they may become more fearful of
the world around them; and they may be more likely to behave in aggressive or
harmful ways toward others” (NAEYC, 1994 p. 1). Although this information is
nothing new, it is still resonates with me because of how much television most
young children watch. My family watches movies at home but we do not watch T.V.
and it is always surprising to me when I do watch television somewhere away
from home. Even the commercials are so violent sometimes. My daughter has not
been exposed to much television and is very sensitive to action and drama in
movies. Most Disney movies are even too scary for her to watch. I think it is
sad what some children are exposed to by television.
Resources:
National Association for the Education of Young Children.
(1994). Media Violence in
Children’s Lives: A Position Statement of
the National Association for the
Education of Young Children. Retrieved
from
National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2009).
NAEYC: Where We
Stand on responding to linguistic and cultural
diversity. Retrieved from
http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf
Hi Mary,
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your attention to the NAEYC and pointing to them as a valuable resource. I especially like your focus on their position regarding violence and television. Often parents who aren't aware of this issue and seem to dismiss comments by teacher's regarding their child's viewing habits and how that may relate to some aggressive behavior in the classroom. Having a nationally recognized resource as a reference which supports teacher's in relating to parents on this issue takes the matter out of public debate. A teacher's opinion can be easily dismissed, but when backed by proven research and a nationally recognized organization, parents are more likely to take heed. Thanks so much for sharing.
Mary,
ReplyDeleteI am very familiar with NAEYC's resources and information; I work in a child care center that is NAEYC accredited. This has been my go-to for information when I began writing papers EDUC classes. I use it as a resource to back up experiences that I share in my writings or to gather information for parents.
The comments you stated about negative effects on children is spot on; children are exposed to it not only thru television. Some families have it the very neighbors where they live technology also has a hand in that it makes it accessible due to mobile usage.
Mary
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, I am aware of this resource and look forward to seeing what all it has to help along our journey in this course. The violence issuse is very important to address, because more and more children are being abuse and nothing is done to stop it and therefore transfer on to adulthood of violence. It is important to educate.