Saturday, December 1, 2012

Harvard's Global Children's Initiative

I still haven't heard back from any early childhood professionals from another country.  I am still trying and hopeful I will hear back from one person before the quarter ends.  I explored Harvard's Global Children's Initiative.  I began with an article on the changes in Brazil.  An organization called Núcleo Ciência Pela Infância (NCPI), is working hard to spread the information about the importance of applying science to Early Childhood and it affects everyone.  The NCPI is using this information to get politicians and policymakers to create better laws and policy that will benefit young children and families.  Also they are using the information to lure investors into investing in Early Childhood programs in Brazil.  

 Also in Brazil politicians, policymakers, public managers and civil-society leaders came together in March of this year, 2012, to recreate a new direction for Early Childhood Studies that will incorporate the science of Child Development.  That way teachers, administrators and other EC professionals will be better educated and provide better services to families. I think that is good and it will ultimately improve the country as a whole. 

Another article I read, "Creating a New Measure of Child Development", focused on a health economist, Günther Fink, assessing children in Zambia.  He needed information on the young children 's development to present his case about effects of Malaria on the country.  In Zambia the major causes of death in children under the age of 5 is malaria and HIV.  When Fink went to gather information he realize he couldn't use the same methods as we use in America.  Children in Zambia don't have toys like we have here.  So Fink and his team had to create instruments to help them assess the children's development.  Once they gathered the information he needed from 2,000 children,  he was able to use the numbers to present to policymakers in order to get needed funding and inform policymakers where children in Zambia are in their development and how they compare to children around world.  I wish the article went further into explain the methods he used in examine the children but it provide me with the realization that children from around the world require different methods when it come to assessments and gathering information on their development.  Every child is different especially ones from different countries so if I get the opportunity to work with children around the world I now know I have to use different methods to assess them.  

3 comments:

  1. Hi Dawn

    I have problem like you have, receive no reply yet from the contacts. So, I too went to explore the Global Children's Initiative website. I found very interesting in reading the website. I like their mission; using science to enhance child well-being through innovations in policy and practice. We are so thankful to have such an institute, doing something differently to foster the wellbeing of children and families. Wong

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  2. I am so sorry that you are having problems finding contacts from other countries. I was able to use my LINKEDIN connections and the curriculum/training specialist at my work to find contacts. LINKEDIN is a web site that connects people who share something in common, such as working in the early childhood field. If you are not a member you should try it. It does not cost anything and there are wonderful discussions, ideas, and information that can be found on the site.

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  3. Dawn,
    I am going to have to use Cynthia's suggestion of using Linkedin as a way to find contacts from international countries, because I am having trouble also finding a connection. Two, I loved your post on how Fink assessed children in Zambia! He knew he had to think outside the box and used cultural awareness! Great post!
    Thanks,
    Kelly

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