Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

My personal experiences consist of living a year in Old Mexico as a missionary with my family of four young children. Later I live a year and half in Northern Canada attending French Emersion School with the University of Quebec.  I went to Guinea, West Africa to teach missionary children for three years while there teaching two teen African boys English. Being very ill, I came back to the USA healing for a year, and then went to Arizona to teach in an American Indian Christian Mission for one year and a half.  Upon returning to Manhattan, I taught in a preschool that had many international children, as their parents were students at the Kansas State University.  I also spent time visiting a teacher in Australia, showing me the educational system in her area near Sydney.

Because of many exposures to a variety of cultures, I have seen stages of development of children in different ethnic living arrangements.  Observing family systems in each of these countries has given me openness as to a child’s growth: emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual.  The vast differences of family systems from Mexico to Africa to American Indian Reservations has shown me that parents love their children and want the best for them but approach this system quite different. 

In Guinea, the grandparents have the greatest influence on the children.  The paternal grandfather is the one who names the child at birth.  The maternal grandmother is the one honored at the baby-naming ceremony.  The mother stays in the background during this time and the father accompanies his father during the festival.  This shows how important the grandparents are in the life of the child.  I attended two baby-naming ceremonies; I felt culturally ignorant but learned how important children are in this area of Africa.  The saying is cattle first, children second and then the wife in the steps of value.  I am not sure this is always true as I saw many men hold their wives in high honor. 

The “ism” that I have experienced is the LGBT.  My ex-husband divorced me to move into the lifestyle of the gay man.  I was rejected, looked down on, shunned and disowned by some of his family when the news of his change of life surfaced.  I was blamed, and still am blamed by some for his choice.  This happened several years ago but sometimes it surfaces and I am hurt all over again.  People made me feel dirty and the possibility of aids was an issue.  I have been tested eight times for HIV.  This has given me a different attitude toward this “ism” than other educators might have. 

As I have studied this “ism”, I see that many families with two of the same-sex parents can and are good parents.  They are no different from other parents, wanting the best for their child(Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010). 

My understanding of people, with no regard what their life choices are is respect and honor.  This is my theme: love every person, child or adult, that is God’s command and I chose to follow His word. 

Reference:

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).