Module Two Interviews and Fieldwork

My visit was to Amity Learning Center in Freeport Illinois. I have spent time in all the classrooms. The center has children from Birth-Five all day, as well as two school age classrooms that are for Kindergarten through Sixth Grade. During my visits I talked all of the teachers, but I also asked my focus questions to: the Preschool teacher, the Program Director, and the Executive Director.

The first question I asked was: What can we do to assure preschool programs are funded?

Executive Director Christel Walters’ Answer: We can assure preschool programs are funded by becoming politically involved and lobbying.

Program Director Pricilla McLin Answer: We can assure preschool programs are funded by continuing to write, call, rally and demonstrate for the importance of Early Childhood Education Programs. Learning does not begin when children are five years old and entering kindergarten programs, it is at birth and even in the womb that children begin to learn. Children who have been in quality programs since birth begin putting the whole picture together in kindergarten. If children do not attend an Early Childhood Education program, they can become lost at a very early age, which is indicative of school success and later, life success.

Preschool Teacher Erika Aho’s Answer: We need to talk about how important preschool programs are, and we need to tell it to politicians through: calls, rallying, writing letters, and even inviting senators to our classrooms. We also need to make sure that parents become involved in being advocate for their children’s education.

The Second Question I asked was: Why is it important to include appropriate reliable assessments in preschool?

Executive Director Christel Walters’ Answer: Assessment is directly related to funding, quality programs with positive outcomes are far more likely to receive and maintain funding.

Program Director Priscilla McLin’s Answer: Children need to be assessed in order for us to know where they are at developmentally, in knowing where each child is developmentally we can create goals to help children reach the appropriate levels and assure that they are ready for Kindergarten. I do believe that assessments need to not only be in preschool, but beginning in the infant stages. When we begin assessing a child as an infant we can see developmental progress. However, if there is a lack of progress we can note that, have discussions with parents and make referrals that lead to early intervention services, thus making sure that all children are getting the education they need.

I also asked Mrs. McLin what assessment tools she likes: she stated that she likes using the Illinois Early Learning Standards with portfolios and will be making the switch over to a simpler on-line version called Teaching Strategies Gold On-Line.

Preschool Teacher Erika Aho’s Answer: Assessments create checks for the teachers to prove that we are teaching what the state requires. Knowing each child’s individual progress also allows us to plan activities that meet the needs of the children. We also can inform families about the progress of their child. With preschool children you can not use pencil and paper tests so I like using: individual child portfolios, checklists, pictures, and work samples. Teaching Strategies Gold On-Line is also an on-line portfolio system that I am becoming familiar with.

The third question I asked was: What does it mean to be a quality Early Childhood Teacher?

Executive Director Christel Walters’ Answer: A quality Early Childhood Teacher has a positive attitude and is enthusiastic and committed to what they do. They are not just coming in for the paycheck; they are invested in their job.

Program Director Priscilla McLin’s Answer: A quality Early Childhood Teacher must be DEDICATED! You have to be aware that each child learns differently and be capable of differentiating instruction. Quality is not directly related to education either, some people have a lot of education and are just in it for the paycheck, while others who are less educated are amazing at their jobs and care to be there.

Preschool Teacher Erika Aho’s Answer: To be a quality Early Childhood Education Teacher you have to be able to put all the pieces together: children, families, assessments, requirements, budgets, stocking classrooms and making sure all children get to use materials. It is a lot to balance. A key thing in being effective is to have good classroom management skills. You can have all the ideas in the world and activities but if you can’t manage the class then you will not get to the children developmentally.

During these interviews I learned a lot about the different perspectives of the people working in the child care center. The Executive Director is really focused on quality to maintain funding, while the Program Director and Teacher are focused on quality because it is better for the children in the center. I also noticed that the teacher was the only one who mentioned having families as advocates. I think that all three of these perspectives are valid and necessary to show people different points of view.