RESEARCH

I would like to conduct further research on children who are diagnosed with Autism.  I would like to research the difference in early diagnosis and intervention, versus those who were not diagnosed until entering public school.  Both families and children would benefit from this study as the importance of early diagnosis and early intervention could be further proved.  It would also continue to raise Autism awareness.

 I would then like to follow these students throughout their academic career documenting difficulties and success that they experienced.  By better understanding the needs of children with Autism we will begin to have a chance to close the gap and assist these children in achieving developmental milestones.
Children who are not diagnosed in the early years have missed valuable opportunities for therapies and interventions.  This research would look to evaluate the differences of those who did receive early intervention versus those who did not.  Then we could better understand what interventions are successful and what is the crucial age of missed opportunity.

How are research based standards being implemented into early childhood education?

The area that I chose to research was that of  how are research based standards being implemented into early childhood education?

My 3 areas that I chose to focus on are: 

·  The differences in early childhood education standards from state to state?

·  How does research support using research based standards for all 4 year olds?

·  What is being done to raise the standards for early childhood programs?

            I chose this topic as I currently teach kindergarten and 1^st grade in the public school system here in Florida.  Year after year I watch students take the giant step from preschool to kindergarten without the necessary skills to be successful in their new classroom setting.  With high stakes standards being set for all of our students once they enter the public school system, I feel that it is crucial that these skills begin in the early years.   In my state preschool standards are used and we do offer public pre-k to all 4 year olds.   The problem seems to be the lack of quality within the programs, as well as care givers who do not have the necessary training.  With a high turn over rate in our day cares and preschools, in part due to low pay, children are often not receiving the level of instruction that they need.  I would like to find out more about what is being done to bridge the gap for students leaving preschool and entering public school.   I believe that by using research based standards achievement gaps can be narrowed.  I would like to see if research supports this versus traditional curriculum, which is selected by the classroom teacher.  The lack of programs in all states is something that I also am very passionate about.  With Common Core Standards being used across the nation providing much needed early childhood programs seems only fair,  if we truly want to level the playing field for all students.   

I look forward in deepening my knowledge about research based standards as well as the various ways in which they are being implemented across our nation.

Embracing Early Childhood Education Using a Global Appraoch

Learning about the various methods used around the world to educate children was very informative as it gave met he opportunity to truly think about other approaches and methods of education.  Looking at research from other countries is something that we all can benefit from as it helps us to expand our knowledge and continue to grow as professionals.  Some of the challenges that I see is accessibility for all students, providing quality trained professionals to teach children and leveling the playing field so that all children have the opportunity to grow socially and emotionally.  It allowed me to understand that the value placed on a child's education but the family often determines a child's academic success.  Other countries such as Dubai where parents pay top dollar to educate their child drives an expectation of success and continued education.  Although the parents are not directly involved in the educational process the expectation set by the families demands that their child is successful.  The monies paid allow for smaller class sizes and highly educated teachers from around the world that provide instruction.
One of my future goals is that I would like to travel to some of the islands in caribbean and visit some of their local schools. I would like to see how there schools are set up and what academic approaches they use.  Many of these islands are under the rule of larger countries and therefore use that countries educational system.  I think it would be interesting to see how this instruction is delivered and what assessments are used.