In Unit 1, you were asked to reflect on your own skills and cultural perspectives and examine how these will help you as an early childhood professional. Since exploring the myriad issues in this course, have you found other ways or areas you need to expand on that differ from when you started the course? Do you have any new ideas about obtaining these skills or new professional development avenues you want to explore?

My response from unit 1

Educators who work with culturally and diverse children and families can foster strong parent-child relationships. Genuine partnerships between families and teachers can strengthen the education of children.  Providing culturally and responsive practices require that teachers reflect on their own cultural beliefs and assumptions. Understanding a family’s perspective is an essential component in developing collaborative and responsive practices in the early development and education setting in the classrooms. Our efforts to understand families’ cultural beliefs, values, and perspectives, as well as our own, can strengthen our relationships with them. This is central to effective family engagement and providing the best care and education for children and families. Cultural diversity in early childhood provides a range of opportunities for children and families to celebrate their differences. It’s one aspect of diversity, which also embraces differences in gender, disabilities, age, social, and economic backgrounds, traditions, and more.  In my opinion, It promotes different cultures, racial and ethnic groups within our community, and when educators show their respect for diversity, it strengthens children’s self-identity and promotes an inclusive practice in the classroom.