"Examining Codes of Ethics"

“Examining Codes of Ethics”

“We shall be responsible for maintaining the appropriate national, state, or other credential or licensure requirements for the services we provide while maintaining our competence in practice and research by ongoing participation in professional development and education activities.”

Education is changing, it’s constantly changing and it’s our job as professionals and those who are dedicated to the wellbeing of children to understand these changes and be up to date on them. Professional development can be found in various ways from TED Talks to conferences to seminars where other professionals in the education field share their ideals, their ideas and thing that inspire and motivate them. It’s also important that and education professional is up to code on their particular states requirements for licensing and credentialing so that quality educational facilities can continue to run and operate smoothly. There is nothing worse than having a violation or the possibility of having to shut down until things are fixed; if that were to happen where would the children go? What would their families do? Being prepared and understanding what is required will prevent this.

 “We shall use individually appropriate assessment strategies including multiple sources of information such as observations, interviews with significant caregivers, formal and informal assessments to determine children’s learning styles, strengths, and challenges.”  

No two children are the same. What works for one child or even a group of children will perhaps not work for the next group. You cannot possibly take one piece of information based on one observation of one child and think that it would apply to all children. It’s important to be in contact with those who the child spends the most time with and it’s important to learn as much information about that child as possible in order to give them the best chance at being successful. The preschool that I work for does what we call “home visits.” These visits are done with new students who are entering our program for the first time. It’s a great way to get to know that child in their environment (where they are typically the most comfortable) and see how they interact, what they like to play with, who cares for them and it’s also a great way for them to get familiar with their teacher before the start of the school year begins.

“Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable stage of the human life cycle.”

People are too quick to dismiss children as “annoying” or “in the way” but as a mother and a child care professional I can honestly tell you there is something so magical about being able to slow down and actually enjoy life the way a child does. Children are slow in their movements and really take time to observe the world around them, this is something that gets lost in adult hood because our lives have become so fast paced and we are consumed with bills, what’s for dinner, getting the kids to here and there and working plus a million other things. Childhood is extremely brief and should be valued. Being in the child care field I am constantly reminded to slow down and just be present which I believe is something that we all need in our busy lives.

Resources:

“The Division for Early Childhood.” (2000, August). Code of ethics. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.dec-sped.org/

“ NAEYC.” (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf