Research that Benefits Children and Families

When we hear about English language learners in the early childhood field we usually bring to mind children who were not born in the USA, or those whose parents are the ones who were born somewhere else and speak a language different from English. But we may rarely stop and think that all preschoolers are English language learners (Garcia & Frede, n.d.), since they all are acquiring the language.

If I had the means to conduct research studies, they would be related to the importance of hiring more well-qualified bilingual teachers, because we all need to know how to support language acquisition for ALL children. At the same time, as early childhood professionals we are aware of the changing diversity in the early childhood programs, and we should look for strategies that help children and families to learn the predominant language. In addition, becoming bilingual teachers helps us to better understand how children and families may feel when they leave their family environment, in order to get into another one where their primary language is unspoken. This transition usually takes place through the early childhood programs and therefore the importance of hiring staff who better works with them.

Through this research more professionals in the field would understand the importance of hiring more well-qualified bilingual teachers by early childhood programs. Besides the benefits for families and children, it would reflect the program aims to become one of high-quality.

References

García, E. & Frede, E. (n.d.). Enhancing Policy and Practice for Young Dual Language Learners: What Is the Research Base? Retrieved from http://nieer.org/sites/nieer/files/Preschool_English_Language_Learners_Policy_and_Practice.pdf

My personal research journey

I had not realized the importance of the research process as part of my professional skills, until the first two weeks of the Building Research Competencies course. Nowadays, I am learning that the research process is not as scary as I thought, because through research I can make “a difference to the way [I] understand and practice [my] work with young children” (Mac Naughton, Rolfe, & Siraj-Blatchford, 2010, p. 1). The difference in my conception of research is not because I have mastered the skill already. It is just that I am learning the whole process since the very beginning, throughout the analysis of useful materials that have helped me to understand what the research process implies, like the validation of a source or something more complex as the steps to follow when generating a research (Mac Naughton, Rolfe, & Siraj-Blatchford, 2010).

After reflecting on my personal and professional experiences, as an immigrant in the USA and as a Head Start teacher who has worked mostly with immigrant families, I have decided to focus my simulation research on the inclusion of immigrant families in early childhood programs. I think the research of this topic is important because of the changing demographics that conforms our society. Hernandez mentioned that “if you want to see the future face of America, visit a preschool classroom today” (Hernandez, 2009, p. 6), because the early childhood programs could reflect the current population in a community.

Choosing a topic to research about is not an easy decision, but counting on a supportive network of colleagues we all will be able to overcome our challenges, providing to each other enough resources to develop our simulation research. The support received from my colleagues is highly appreciated and is also as important as the resources I could find in libraries and online databases.  

References

Hernandez, L. A. (2009). Wake up and smell the demographics. Exchange, (190), 6–9.

Mac Naughton, G., Rolfe, S.A., & Siraj-Blatchford, I. (2010). Doing early childhood research: International perspectives on theory and practice (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.