Art Gallery: What I have Learned

One hope that I have when working with children and families that come from diverse backgrounds is to meet their unique needs effectively and efficiently in the most professional manner.

One goal that I would like to set for the field of early childhood in terms of diversity, equity, and social justice is to make it mandatory for all professionals to be trained and certified in diversity and anti-bias education.

Finally, I would like to thank everyone in class. Without you, your comments, your feedback, and your insights I do not feel as though I would have learned as much about others and myself. I also believe that you motivated me to address my biases, welcome self-criticism, and make the necessary changes to be on the road to becoming an anti-biased educator.  I look forward to working with all of you again in the future. For all of this I say…….

Virtual Art Gallery

This is a photo collage that I put together to tell the story about how anti-bias and diversity education can have a positive impact on children and societies.

I hope you enjoy.

“We Don’t Say Those Words in Class!”

One example that I witnessed of a child being silenced for pointing out a difference was when I was visiting with a friend while he was rehearsing for a play in his theatre group. Because it was a dress rehearsal, he was wearing stage make-up. As we were talking outside the theatre on his break, a child and her mother walked by. As they passed, I heard the child say, “Mommy, that man is wearing make-up like girls do”. The Mom said “shhhhhh”, grabbed the child by the arm and hurried her along.

Several messages were sent to the child because of the mom’s reaction. The first message was that she was embarrassed by the child’s comments.  The second message was that it is not socially acceptable for men to wear make-up even if they are actors. The final message that was sent was that it was wrong for the child to observe or speak up about these differences.

An anti-bias educator would have acted different in this situation. Instead of “Shhhhh”ing the child, he or she would have explained that he was wearing stage make-up because he was in a play and that without the make-up, you would not be able to see him well on the stage. This individual may have also explained to the child that make-up just isn’t for girls, nor are beauty products. In fact, many men do use beauty products and certain types of make-up for personal and professional reasons…and doing this is ok.