One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is that I hope that I can make them feel welcomed. The beginning of a relationship is challenging at first because you do not know anything about each other. There is also no going back to the beginning like there is no going back to how we handle our first day of school. I hope that I can make these families feel comfortable enough to contact me on any concern that they may have, and they can feel right at home in this new environment.
One goal that I would like to set for our field in regards to diversity is to encourage all professionals to continue training. Diversity is evident in America, but each year it continues to change. I believe that Spanish is going to be the number one spoken language soon. Training on these issues will guarantee that all professionals are up-to-date with current resources and information. As an educator, I am required to have a certain amount of training hours each year, but I think our field should take it one step further and mandate a course on diversity. There are a lot of people who need to be reached because they are still set in their ways.
I want to thank all of my colleagues for a wonderful course! I have learned so much about many of you through the sharing of your personal stories via blogs and discussion boards. I enjoy reading my comments every week because I get great professional insight from many of you. Enjoy your two week break, and good luck with your remaining courses!