Important Ideals

The ideals that are important to me professionally come from NAEYC. The three ideals and their code of ethics that are meaningful to me are the following:

1. To appreciate the vulnerability of children and

their dependence on adults.

2. To recognize and respect the unique qualities,

abilities, and potential of each child.

3. To base program practices upon current knowledge

and research in the field of early childhood

education, child development, and related disciplines,

as well as on particular knowledge of each child.

The significance of the ideals I chose is to remind myself that each child is unique and that I also need to remember that they will look to me for a sense of safety each day that they come to school. I need to keep in mind that I can best serve my young learners by staying current on the latest information related to teaching them and to teach each child at the level they are at cognitively and emotionally. I have the ability to make their learning experience wonderful or miserable. I commit to making it an enriching, happy experience! The quote below sums this up for me.

“I’ve come to a frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It’s my personal approach that creates the climate. It’s my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or dehumanized.”

-Haim Ginott

This is the most important information I take with me into the classroom each day as an early childhood educator.

References

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