I was
honored to have Mrs. Bimbo are of Ajoke International School of New Jericho of
the Centre for Early Childhood Development (ECD) as my international contact
person. I did contact three people and only Mrs. Bimbo was her only one
who responded to my email. I am forever grateful to her for having spared
time even in her seemingly busy schedule to help me accomplish my assignments
and learn more from her vast experience in the field. I believe this is beginning
of a lifelong relationship of sharing experiences and learning from each other
in the field.
Mrs. Bimbo revealed that, there is however a general believe
that regardless of the situation in which a child is placed, a quality teacher
can provide a learning environment that can enable a child to develop optimally
and in a holistic manner. In addition she expressed concern that the is a
general lack of quality teachers to meet the current demand for ECD
programs. The was
attributed to a lack of practical demonstration and instruction during
training, a lack of on-site support to assist with implementation of theoretical
training and lack of on-site support after completion of training to ensure
consistent implementation.
As a consequence therefore, I purpose to be a quality ECD
professional that seeks for continuous professional development. I have
learnt that one can become a professional by always doing self reflection,
attending workshops, working with others and reading professional material
(Castle, 2009). I intend to follow these methods to attain
professionalism and be able to provide optimal and holistic development to
children.
As a professional I intend to continuously network and share my
knowledge with others in the field. I have truly enjoyed my contact with
Mrs. Bimbo and will continue to communicate with him. She mentioned that
many young professionals in the field lack on-site support after graduating
from school. This area I would love to help in. It is not only happening
in South Africa. Many graduate and have
no support in the field.
References
Castle, K. (2009). What do early childhood professionals do?
Dimensions of Early Childhood, 37(3), 4–9.
