More to Share: Delving Deeper Into My Web Resources

                                                                          By Lisa Martin

This week I made it a point to dig deeper into my web resources in search of articles related to this week’s topic – excellence and equity, especially as it pertains to the three main barriers awareness, accessibility and responsiveness. I chose to search for articles regarding accessibility as that has been my focus this week. I was surprised by the layers of articles I could uncover just by asking for more information or clicking on a link within an article. I visited my main web resource www.unesco.org and uncovered two interesting articles pertaining to access and quality. The first article dealt with a subject that we are all too familiar with, and that is gender disparity in education as it pertains to girls having equal access to schooling. However, what was most interesting was learning how in both developing and industrialized countries girls are so easily denied their right to education, leaving them illiterate and their countries unable to achieve the type of success attributed to a strong, skilled and educated workforce. It is so sad that well into the twenty-first century an organization like the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural organization (UNESCO) has gender equality as one of their two main global priorities. “When girls go to school or participate in literacy program, they not only acquire fundamental literacy skills and academic knowledge. They are empowered to make key decisions and take charge of their lives” (UNESCO, 2012).

The other UNESCO article concerned improving access to education for the world’s most disadvantaged and needy, like the children in Asia-Pacific region – Cambodia, Indonesia and Malaysia. Over the past decade UNESCO has implemented initiatives that have resulted in some improvement, but still governments fail to properly fund early education, and there seems to be a lack of understanding or acceptance of the importance of quality care and education from birth to eight years for a child. The article that took me most by surprise was one I uncovered on the Children’s Defense Fund website www.childrensdefensefund.org.  It was actually about legislation written by Senator Bernie Sanders, a politician I really respect, called the Foundations for Success Act, which he developed working with the Children’s Defense Fund. It touches on all the things that contribute to our inability to give our children access to the type of early start they are entitled to, poverty and a shrinking middle class. It also talks about how we were once a leader in education and now have fallen far behind. “The United States ranks 17^th in reading, 31^st in math, 23^rd in science, and 18^th overall in secondary education out of 36 nations” (Sanders, 2011, p. 3). The bill proposes to provide early child care for all children from 6 weeks old through kindergarten. Let’s hope it gets passed into law.

I think the most alarming discovery in searching for article on my web resources that dealt with access to early childhood care and education was learning just how detrimental lack of access is, and the toll it takes on children and families. We have discussed the importance of investing in our children from birth and the benefits it yields down the road, in comparison to investing in unproductive adults. However, after reading and browsing through half a dozen or so articles I realize failure to invest in our children is about more than just paying for incarcerations and drug rehab programs. It is about saving our environment, putting people on the moon, restoring the United States place as the true leader of the civilized world in everything from education to invention. We must continue to advocate for access to quality early education programs for all children.

References

Sanders, Bernard. (2011). The early care and education crisis in America: The benefits if investing in our children. Retrieved December 7, 2012 from, http://www.childrensdefense.org/policy-priorities/early-childhood- education-care/legislative-update.html

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2012). From access to             equality: Empowering girls and women through literacy and secondary education. Retrieved December 7, 2012 from, http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0021/002184/218450e.pdf