Making Professional Connections

I am thrilled to announce that progress is being made.  Through the father of one of my former students I have initiated contact with Pasi and Johanna, both of Finland.  Johanna wrote back to say she needs two weeks to wrap up the school year after which she have time to discuss the issues and trends regarding ECE.  Although I received an email from Pasi to say "hi", and subsequently sent an email regarding the nature of this assignment, I've not as yet heard back from him.  Possibly, the email I sent, was diverted.  At this point, I have sent one more email to Topi, the father of my former student, asking him to let Pasi know I've emailed him.  Meanwhile, I went to an art show on Sunday, where two more of my former students were showing their art work.  Their mother is from Sweden, and I asked if she would inquiry with the Montessori teachers she knows who teach in Sweden.  As I am a Montessori teacher, I think it would be interesting to be in contact with other Montessori teachers from other countries as well.  Although I am still waiting.... I feel confident that contact with one or all of these people will happen soon.

 En lieu of direct contacts, I would like to share information about childhood poverty, I found of particular interest from Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Center website:

"Today's poor children are all too often tomorrow's poor parents. Poverty can be passed on from generation to generation affecting the long-term health, wellbeing and productivity of families and of society as a whole." (CHIP, 2012).    

"...under what circumstances does working in childhood trap children in poverty, and when does it provide useful skills for the future? What kinds of education best help children escape poverty? What sorts of economic and social policies are most helpful for preventing poverty being passed between generations? Answers to these questions are critical for breaking poverty cycles permanently. CHIP has started to answer some of these questions, though more context-specific knowledge is needed."  

 CHIP recognizes that there are many questions such as the ones above that have not yet been answered regarding childhood poverty.  As I researched poverty in New Mexico, I found a plethora of statistics all saying the same thing:  Poverty in New Mexico is among the highest in the nation.  As I continued my research, searching for more information regarding the "whys" behind poverty numbers in New Mexico, I was surprised by the utter lack of information.  In analyzing the data, I found my experiences over the last 20 years of living and working with the local populations my only source of information for addressing the why's behind the numbers.  Here in New Mexico, poverty is multi-generational.  Asking questions, like the ones above, is a task that needs to be done in order to address the issue of poverty in New Mexico.  Much research is still needed in order to be able to understand the why's behind chronic poverty in New Mexico.

Because CHIP works to understand international poverty, it by default must study and understand the cultures of the countries in which they work.  Even though New Mexico is part of the United States, the unique cultures of New Mexico (New Mexicans of Spanish decent, Latino Immigrants and Native Pueblo Indians) make New Mexico a world unto itself.  It seems that much of the work CHIP has done in foreign countries, may be applicable in New Mexico.  In the article, "Breaking Poverty Cycles-The Importance of Action in Childhood" (Harper, 2005) Caroline Harper offers several insights and suggestions regarding the transference of poverty from one generation to the next.  As I look over the article, I am aware that the information presented is congruent with observations and experiences I've had with local populations here in New Mexico.

I recognize that the international focus of the CHIP website is highly relevant to the issues of poverty in New Mexico, and should be considered as a primary source of information, at least until further research is done locally.