RETRACTION: Excessive Corporal Punishment in U.S.V.I

       So I sincerely feel the need to apologize to my readers as well as the educators at the Yvonne Bowsky Elementary School, located within our territory, with regards to a blog post published last Sunday due to reports received and read (from various publications based within the territory and teachers) about the use of corporal punishment by a principal on one of their students which is in fact, NOT TRUE. We were delighted to hear that while the video and comments attached to it and articles on the subject may depict a much more gruesome scene it was actually nothing like illustrated, but an actual crude offense made by another to seem so. While the screams and cries in the video were completely real they were the result of a tired student trying to pt his way out of the punishment received, which I am told was raising his arms above his head for long periods of time. I would like to also take this opportunity while acknowledging that my opinions were in fact biased because of my stance on corporal punishment to note that those were my only objections and I'm sure many would agree as we've seen in recent senate legislations world wide and at home that a change in our schools policies and procedures with respects to such is much needed.

The views expressed within this blog are solely those of Ms. Child Advocate and does not reflect on any of her affiliations. For more on the U.S Virgin Islands read Too Much Violence And Abuse In Our Schools, Too Much Violence: Shootings Near USVI Preschools, andEducational Institutions Need New Blood.

Excessive Corporal Punishment In U.S.V.I

    (Picture below is of Yvonne Bowsky Elementary School, U.S.V.I)

      While doing my nightly reading (this time via the internet) I came across an article about one of our local elementary schools within the territory, Yvonne Bowsky Elementary School and couldn't resist reading about the latest news within the institution that inspires me so much. I always try to keep abreast of things happening within our territory's educational institutions, call it my way of staying informed. As I began to read this article I was confronted with many mixed emotions. First, I was happy to know that steps were finally being taken to rid our territory of such an unrealistic trait/ behavior for any educational professional since it was first off ridiculously bizarre ideal within educational guidelines and secondly we are in much more informed times, or at least I thought we were; after the article and attached video I wasn't to sure anymore. Next was fear to confront me, as I continued to read the article I realized that there had been an actual incident of this sort within the territory. In an effort not to become too overwhelmed I began to slightly rationalize the different situations in my head but everything I came up with was still bad. As the article came to a close I thought of two things; one I really do think that our new commissioner was much to light with the 'punishment' given for such an infraction especially since it was the vice principal of the school; a weeks suspension with pay and then a promotion to principal doesn't sent a good message. As noted within the same article featured within the St. Thomas Source and various others, such incidents do continue within the territory and abroad and reap the same horrid results. If the vice principal is allowed to get away with such behavior how do we really expect to deter others? Unfortunately it may actually be the only way for teachers to get a week off with pay. My second thought was about those present at the time of the incident; of everyone there including the person videotaping I wonder how many of them call themselves education professionals.

     Then I saw the video, and though it is merely 53 seconds long I found it chilling from beginning to end with terrifying screams. I figured the person videotaping either had my sentiments of not bearing to watch what they'd found after those horrid screams or they were too afraid of losing their job. Listening to that child scream and beg I wondered how I would feel know that was my child or even that my child could possibly be in such a situation, then my heart sunk and I felt ashamed for my territory; why would our lawmakers allow such an act to go seemingly unnoticed? I can appreciate the fact that since corporal punishment legally is still allowed within U.S.V.I schools that it was a large factor for consideration (with regards to those involved in the discussion making process). I'm also certain that tenure was also a matter of consideration since one does not become principal overnight; I'm sure the educator in question is no doubt an excellent one to be able to lead in such a capacity. But as someone held at such a high regard within the institution and society being idolized by students, parents and colleagues, one should continued to be held at such standards with regards to doing what is right and held accountable accordingly.

     According to the Global Initiative to End all Corporal Punishment Of Children and the overwhelming evidence that shows the harmful effects of corporal punishment show associations between corporal punishment and a wide range of negative outcomes, including; direct physical harm, negative impacts on mental and physical health, poor moral internalization, increased aggression in children, increased perpetration and experience of violence in adults, increased antisocial behavior, poor cognitive development, and damaged relationships.

     My thoughts then shifted back to the commissioners response to the video, a week off with pay and a promotion, and wondered if that had been her child in the video if she would've thought it appropriate.

The views expressed within the blog are solely those of Ms. Child Advocate and does not reflect on any of her affiliations. For more on the U.S Virgin Islands read Too Much Violence And Abuse In Our Schools, Too Much Violence: Shootings Near USVI Preschools, and Educational Institutions Need New Blood.

Top Five Reasons Why I'd Choose An Educated Child Care Professional

Top Five Reasons Why I'd Choose An Educated Child Care Professional

Written By: Ms. Child Advocate

        I've recently been on the hunt for a preschool that would meet both my child's needs and my expectations and while I didn't expect to find many who'd fit the criteria I was expecting to find more than I actually found. First I found that many of the preschools that were within reach of the average parents working middle class either didn't offer progressive programs that are age appropriate and those that did were in high price ranges. Many of the learning environments in question were structured in environments themselves that were unprogressive and unwelcoming first leading many to question the safety of the environment. Secondly, as many of the individuals employed at these establishments aren't necessary professionals at their 'profession' concerns are again raised with the extent of progressive lessons and environments that can be constructed for individual children. While experience is a great teacher it does leave one lacking knowledge in areas and would need to be explored in order to be efficient at the profession. For instance, would you allow your child to be treated by a 'physician' with ten to fifteen years experience but no medical training? I'm sure the answer would be no (unless under dire circumstances) so why would these 'schools' be operating without at least a CDA present at each facility? Simply put, what I found was that there weren't many educated child care professionals within our territory and while I was shocked I as also stunned at the fact so many individuals believed in experience over education with all that has come to light about early childhood education. Too many of the preschools within our territory are welcoming individuals as teachers who have little experience in the field and no education and sadly it seems the only reason for so is to save these 'businesses' money; the lesser educated professional received a lesser pay grade. I has also come to my attention that the preschools within our territory were given a deadline of summer 2015 to either educate their staff on the profession or add members with the right credentials, which would be an associates in any field related to early childhood. It is for this reason I decided to write this post about my reasons for choosing a childcare provider who is educated within their profession.


1. Information- An educated child care provider would have common knowledge of different learning practices, techniques, policies, and procedures making learning more versatile with the individual children they encounter. They would also have common knowledge about the symptoms of diseases of various disorders, illnesses, and even common diseases making a diagnosis easier for those involved and hopefully any processes smoother. As we all different as individuals it should be equally important that a educational professional have different resources to ensure progressive developmental learning is taking place. While I wouldn't dare say that an educated professional would be open minded whereas an uneducated professional won't be I would say that with the wealth of knowledge they would've developed such a way of thinking, but people will be people and there is no way to determine such a thing. 


2. Quality- An educated professional would be quite aware of the need for stimulating experiences for early learners to thrive and progress; facilitating nurturing environments where all is concerned regardless of age or disability. They would provide an atmosphere that's inviting and loving while age appropriate, placing an importance on developmental aspects while making it engaging to learn. 

3. Respect- An educated professional is more cultured and would more easily accept and be open toward others cultures or those with special needs. Respect is this aspect is very important not only between teachers and students but between the school/ institution and parents/ family members as well for interaction between all parties concerned is necessary and anything hampering such could also hamper the child's views and development. 



4. Family & Community Ties- Many educated and uneducated professionals network alike ,but those who have attended educational institutions and others alike are included in larger networks based on those institutions and the professionals within these institutions. Networking and collaborating with after school programs, inter neighborhood programs, religious programs and family/community members helps to build solid relationships and a strong foundation for trust and engagement


5. Safety- As I mentioned before, safety can come in many different forms but the one topic that was repeated mentioned during interviews for this article was that of the safety of the environments of the early learners in question. Educated professionals have a wider network of resources to enable them to provide safe yet engaging programs in safe environments. 


 In closing I know that many parents choose their child care providers on a budget and have all rights to do so, I know I do, and by it's convenience but I implore many of you to actually consider the education levels of the 'professionals' working with your children and consider this, would you depend on your child's primary teacher or intermediate teacher if they were uneducated within the field? Cause it is basically the same thing. 

How was your first day of school

Children @ Lockhart Elementary via V.I.D.E
As many parents did, I spent the day awaiting pictures of students dressed to impress on thne first day of school! Surely I wasn't disappointed; receiving plenty of pictures from family and friends and observing most of the kids that insaw on their morning commutes, I figured parents must have been all tearing eyes this morning. After conferring with a few mothers I was quite certain that's not always the case. Many first time moms did have those moments, but most complained of the chores of getting ready for school. Many kids were unable to easily make the transition of back to school bed times, transition routines, and even proper meals! So in light of our little 'Back to school conversation' I took some notes to share with my fellow mother's and hope in return you'll share some tips as well, after all who knows everything rite?!
Anyways, for first time moms getting their little ones ready for their first day of school getting kids into a routine can be very hard. Practicing at home routines as well as school routines can help your child feel more confident about attending s new school and can ease your summer back to school transition as well. Many children an parents experience anxiety over back to school or going to a new school, role playing and practicing these routines can help to elevate stress in all parties concerned while boosting confidence levels in children as well.  Noting on a calender or how ever choose the days for school can also help with their anxiety even after school has begin; just as we adults feel more prepared with schedules so do kids and it will ease some stress related to the matter. Reading books about schools, the different activities that exist therein, and the expectations of all involved may very well serve as a formal introduction or an orientation to school rather than just throwing them to the wolves (so to speak). Everyone wants their child's first day of school to be memorable, and impressionable in great aspects, as do the teachers who've excitedly prepared classrooms, lesson plans, and activities for their pleasure and progression so lets be sure to give them the tools they'll need to survive.
Ms. Child Advocate

Ms. Child Advocate

VIDE Transitioning With to SBAC

VIDE Transitioning With to SBAC

 

 

In a recent article published by the St. Thomas Source The Virgin Islands Department of Education (VIDE) announced that it is in the process of making the transition to online assessments with the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) for Virgin Islands students. What does that mean for us and just what is the SBAC?

“The Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced) is a state-led consortium working to develop next-generation assessments that accurately measure student progress toward college- and career-readiness. Smarter Balanced is one of two multistate consortia awarded funding from the U.S. Department of Education in 2010 to develop an assessment system aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) by the 2014-15 school year (SBAC, 2014).”

At least for me this means that our students and educators will now have a means to measure their progress while implementing the Common Core State Standards within our curriculum as well as resources offered within the forms of networking with others abroad who are going through the same process or have already gone through the process. I’ve read countless articles with regards to the implementation of SBAC tests within schools, both good and bad, but the main problems seemed to stem from either schools that where inadequately equip to make such transition and advocates (parents and educators alike) that have a firm position that SBAC tests aren’t needed at all. Many advocates feel as though it is just another way for the government to access data for their own personal gains, and that it is not for the betterment of the pupils involved. The biggest problem with implementation was that many school districts didn’t have enough technological support nor proper equipment. According to the article in the Source in order to make the next step to online assessments, VIDE spent months working with the department’s technical staff to identify the technical needs of each school, streamline connectivity issues and gather the necessary equipment.

“ According to VIDE’s Office of Instructional Technology Director Dr. Clinton Stapleton, many of the territory’s computer labs were outfitted with new thin clients, which replaced the existing, older, hardware. The thin client devices are easier to manage and maintain and are more energy efficient, and they can hook up to a centralized server; Training sessions with state, district and school technical staff were also conducted, focusing on how to manage and configure the devices for now ongoing field testing (The St. Thomas Source, 2014).”

Since it would appear that they have considered all possibilities as far as technology is concerned ( or as far as I can tell since I’m no expert) then the only thing left is the actual implementation of the SBAC tests and of course the reaction/ response from the community. I would dare to say that within our community we (as I am a member) are ok with this transition and welcome what it can do for our educational institutions. Of course I’m simply going off of mostly private notions from individuals and not organizations, but there is one major reason for my saying so and that reason is lack of public outcry. Many other educators and parents have publicly voiced their concerns with SBAC tests (among other concerns) especially when field testing for implementation began a few months back, but still there was nothing within our territory to suggest otherwise. Now don’t get me wrong, I completely support the move and am very glad to see the different strides being made by the VIDE to ensure implementation is swift and still accurate. I can also say that I’m proud that we’ve finally taken the necessary steps to ensure that our students can continue to compete and excel at the same standards as students abroad.

 

For further readings on the U.S Virgin Islands on topics of education and our children please read When Is It Time To Get Rid Of The Pacifier, Guy Benjamin Elementary is Closing; What Now? And Alternatives to Suspensions and Expulsions.

 

 

This blog post is the opinions of Ms. Child Advocate and does not reflect on the institution’s she is employed for nor is those she affiliated with through volunteer work or otherwise. For more opinions from us please visit our blog page usviearlychildhoodlearning.blogspot.com or email us at usvi.childhood.learning@gmail.com and like us on Facebook or follow Ms. Child Advocate on Twitter.

 

When is it Time to get rid of the Pacifier?

When is it Time to get rid of the Pacifier?

 

 

 

I don’t usually like to do points mostly off of my opinions, as everyone has the right to their own but I must admit that the urge to write this blog post has been extremely overwhelming (partially because of my own feelings on the matter and the other half because others seemed to think it was ok). Earlier this week I witnessed a little boy whose age couldn’t have been any less than three, with a mouth full of teeth speaking clearly and then he put his pacifier in his mouth. Honestly, I think I spent the first five minutes observing the child (from the back of the room) play and interact with children of various ages (18 months-6 years) but the more I observed the more it resonated with me that he was too old to be using a pacifier especially while out playing. As my focus then shifted to his parents and other parents surrounding I could tell many of them were having the same thoughts I did. I’m certain that his mother has some qualms with it for when it was his turn to go to the evaluator she removed the pacifier from his person and quickly stuffed it in her bag.

I won’t contest two things; the first is I could be completely wrong and he could simply be a child who is very mature and advanced for his age, and that it’s possible that the pacifier is a tool being used only in times of need (like getting him to sit still, play with others well, or sleep). But my main concern is for the child and the fact that such prolonged use of the pacifier at his ‘advanced’ stage may result in dental problems in the immediate future and the long run; It’s simply for the same rules has giving children baby bottles with nipples to drink from after their teeth have formed. Straying from the topic a little, I’ve once meet a parent who thought that it was natural that both of her children (eight years apart) experienced decaying of their primary teeth. While I don’t want to paint an ugly picture I had the pleasure of meeting both children from very young stages in their lives and I can assure you (and many will probably agree) that there is nothing natural or healthy about kids having a mouth full of rotten teeth; it was sadly the only thing that distracted others from their academic achievements and even their appearances. I reason for saying this is that it is not all right to let children ruin their primary teeth because they will get new ones and studies suggest that even when adult teeth are formed children with prolonged use of pacifiers are more likely to have dental issues such as;

1.     

Openbite

 

2.      Overjet (great chances

 

 

 3.      Posterior crossbites (children with more prolonged use are subject to anterior openbite and posterior crossbites)

 

 

While I am not a dental hygienist and can’t offer much on the prices of braces or other orthodontic wear for children, I can say that from the accounts that I’ve read it seems very painful for children. The only alternative to the pain is to put children under anesthesia and many of us know the risks of what can happen when children are put to sleep; anyone remember the little girl that died after going to the dentist? As I said in the beginning I don’t generally like to write about my personal opinions in matters but in this case I had to make an exception.

For further readings on the U.S Virgin Islands on topics of education and our children please read Children Are Dying, Thank God you’re NOT MY MOM!!!, and Thank God you’re NOT MY MOM 2

 

 

This blog post is the opinions of Ms. Child Advocate and does not reflect on the institution’s she is employed for nor is those she affiliated with through volunteer work or otherwise. For more opinions from us please visit our blog page usviearlychildhoodlearning.blogspot.com or email us at usvi.childhood.learning@gmail.com  and like us on Facebook or follow Ms. Child Advocate on Twitter.

 

 

Guy Benjamin Elementary is Closing; What Now?

Guy Benjamin Elementary is Closing; What Now?

So in many recent reports that I've read the Department of Education is receiving a lot of ‘heat’ from the general public, and members of the St. John community. I completely understand it of course; I mean the situation is one that no one would have hoped for. The students, faculty, and staff at the Guy Benjamin Elementary School along with parents have long voiced their opinions and concerns about lack of support it receives, declining numbers, and more recently an ‘invisible operating budget’. The school closing didn’t really come as a surprise to many since there have been rumors of such all year since the removal of kindergarten and first grades to the Julius Sprauve Elementary School in Cruz Bay. So, exactly what is all the fuss about?

At a meeting held at Guy Benjamin School for parents and students on Monday, Education Commissioner and Superintendent gave the awaiting parents the daunting news they’d feared for so long. While education officials only cited one reason for closing the school, declining students and operating costs, all of the arguments coming from parents and even teachers involved had little to do with the benefit of students. Attendees of the meeting cited how the school has always met the standards of the AYP report, and that residents of Coral Bay would now have to ‘commute’ to Cruz Bay in defense of the children. Other concerns expressed pertained to the area of the school (being around bars) and the amount of funding being saved by closing the school.

Those remarks almost seem selfish to me. In a school that has been operating without a principal or ‘checkbook’ how parents can and teachers alike expect the institution to continue with the same results. And while there were a few in attendance, mostly those affiliated with the school, haven’t heard of any actions taken by the community or the parents of students at Guy Benjamin Elementary to thwart the long awaited decision of closing the school. I did however read reports of education officials urging residents of St. John to consider enrolling their children within Guy Benjamin to hinder the pending decision, but one can only assume it was to no avail since the enrollment ratio for the next school year compared to the last were still very slim    While all students can benefit from a lesser student to teacher ratio, parents and educators should look at the benefits of this merge;

·         With the space at the closing elementary school new, necessary programs like an head start or even a K-12 institution may be implemented (which is well needed on the island)

·         Funds saved by the department can be used to enhance student life on the island itself as well as at the remaining school

·         Education official spoke of transportation for students of Coral Bay to the Julius Sprauve school in Cruz Bay under the supervision of teachers/aids; that is much more than most, if not all of our students within this territory (At least in my own experience it is mainly/solely the bus driver) and abroad.

Anyone can appreciate that change can sometimes be challenging, especially for children so young, but as adults (teachers and parents) should consider working on making the transition easier for all involved and encouraging already discouraged students to look on the bright side of things, after all the children are the ones who are really being affected the most aren’t they?

For further readings on the U.S Virgin Islands on topics of education and our children please read “Alternatives to Suspensions and Expulsions”, “Families Matter for the Achievement and Development of Goals”; and “ So Carnival Warrants Closing School Now!?”

This blog post is the opinions of Ms. Child Advocate and does not reflect on the institution’s she is employed for nor is those she affiliated with through volunteer work or otherwise. For more opinions from us please visit our blog page usviearlychildhoodlearning.blogspot.com or email us at usvi.childhood.learning@gmail.com  and like us on Facebook or follow Ms. Child Advocate on Twitter.