The opportunities and possibilities from the connections we make

For every individual person, a new day provides opportunities to learn new information or perspectives about various aspects of the world we live in.  As an educator in the early childhood field, I am able to learn from my students, their parents and families, my colleagues, and community members.  As a student in an online Education Specialist in Early Childhood degree program, I am able to learn from my classmates who are located in different states across the country.  The opportunities that these connections allow provide me with information and perspectives that help me in my current position and shed light onto the possibilities of my future.

From these connections, informal and formal conversations can emerge, often in the form of interviews.  This is precisely what occurred as I prepared to conduct my interviews for my Course Project (Major Assessment).  The two professionals that I have chosen to interview are colleagues of mine, but whom I do not interact with on a daily basis.  Their positions as our school district’s guidance counselor and psychologist mean that the amount of information that I can obtain will be limited due to confidentiality in regards to the specific students that they work with.  Despite this limitation, I am hoping to gain insight into the programs (for example, Banana Splits) that we currently have to support our students who have experienced, or are currently experiencing, the separation and divorce of their parents.       

The information that I have already obtained through my research on this topic for my Course Project (Major Assessment) has led me to learning how age, gender, and timing play a part in the impact that parental separation and divorce have on a young child’s development.  As I continue and complete my research on this topic, I would like to be guided by ideas from you on what information would help you support the children in your classroom or program who are experiencing the separation and divorce of their parents?