Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/voices-in/5014342/
As we consider the concept of professionalism, it is important to realize that different ethnic/cultural communities may have different ways of relating to the concept and different expectations of the professionals with whom they work and who care for their children. With this in mind, I was privileged to interview four early care and education professionals, who come from communities of color, in a variety of locations across the country. I have known and worked with each of them in different professional contexts, over a number of years, and have found them to be among the most earnest, critical thinkers I know.My questions to them focused on three main areas of inquiry: 1) the differences between the mainstream, European-American concept of professionalism and that of their own community; 2) the characteristics - behaviors, attitudes, values - that people of color look for in the professionals who are serving their families; and 3) the implications for training professionals of color or those who will work in communities of color.
In hopes that the richness of their responses will stimulate the reader to consider different paradigms, cultural contexts, and ways of delivering services to children and parents, I offer the following excerpts from ...