Personal Statement
As an early childhood Saudi teacher, I am applying for a doctoral degree of Early Childhood Education at the University of North Texas. Being a mature teacher and researcher, my educational aspirations linked to the doctoral program involve seeking sustainable pedagogical methods of exploring issues, such as Children Development and Encouragement of Social Change through elementary school curricula. Presently, I have two years of major teaching experience in my primary concentration area. Throughout my professional career, I have also worked as Assistant Manager to the school principal.
My rationale for applying to the desired program is to pursue an earlier research on the Impact of a World Festival on Children's Awareness of Other Cultures (2013) and to meet my current professional goals. My true dedication to enhance learning effectiveness and improve accomplishment of elementary school children was achieved through my research. It aimed at educating teachers and parents how to develop their children's awareness of other cultures and languages. The most notable career experience for me is grounded in teaching Saudi children about cultures through a creation of a world festival project. Since they do not discover other cultures or languages naturally because all speak the same language, Arabic, I was well motivated to build the children’s knowledge and awareness of different world views. My research, thereby, was intended to successfully establish the teachers’ guidelines as to how to educate about other cultures, using adapted materials and activities.
Seeking leadership in teaching and preparing for my role as an Educational Researcher, the program meets my personal and professional expectations to a full extent. My primary interest is to research dimensions of Early Childhood Education, by applying a range of quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Additionally, I will seek to interact with Research Faculty to develop attractive research proposals, and disseminate findings. I am potentially interested in conducting a thorough research within ethnically diverse backgrounds to find out the impact of language literacy development on children's learning. Step by step enrolling in the rigorous doctoral program in Early Childhood Education will enable me to follow my track in education and to masterfully improve children's awareness to learning.
The research project provided a valuable understanding of the multicultural concept, as most of elementary schools are lacking in diversity due to the predominately large Arabic speaking children in Saudi classrooms. However, this study also proved a true fact of the cultural improvement of Saudi children, who interact with children from different Arab nationalities, by means of a world festival. The particular study was applied to twenty children between five and six, and their parents from different Arab nationalities. The classroom mixed these nationalities with Saudi children to see how our mission can impact their awareness of each other's cultures.
The school's program did not previously include specific curricula aimed at developing children's cultural knowledge. Since most of them were not prepared to accept people of other nationalities, my goal was to open the children's eyes to the world diversity through learning in an indoor setting of a classroom. My professional purpose was to build strong social ties between children, families, and teachers and to identify all the nationalities and cultures that exist in the classroom. The main goal of it was to grow children socially, emotionally, and spiritually closer to each other. Culture, in a broader sense, is not only a lifestyle, but it also confirms a particular way of thinking. Findings revealed that children's awareness of other cultures helps foster pride of their own color, age, and family background. Also, it helps them become more comfortable when sharing their cultural experiences in the classroom.
As part of the project, I prepared two Saudi teachers to be researchers and supplied them with information about the six countries of the festival. Children and their parents learned songs, food, dance, basic words and phrases, lifestyle, and clothes, by sharing books and presenting stories through the SmartBoard. Children’s interactions and involvement in group activities were meticulously observed and analyzed, and it proved that teaching them about diversity has a wonderful, positive impact on their lives.
Elementary school teachers in Saudi Arabia need to overcome many obstacles to succeed in their tremendously hard work, given that children’s knowledge of the cultural world in public schools is weak. Being a progressive and young professional, I am determined to pique children’s curiosity about the diversity of the world and the uniqueness of people. Learning about diversity and cultures helps any child to explore the world and build meaningful relationships. Additionally, it enhances the ability in children to feel comfortable and positive.
