As you enter into the final stages of your degree program, you will take a comprehensive examination in the ECE430 capstone course.  The purpose of this exam is to determine how you are performing compared to other early childhood education students throughout the United States.  You will be assessed on your mastery of topics covered throughout your degree program. The academic coursework you have already completed in your program should be sufficient for preparation for this exam. The topics are as follows:

1. Learner Development
2. Learning Differences
3. Learning Environments
4. Content Knowledge
5. Application of Content
6. Assessment
7. Planning for Instruction
8. Instructional Strategies
9. Professional Learning and Ethical Practice
10. Leadership and Collaboration

For the final journal, you will think about the above topics and how they are aligned with the main content covered within this course. This course is focused on multicultural and anti-bias issues that support you in developing cultural competence in working with children and families in early childhood settings.  With this in mind, describe how you will demonstrate cultural competence in five of the exam topic areas of your choosing.  For each chosen topic area, develop a commitment statement that you can use in your future role.

For example:

Learner Development:  In order to support language development to meet the individual needs of the children in my classroom, I will use checklists to observe where children need additional assistance.  Once I observe each child and document where each individual child needs assistance, I will support him or her one-on-one using developmentally appropriate language and literacy approaches.  Some examples include providing a print-rich environment, reading aloud to children as a model of language, developing vocabulary through dual-language exploration, and providing engaging learning experiences in which children can use vocabulary and make meaningful connections across instructional activities.

For this journal activity, be sure to select five topics to develop. Consider how you would apply these principles and construct your 250-300 word journal entry using critical thinking.   Since this is a journal activity, scholarly sources are not required; however they may help you support your ideas.  You may want to begin your journal using the following prompt: