I completed my Community Field Experience at HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) Canada. This amazing organization is dedicated to helping socially isolated mothers and their families. They work with immigrant and Aboriginal families to ensure they children are ready for Kindergarten and that their parents play a key role in preparing them.

During my CFE, my role at HIPPY Canada was to conduct phone interviews with participants of the program, who were also nominees for the annual Mothers Matter Award. I had the opportunity to speak with about 15 HIPPY Mothers from across Canada, each with an inspiring story of perseverance, courage, and strength.

This CFE experience was very valuable to me as it further ignited my passion for inclusive education. I believe that all children have a right to learn and a right to succeed, regardless of their background. My experience at HIPPY Canada showed me the value of inclusive education, and how important it is to adapt to and meet the needs of ELL students in the classroom.

Below are my reflections from my 3 weeks at HIPPY Canada.

WEEK 1: 

“This week, I was introduced to this amazing organization called HIPPY Canada. My role during the CFE is to interview participants of the program and collect stories about their experiences. My final project will be to create a Story Bank of all the interviews. So far, I have interviewed people who have come to Canada from Syria as refugees, from Nigeria, fro El Salvador as refugees, and Aboriginal families. I have learned about the daily struggles and challenges of immigrants, and have heard amazing stories of perseverance.

I have been able to use skills I have developed over the past 9 months (from coursework and practicum) in this role. I am also continuing to build skills of encouraging others, building repertoire, and overall learning more about the community. I think this will definitely contribute to my role as a teacher come September. With Vancouver being such a culturally diverse school district, I think it’s important to have this understanding and perspective on the community. This will hopefully help me to better connect with my students and their families.”

WEEK 2: 

“This week I have been continuing with the interviews with the HIPPY participants. Although much of my work has been similar to last week, I think I gained new insight this week into the different perspectives that make up our communities. For example, I spoke with 3 different Aboriginal mothers, all of whom were from difference communities. I found it especially interesting to converse with one of the mothers from Treaty 7 Blood Indian Reserve, a very small reserve in rural Alberta. I have never met anyone from a reserve before, but it was fascinating speaking with her about the challenges, accessibility issues, and other aspects of her life. I feel that these conversations gave me insight into the issues facing Aboriginal communities, all over Canada, which in turn children have to face as well.

As I continue with the Story Bank project, I’m excited to see the end product of all the interviews put together to make a book. All the stories that I’ve heard will be given a chance to be heard and shared with the public.”

WEEK 3: 

“This week I have completed all the interviews with the immigrant, refugee, and Aboriginal mothers. The stories I have heard are truly inspiring and I feel lucky to have the opportunity to speak to these women. Each year, HIPPY hosts a graduation day for all the participant of the program. Luckily, the graduation ceremony was held today (Friday) and I had the chance to attend. The families gathered at Strathcona Community Centre with decorations, a huge food buffet, and smiles all around. I also met one of the women I had interviewed last week, so it was great to see her and her son pass this milestone together.

Monday will be my last day of the CFE. I have learned so much over the past few weeks that I don’t think I could have learned just from my regular 10-­‐week practicum. In my practicum, I did have students in my class who came from marginalized or struggling families, but I would only see the “surface”. The past 3 weeks have allowed me to look at the true hardships and examples of perseverance, courage, and dedication of these families. I also learned the importance of community and the magnitude of difference that organizations like HIPPY can make for families.”