Ethical Inspiration

Ethics are sets of morals and principles that guide the behavior of individuals or organizations. You will find a code of ethics within every profession.  After reviewing the codes of ethics from the NAEYC and DEC, I believe the following three ideals presented by NAEYC speak the loudest to me:

1) To recognize and respect the unique qualities, abilities, and potential of each child.

2) To support the rights of each child to play and learn in an inclusive environment that meets the needs of children with and with out disabilities.

3) To work through education, research and advocacy toward a society in which all young children have access to high-quality early care and education programs.

I know I have said this multiple times and I apologize for sounding like a broken record, but I joined this program for personal reasons versus professional reasons so I will explain how these ideals impact my personal goals.  While my oldest son is diagnosed with PDD-NOS (high functioning Autism), I do not want him labeled and put into a "category" with limited expectations.  He is extremely intelligent and has unlimited potential.  I want his teachers to view him in that light and provide programs that challenge him.  I do not want them to assume that he has limitations and make things too easy for him.  He needs to be challenged...he needs to be in groups with his typical peers and expected to complete the same tasks as they are expected to complete.  I am a firm believer in allowing kids to try new things and to occasionally fail.  How can they understand the true meaning of success if they do not know what it feels like to fail?  We all learn best from our mistakes...we should allow our kids the same opportunities. We cannot shield them from the world forever.  We will not always be here to take care of them.  They have to learn to stand tall, be independent, take responsibility for their actions and understand what it means to work hard to get what you want.  I want my kids to be successful and I want them to earn it so they can truly reap the benefits and enjoy those moments of success.

This may seem like a no-brainer, but all kids should have access to the care that they need.  This is near and dear to my heart because of the struggles that we are currently facing with getting the insurance company to cover the therapy that my son desperately needs.  The current presidential administration has said that Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy is a valid medical treatment and has just signed guidance documents that requires the military health insurance company to cover this therapy for all children covered by military insurance.  Previously, this therapy was only approved for children of active duty military members.  While this guidance is significant, there are still several gaps, and one happens to cover my situation.  I am a military veteran and current federal government, Department of Defense employee, but my federal insurance does not cover this therapy.  Why are the children of current military members and retired military members more entitled to this care than my son??  Situations like this just do not make sense.  We are currently appealing this decision and I hope that through our efforts, the folks in charge of this will see the light and make a change to help all the other children like Jason who are being deprived such vital treatments.