Early childhood education (birth–age 8) is at the top of the national agenda, yet many children do not have access to the educational settings that they need. In a 3–5 page well-developed paper, please address the following:

1. Describe the characteristics of high quality early childhood programs.
2. Discuss at least three benefits of early childhood education (examples should be research-based).
3. Discuss a policy or policy initiative relating to early childhood education (such as NCLB, IDEA, Early Intervention, Head Start, and so on).
4. Apply critical thinking, ethics, and communication skills expected of a professional in the field of child psychology.

Assignment 1: Essay

Choose one (1) of the three reading selections from the list of topic choices below. Read the selection in the textbook. Write a three to four (3-4) paragraph essay (250 words) which analyzes the “surprise ending” of the reading selection.

Topic Choices:

• Reading selection from Descartes’ Discourse on the Method (Part IV). Descartes begins with the problem of being able to prove his own existence but ends up with an argument proving the existence of God.  Read more about the Discourse on the Method located at http://www.earlymoderntexts.com/pdf/descdisc.pdf.
• Reading selection from Swift’s A Modest Proposal. Swift begins with offering the solution that the English could do things which might solve the problem of over-population and the mistreatment of citizens in Ireland and ends by offering the solution that an internal change in the Irish government would best solve the problem of over-population and a populace victimized by its own government.  Read more about A Modest Proposal located at http://www.victorianweb.org/previctorian/swift/modest.html.
• Two reading selections from Voltaire’s Candide. The story begins by acknowledging the foolishness of the superstitious traditions held by the people in the city of Lisbon but ends by confirming Voltaire’s belief that religion in general is equally based in false superstitions.

For the reading selection you choose:

1. Clearly state in your own words the “surprise ending” in the reading you selected. Identify the point in the reading when you realized that the ending would be different from what the beginning of the reading suggested that it would be.
2. Since you were expecting a different ending, evaluate how successful the author was in convincing you to accept the validity of the “surprise ending” that was not clearly suggested at the beginning.

Your assignment must:

• Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA Style format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
• Include a cover page containing the tile of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

By Day 3, post a short response (about 200–300 words) to the following:

“The nature of instantaneous access to global events is inherently a political activity.” Select a world event that is currently in the news, and give a summary of the event. Share why you selected this event to describe to the class.

First Assigment

Discuss 2 of the 3 questions below (you only have to pick two of the 3 questions) Does not have to be long response about 250 words

Perception: Interpreting Our Environment

Consider the text’s point that we often perceive things differently from others and that no one perception is necessarily right. What, from an OB perspective, are the benefits of differences of perception when a team of people are working on a project? What are the potential drawbacks of perceptual differences when a team is working together on a project?

Common Perceptual Distortions

Choose one of the perceptual distortions discussed (stereotypes, selective attention, halo effect, primary effect, recency effect, contrast effect, project, self-fulfilling prophecy, and impression management), and briefly describe a situation where your perception of another person was impacted by that distortion.

Common Attribution Errors

Imagine that you are waiting in line to purchase groceries. You notice that your line is moving very slowly because the high school-aged student who is bagging groceries is flirting with the cashier rather than working quickly and paying attention to customers. What internal and external attributions might you apply to this behavior? Try to generate at least three options for each type of attribution.

Second Assignment

While emotional intelligence is considered an important and desirable quality in employees, discuss the ways in which emotional intelligence may be used in unscrupulous or unethical ways. For example, imagine you are running a Ponzi scheme similar to the one Bernie Madoff created and ran. How would social awareness, relationship management, self-awareness, and self-management benefit your efforts to swindle people and foundations? Rank the usefulness of each of the four dimensions of IE in this context and explain your rationale.