Early Childhood Education and Care: Life Spiral Map Assignment

This assignment, submitted by a student pursuing a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care, presents a life spiral map reflecting on personal experiences and influences. The student, born into a Punjabi family, discusses the impact of their parents' authoritative parenting style, their socioeconomic background, and their cultural upbringing. The assignment details significant life events, including their first school, cultural traditions, and the loss of their grandfather, which led to a period of depression. The student applies Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory to analyze how different environmental systems have shaped their development and decision-making. The assignment concludes by highlighting how these childhood experiences inform the student's approach as an educator, emphasizing the importance of understanding children's perspectives and guiding parents towards responsive parenting strategies. The student reflects on how understanding their own past helps them to understand their students and their parents better.

Running head: DIPLOMA IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE
Diploma in early childhood education and care
Name of Student
Name of the University
Author note

1DIPLOMA IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE
When I
cracked the
entrance exam
of Norquest
College
Our
social
celebrati
on
I got a
job in
Punjab
My birth
My name
Norquest
College
Kite
flying
with my
cousins
My
love for
study
My first
school
1. My life spiral map

2DIPLOMA IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE
2. Influence on my environment
I was born in a traditional Punjabi family located at Amritsar, Punjab. My father’s name is
Amandeep Singh and my mother’s name is Satvinder Kaur. Born in a middle class, Punjabi
family, my parents have always taught me about the importance of money in our life and how we
should refrain from lavishly spending the same. When it comes to the parenting style of my
parents, I am highly fortunate. My parents have followed authoritative parenting. Authorative
parenting is considered to be the most effective as well as beneficial parenting style. This is
because, in this type of parenting, parents though have high expectations on their children,
posses the potential to tamper it with understanding as well as support for their children as well.
My parents had created the healthiest environment for both my cognitive grow. I was never
being pressurized to take a specific educational course for myself. When it comes to
communication and control, my father was highly strict. In my childhood, I have been scolded
several times for my wrong doing. However, my parents avoided beating me since they believed
that it is a poor practice of parenting. I remember any event when my parents wanted me to take
science group as my subject in class 11 while I wanted to pursue my study in Eco stats
Mathematics. They did not force it on me. Instead they understood my concern and let me study
my chosen subjects. I was a single child. However we lived in a join family and I had great
bonding with my cousins. I still rejoice the memory when we used to fly kites on summer
holidays.
When it comes to my socioeconomic status, we belong to a middle class family. My father
was a farmer and we lived in a two stored house. Our house was located in a populated area. We

3DIPLOMA IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE
had an effective relation with our neighbors as well. From childhood, my parents have taught me
to consider my neighbor uncle and aunties as my own ad demonstrate respect to them. In
childhood my chief recreation included playing with my friends and cousins after my school time
was over. I still remember how we used to play cricket, “gilli danda“ which is a local game as
well as football in the afternoon after returning from school. I believe that this recreation have
not only enhanced my bonding with my relatives and neighbors but has also imposed positive
impact on my physical fitness. When it comes to my education, from childhood, I ranked in my
school. I loved studying Mathematics. In the same time, I loved to study history, since it
provided me with the knowledge of the past.
When it comes to culture, Punjabi culture is supposed to be one of the oldest as well as
richest cultures of the world that posses a very great history as well as complexity. In our culture,
each member of the family had got certain duties as well as responsibilities assigned too them in
the day to day life, birth as well as marriage ceremonies, funerals as well as other social
occasions. During the wedding of one of cousins, I learned that it falls in our culture that the
bride needs to wear a red ivory bangle known as Choora as a gift from the maternal uncle as a
gift. The custom of exchanging gifts is a highly traditional practice among us since our
community believed that this helps in maintain a well knit relationship among the friends and
family members in the society. In our community, I have noticed that majority of the females
were housewife. Men were supposed to work outside and earn for the family.
When it comes to stressors, I had faced my first stressor as a child when I lost my
grandfather. From childhood, I was very close to him. I used to call him “bada papa” and as
accustomed to spend a major part of the day with him. My grandfather was suffering from
several cardiovascular diseases and was under medication. He had died out of heart attack. His

4DIPLOMA IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE
depth had pushed me in deep grief and I had even undergone depression for several days.
Finally, my parents decided to consult a doctor and within the next 3 months I got fully
recovered.
3. Summary
The Bronfenbrenner Ecological Systems Theory explains how the inherent qualities of a
child as well as his environment influence how he will grow and develop. This theory has
helped me to understand how my environments that can be segregated into microsystem,
mesosystem, exosystem, macro system and chronosystem have influenced my upbringing and
future decision making. While teaching my students, several times I consciously as well as
unconsciously relate their childhood with mine. My feelings and learning of childhood often
helps me to understand their point of view. Not only this, I also develops the capability of
understanding their parents. For instance, several times, I found that parents often get
authoritarian. That is, their expectation from the child gets increased and thus the child stated
feeling to be in pressure. As an educator, I conduct a session with the parents where I educate
them about the importance of high responsiveness. I also provided them effective strategy to be
friendly with their offspring and yet have control over their acts. This assignment have made me
understood the impact of my environment on my success.