Master's Student Chun-Ju Chen Shares Experience in Graduate Program

My name is Chun-Ju Chen, and I am from Taiwan. I was an English major as an

undergraduate. I found my passion for education from some of my teaching and

research experiences, so I changed my major when I decided to study abroad for


I planned to go to school in San Diego because my husband goes to UCSD, so I

searched for other universities that provide programs in education. SDSU is the best

university that offers rich educational programs in San Diego. Therefore, I applied for

this program, and luckily I was admitted! The process of application was very simple.

First you need to prepare some documents like transcripts, recommendation letters,

statement of purpose, etc. Just check the SDSU website and it will tell you everything

you need to prepare. Then you need to finish the online application and pay the

application fee. That’s it! After you are done, just wait and see if you are admitted.


I really had a great time in the program. I especially like the classes on development

and classes that require students to do internship. Just like I said I was an English major

and I had no background in child development, so Dr. Ritblatt suggested that I could

take an undergraduate level class on human development in the beginning, which was

CFD 270. CFD 270 was a very important class for me because that class gave me a

clear idea of what happens to a human being at different age periods. CFD 670 was

also very inspiring. It was also a development class but it went deeper with theories on

psychology, sociology, and education. Most important of all, it taught me to think about

how to practice these theories in education. I also enjoyed CFD 590, CFD 578, and

CFD 597. These classes gave me great opportunities to get to know what education

really is and chances to work with different people at different sites. For example, I was

doing my internship at the SDSU Children’s Center for one semester, and the next

semester after that I was hired as an assistant teacher!


For my final project, I will build a webpage that is linked to the SDSU Children’s Center

website. The purpose of the page is to inform parents the benefits of shared book

reading, and provide strategies that help parents read to their children more effectively.

In my future, I plan to continue working with children because that is my passion. The

various master’s courses provided gave me with knowledge to work in the field, and the

internship opportunities enabled me to know this industry better and get prepared for

my future job. What’s more, the faculty here are very nice and always happy to help,

and that gave me a very good model of what an educator should be like. I am sure this

is the place you should come if you have a passion for education, and you will have a

wonderful time like I have.

The First Annual Child Development Conference, Co-Hosted by the Department of Child and Family Development at SDSU

Please join us for the First Annual Child Development Conference, Co-Hosted by the Department of Child and Family Development at San Diego State University. The conference will be held on April 17th in Montezuma Hall in the Aztec Student Union. This will be a great opportunity for students and members of the surrounding community to come together for a day of learning. The conference is dedicated to educating attendees about an array of areas in child development, it will include keynote speakers, breakout sessions, and presentations on current research. Don't miss out on this awesome event and chance to network within the community. Be sure to register for the event ahead of time and bring your friends! For full details see the flyer below and visit our website:  http://coe.sdsu.edu/cfd/community/organizations.php

International Student Defne Kabas of Turkey Tells her Experience in the EC-SEBRIS Program

The EC-SEBRIS program got me closer to my dreams of becoming a psychologist. It
taught me a great deal about the biological, psychological and the behavioral aspects
of children's development and how we can assist them reaching their potentials. I
learned to become a team with the teachers, the families and other students in order
to strengthen specific children’s abilities and support them in any struggles they were
having growing up. I learned many valuable lessons that I can speak about in my
interviews now, from the questionnaires that we learned to use, to presentations we
prepared in small groups.

I'm also very appreciative to have met amazing teachers and students in the EC-
SEBRIS program and learned so much from them. As an international student, I felt
very welcome and supported by many amazing people and encourage anyone who is
interested in children's development to enroll. They will not only be informed of socio-
emotional and behavioral development of children, they will also be able to intervene
and experience it with children in their field practice.

I just found a job in the Istanbul Medical Faculty, Psychiatry, doing projects about bipolar
disorder. We are investigating if there are any genetic influences on kids that have
bipolar parent/s. I will do my master’s in Clinical Psychology very soon.

Student Poster Presentations- Vivyana Jordan, EC-SEBRIS student 13-14

Student Poster Presentation, Vivyana Jordan, EC-SEBRIS (HINT: click the image to enlarge!)

From Vivyana:

This semester we were required to conduct a research project concentrating on a variety of assessment tools and methods utilized to assess different child developmental domains. The topic I chose was Social-Emotional Competence and Skills. It wasn’t until beginning the EC-SEBRIS program that I really understood the importance of social-emotional competency and how it is interrelated to the developmental effects of children and adolescents. Having graduated with a degree other than child development, and with holding an occupation that involves working with children, is what motivated me to want to learn more about the different tools available to measure this domain. This project allowed me to investigate different assessments used to measure social-emotional competence skills by analyzing literature reviews as well as being introduced to new ways of screening and assessing children of all ages. I truly enjoyed this project as the information consistently illustrated the importance of early intervention, and gaining knowledge in understanding each child in their care in regards to their social-emotional needs.

Thanks, Vivyana!

Student Presentations - Attachment and its Influence on Behavior - Bibian Ojeda-Hernandez, EC-SEBRIS student 13-14

Our students turn out great research! Here's another poster from the 2013 Poster Presentation night

From Bibiana:

The semester poster project that I completed for CSP 623 allowed me to expand my knowledge about topics relating to children from 0 to 5 years old. Completing the poster project also gave me the opportunity to implement what I have been taught, in regards to research, throughout my undergraduate years and my first semester of the EC-SEBRIS program. I was able to expand my experience in researching a given topic and applying the data I had gathered to support a conclusion. In addition, I was able to see different approaches to areas of development and interests that my peers presented on. Overall, I was able to expand my experience in researching a topic and become more comfortable and confident when presenting.

Thanks, Bibiana!

Student Presentations- Language Development- Meagan Alleman, 13-14 EC-SEBRIS Student

From Meagan:

Being given the opportunity to do research on topics that correlate directly with developmental assessment, I chose to delve deeper into the development of typical language in single language learners. I have learned that language is a majority of body language and understanding, as well as the verbal aspect. The milestones that we are expecting children to meet are becoming a cause for concern, because parents believe that if their child doesn't have exactly the right amount of words that is expected, they immediately must have a delay. The most interesting fact was that children develop in the same pattern, rather than at the same rate. This knowledge can give parents a general idea of where their child should be, rather than a concrete "your child must be at this level." There isn't enough research done at the childhood level, it's approximately 30 years behind- but the fact that we can now understand that there are patterns in development, it's vital towards the research and use of assessment. Clinical workers are able to utilize assessments to determine what is typical, versus what is atypical. They are slowly realizing the need for early intervention at the 0-5 age, but we still have a long way to go before it reaches the amount of intervention that is available to the adult population.

Thanks, Meagan! 

 

Student Posters- Social Skills Presentation- Reem Totry, 13-14 EC-SEBRIS Student

Reem Totry's poster presentation December 15, 2013

From Reem:

I had a great time putting together my poster presentation. My project was on social skills between late infancy to toddlers. I learned a great deal on the importance of mastering social skills before the age of five. The most important "Aha!" moment for me was when I found out that children who enter elementary school who are not equipped with social skills sometimes can be labeled as having behavioral problems. These children will likely perform poorly in school, have less friendships, be bullied, and possibly be expelled. This just reinforces everything I have learned in the EC-SEBRIS program, which teaches us the importance of intervention and prevention during the ages of 0 to 5 years old.

Thanks, Reem!