An area of professional practice that captures my interest is the developmental milestones of language. I think that it is very interesting to see what a child should be doing in their language development at a particular age. I especially enjoy being around children, and seeing what they can or cannot do with language.
With respect to this general topic, an essential question for me would be, “How can I use my knowledge of developmental language milestones to help me better understand children’s behaviors?”
I know some things about this topic. I know that children should say their first word by about 12 months. They should respond to a simple request by 7-12 months. They should accurately name familiar objects at about 19-24 months, and children should begin speaking two word utterances at about 18-24 months of age.
There are many things that I am not aware of about the developmental language milestones. I know that I have much to learn about it. I do not know much about the milestones after about three years of age. I have mainly learned from birth to three years.
I am very interested in this area. I do not know if it is too broad for the assignment. I just enjoy learning about children. They are such an interest to me, and I love getting to know more about how they learn.

I can continue to forge my professional and academic development by always looking for more information. I can never be satisfied with the information that I have already obtained. I must realize that there is always something more to be learned about a particular subject. I know that I will never know everything there is to know about one thing, so I must never act like I do. I will inquire into my learning in an ongoing manner by always researching. Even after I have graduated and started working, I must always stay on top of the new researches that are being performed. Just like teachers must always continue their education, I must always continue my education.
My professional and academic development and practice would be informed greatly by my ongoing research. I would know the new developments taking place in the world, and I could practice them. If I continued to do things the way I was taught, and never followed up on any research, then the clients that I treated would never get any better.
I always respond to opportunities for research. If I know that I need the information, then I look it up. I know that I cannot know everything, and the information is out there to be found.

My parents are very big on education. They always stressed the importance of getting an education to me and my brother. My mom is a teacher, so naturally she always helped to get me motivated. She was very encouraging. She wanted me to do whatever made me happy (except be a teacher). She and my dad were always there to help me with my homework if I had a problem. If they could not help, they would find someone who could (usually my brother). Something that they did when I was in school that has really helped me now is they helped me with my studying. My mom was always pushing that I needed to study in order to learn. She would come up with phrases or something silly that would help me to remember a concept, which is what I still use today to help me remember things. Usually, I remember them pretty well after that (not always). For example, I always remember that the posterior cricoarytenoid muscle is the muscle that abducts the vocal folds. I remember this because if someone is going to abduct (kidnap) somebody, they will come up from behind (posterior) to get that person so that they will not be seen. I have remembered that for three semesters now.
Another thing that has influenced my education practices is how my parents always encouraged me to get things finished ahead of time. My dad and I are the type of people that have to get things finished right away. My mom and my brother, on the other hand, are not. Therefore, I give this credit to my dad. If I had homework, my dad would want me to finish it before I did anything else. He didn’t force me to finish it before I did anything, but he encouraged it. I am glad that he did this because I get a whole lot of work done, and I have more time to do whatever it is that I want to do.
My parents have been excellent influences on me when it has come to education (and everything else). I am glad that they have been there for me because it is always comforting to know that I have someone to call if I need help with an assignment that I am having trouble with. They will go out of their way to make sure that I get the answers that I need.