When I Think of Research...

From taking this course I have realized that research is very detail-oriented and takes a lot of planning.  There are a lot of ethical considerations that should be made (Mac Naughton, Rolfe, & Siraj-Blatchford, 2010).  The mixed method approach involves qualitative and quantitative methods (Johnson, Onwuegbuzie, & Turner, 2007).  It is very important to narrow down your topic and be specific in what you are researching (Mac Naughton et al., 2010).

My ideas about the nature of doing research has changed.  I used to associate research with always being in a library and or a lab for hours.  Though this is sometimes the case, it is not always so.  Observations in natural settings can be a part of research, so too can interviews, questionnaires and surveys.  There are other ways to obtain background information for research than just reading things in a library or online.  I have also realized that research is not static as I once thought it to be but it can be very dynamic.

In early childhood during the planning stages of a research it is important to consider ethical issues and have an ethical committee review your research outline.  Even though parents may consent to their child participating in a study, the child’s consent should be obtained too.  Planning is time consuming but it is important if you want to carry out a successful research.  Research should be designed and conducted in  a way that avoids bias as much as possible and that allows participants to express themselves in a way that they feel comfortable.  This is especially true for children who may need to express themselves in different ways to fully articulate their ideas.  As a researcher one needs to remain open-minded and flexible while designing and conducting research, in case a particular method is not working and you need to switch to something else.  The participants may bring certain issues to light which may enhance the research and or take it in a slightly different direction than originally planned.   

I encountered challenges in the way I worded my research question and in understanding some of the material concerning research.  In order to overcome these challenges I was more specific in my research question and I defined concepts, included in the research question, as they pertained to my research.  To gain a better understanding of the material I read it more than once and also read outside sources.

Through this course I have realized that many early childhood professionals are researchers in their own rights.  Many “experiment” with different methods of teaching to see which will be most beneficial to their students.  Many teachers observe their students in different situations and use these observations to implement strategies that help their students to improve.

Reference:

Johnson, R. B., Onwuegbuzie, A.J., & Turner, L. A. (2007). Toward a definition of mixed methods research. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 1(2), 112–133. Retrieved from the Walden Library using the SAGE Premier 2010 database.

Mac Naughton, G., Rolfe, S.A., & Siraj-Blatchford, I. (2010). Doing early childhood research: International perspectives on theory and practice (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Research Around the World

I looked at the European Early Childhood Education Research Association (EECERA) website (EECERJ, n.d.). Some current international research topics are professionalism, barriers and support to learning from children’s perspectives and the frequency of which science concepts are taught to kindergarteners (EECERJ, n.d.). This website had several interesting articles. One of them addressed the cultural compatibility theory (Jahng, 2012). It stated that even if a teacher shares the same cultural background as the children she teaches this does not automatically means she will have a better understanding of them and be able to bond with them better than another teacher of a different culture. Another article was looking at the benefits of outdoor play and that outdoor play may serve different purposes depending on the context and area in which this play occurs (Waller, Sandseter, Wyver, Ärlemalm‐Hagsér & Maynard, 2010) . Something noteworthy that I found was that though children may want to engage in more challenging, risky play they are often unable to do so because of all the rules surrounding playground equipment (Little, Wyver & Gibson, 2011). References: European Early Childhood Education Research Journal (EECERJ). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.eecera.org/organisation/ Jahng, K.E. (2012). A self-critical journey to working for immigrant children: an autoethnography. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal. DOI: 10.1080/1350293X.2012.738867 Little, H., Wyver, S. & Gibson, F. (2011). The influence of play context and adult attitudes on young children's physical risk‐taking during outdoor play. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 19(1), 113-131. DOI: 10.1080/1350293X.2011.548959 Waller, T., Sandseter, E.B.H., Wyver, S., Ärlemalm‐Hagsér, E. & Maynard, T. (2010). The dynamics of early childhood spaces: opportunities for outdoor play?. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 18(4), 437-443. DOI: 10.1080/1350293X.2010.525917

Research that Benefits Children and Families

If I could research any topic I would choose to investigate the importance of parents spending quality time with their children. I was trying to find articles related to this topic and I found a lot of articles written by journalists but not many scientific articles. Throughout this course it has been stressed again and again that children develop and learn in part through the relationships in their lives, “young children experience their world as an environment of relationships” (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2004, p.1). One of the best ways to develop and sustain a relationship is through spending quality time with someone. I think positive contributions from this research would be that more parents would make time for their children, perhaps cut back on the time they spend in front of the television or at work. Additionally, some companies would give parents some leeway regarding the time they spend at the office and start hosting family oriented activities. This would all make for healthier, well-adjusted children.



Reference:

National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2004). Young children develop in an environment of relationships. Working Paper No. 1. Retrieved from http://www.developingchild.net

My Personal Research Journey

My topic for the simulation is the effect of punishment on children.  I have always been told that there are consequences for your action and that punishment helps to make children better in the long run.  I want to see evidence that shows that this is true or false.  I would also like to know the short term and long term effects of different kinds of punishment.  I realize that research on this topic might have only targeted particular nationalities or ethnicity so I might not be able to make generalizations based on the research I find.  This simulation process has been enlightening and it has confirmed and disproved some of my beliefs to a certain extent.  I would be interested in anything you might come across that is related to this topic.  I would also be happy to share any articles, pertaining to your research, that I may come across.  

Final Blog Assignment

Three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field are:

I am more aware of issues that affect children around the world.

Being aware of these issues make me want to advocate for children.

I have realized that I take many things for granted. When I hear about how some children have to struggle to receive an education or they are denied the opportunity of an education it makes me more appreciative of the opportunities that I have had and that my students have.

One goal I have  for this field is that each country would develop standards that a high quality program should meet.  Educators from different countries should convene and compare standards and methods and use ideas from each other to improve their own standards and teaching methods.

Getting to Know Your International Contacts- Part 3

As an educator I believe it is important to be knowledgeable about the field I am in and to provide a quality education for my students.  It is also important that all my students feel included regardless of their socioeconomic background, gender, religion and culture.  Lastly I think I should collaborate with other colleagues and organizations as this will expand my knowledge and resources.  The three elements I mentioned were seen in some form on (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) UNESCO’s “Early Childhood Care and Education” webpage.

A statement that stood out on the webpage was that “The main challenge faced by the teaching profession today is both one of numbers and quality” (UNESCO, n.d.). UNESCO hopes to address this through “national policies, training, recruitment and working conditions” (UNESCO, n.d.).  I learned that there is a demand for teachers in some countries and a call for quality teachers in many places. “UNESCO is concerned by the rise of racism, xenophobia and intolerance,” so it has undertaken a project to design educational materials to address these issues (UNESCO, n.d.).  These materials will then be distributed to different countries (UNESCO, n.d.).  In this venture, UNESCO is seeking to let everyone feel included.  UNESCO has formed partnerships with several organizations and international networks (UNESCO, n.d.).  These partnerships help “UNESCO [to] leverage resources, expertise and competencies to promote all UNESCO’s ideals and values, to achieve common development goals, and to strengthen visibility and impact of its action” (UNESCO, n.d.).  UNESCO wants to see the holistic development and education of all children (UNESCO, n.d.)

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Reference:

UNESCO. (n.d.). Early childhood care and education.  Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/strengthening-education-systems/early-childhood/

Sharing Web Resources

Most of the outside links lead to other child advocacy groups, statistics about children, polling data, research concerning children and evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies in regards to children and education (International Child Resource Institute, n.d.).

When I researched the project area of the site I found that the International Child Resource Institute (ICRI) has several projects in different parts of the world (International Child Resource Institute, n.d.).  There was some similarity in some projects but none of the projects looked exactly the same.  This made me think that ICRI did not take a “one solution fits all” attitude but they truly went into the communities and saw where they were lacking and what they needed help with the most.  Some of their projects focused on preventing children from being physically and sexually exploited, lifting families out of poverty, meeting the basic needs of children (International Child Resource Institute, n.d.). They also focused on immigrant and refugee children, orphaned children, training , child advocacy, supporting prisoners and their families and the quality of early childhood education (International Child Resource Institute, n.d.).

I have not received a newsletter from ICRI even though I signed up for one weeks ago. In terms of excellence in education there was a blog on the website which described a classroom that seemed to be an example of this (Cai, 2012) . It was ICRI’s Heart Leap Center in Berkeley, California.  The blogger was an intern at ICRI, she visited the school and  noticed developmentally appropriate practices, attentive and responsive teachers, parent involvement , the use of a “discovery-based emergent curriculum”, children engaged in creative activities and  various play areas could be seen all over the classroom (Cai, 2012). In the classroom there were also areas for music, reading, science and sports (Cai, 2012).

From the website I realized that equity in education is an issue that affects many if not all nations.  “Disabled children and their families face many challenges” (International Child Resource Institute, n.d.).  In Nepal, “many disabled Nepali children continue to be isolated and excluded from the country's educational system” (International Child Resource Institute, n.d.)  We need to continue to advocate for children and speak out for them.

References:

Cai, H. ( 2012, January 23). Hearts leap center [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.icrichild.org/blog/?category=Early+Childhood+Development

International Child Resource Institute. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.icrichild.org/