WHEN I THINK OF RESEARCH

Insights I have gained about research from taking this course include learning so many new terms and methods used in research studies. I always thought that research was a simple process when in fact it is a very complicated process. New terms include triangulation, variable, equity, quantitative, etc. Lessons that I have learned that it takes a huge amount of methodology and step by step techniques to begin and implement a study. There are many parameters included in research. You have to choose a topic, who the participants will be, what methodology you will use, the timeframe you want to study, and the analysis interpretation that will be used. Challenges in this course were the new vocabulary used: qualitative, paradigm, positivism, etc. were a just a few of the terms used that needed full understanding before you could begin to start a research study. The funny thing is that the week we learned about triangulation, I went to the movies and saw "Captain America 2". During the film triangulation was mentioned and I smiled to myself because I had just learned about this and I was seeing it used in the movie. What a coincidence that was! My perception of early childhood professionals has been modified by discovering how much hard work goes into doing a study. It takes time and diligence to conduct a research study correctly. Informed consents and thorough analysis of data collected will result in valid results. Thank you classmates for all the support given to me in this course. Good Luck in future courses!!

RESEARCH AROUND THE WORLD

I researched the Early Development Virtual University (ECDVU) Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) topics. I read about the topic of "Assessment of Interaction and Stimulation in Single Mothers with Low Income Families". This study was used to create guidelines that will initiate a closer bond between parents and their children, identify and stimulate children living in single parent homes and to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the childcare givers in Malawi. Another topic was "Utilizing Indigenous Stories in the Promotion of Early Childhood Development Programs in Uganda". This project stressed the importance o storytelling in child development much like we in the United States stress reading storybooks to children even while in the womb. There were topics of encouragement for fathers to get involved with their children's care, model training programs in Ghana and assessing school readiness in Kenya. I was surprised by the fact that the topics were so similar to the norms of what we research here in the Unites States. I have never been to Africa but when I think of Africa I mainly think of rural areas with not much emphasis on education. Clearly this is not the case. Africa is thriving and trying to make childhood education a major issue. They are developing teacher training curriculums and initiating programs focused on supporting childcare programs for working families. Education is the key to making a better society. I am glad that Africa is moving in the right direction......................http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/major_reports.php