When I think of research…
- What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?
I have come to realize that research is hard and timely. It takes a lot of patience, planning, and dedication in order to provide quality and useful research information.
- In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?
I honestly had never really thought much about how research was done in this manner before. I remember studying about certain types of research and wondering why they only focused on children in certain areas or why it was only men doing the research? From this course I have learned that you have to search with an open mind and you have to look at more than just one group of anything in order for your information to be accurate.
- What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?
The lessons that I learned from these topics are that you have to fair, mindful of the information that you are about to receive, and you have to be willing to run the long race in order to complete the study. I think that planning and preparing is crucial to receiving accurate information. You have to know what you are looking for and how to obtain that information. You also have to be willing to prepare the information in a non-biased manner.
- What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?
Some of the challenges that I encountered in this class were trying to fully understanding the information and how to apply it. I was not always sure of what the terminology meant and which plans would work best for my study. I also felt myself questioning my study and if it was going to be something that was needed by the parents and teachers. My study was on the types of concerns parents had regarding the schools and education that their children were receiving and how those concerns would benefit the education of their children. I had to rewrite and reprocess this information a couple of times until I got it right. In order to meet my challenges I had to be willing to take constructive criticism from my teachers and listen to the questions that my peers asked and apply it to the work I was doing. This helped me better prepare for my challenges.
- What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?
I don’t think that my perception of early childhood professionals has changed. If anything I am more respectful and appreciative of the time and effort that they have to give in order to manage a quality program with quality curriculums. It is a thankless job at times and it is important to keep encouraging teachers and administrators to the best of our abilities.
I would like to thank all of my peers for your encouragements and dedication. This was a tough course for me and I leaned on some of you to make it through. I hope that your road to success will be a success as we continue to go on this journey together to reach our goals. Thank you.
