When I think of Research

1.  What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?
Research is important to every aspect of our lives.  "Research should challenge habitual ways of doing things, and provide reasons to modify, refocus or change" (Naughton, Rolfe & Siraj-Blatchfold, 2010).  

2.  In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?
Research takes time and there are many key factors including ethics.  Ethics is an important piece of the puzzle for research.  

3.  What lessons about planning, designing and conducting research in the early childhood field did you learn?
Research reminded me of teachers and how planning a research study takes time, just like planning activities for children can take time to meet their needs.  Research is not easy and there are many steps that need to be taken to make sure the research study is valid and reliable.  

4.  What were some of the challenges you encountered and in what ways did you meet the
One challenge I did encounter was learning the different designs including qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods.  I had difficulty understanding the difference of each and what data collections is best for each design.  To overcome this challenge I had to use math skills and remember the differences through math.  In my head, quantitative means numbers and qualitative is observation.  

5.  What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professionals have been modified as a result of this course?
As an early childhood professional I believe that research is important to my career.  As an educator I will now read more studies to learn best developmental practices for my classroom.  I will gain more knowledge and understanding of developmental appropriate activities for my children through research and put these ideas to use.  Also, as an educator I must now keep in mind "without research, we would know less about children's points of view, their wants and needs and their possibilities" (Naughton, Rolfe & Siraj-Blatchfold, 2010). 

Reference

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 chose to take a closer look into Early Childhood Australia-A Voice for Young Children. Through this website there are many studies from the Australasian Journal of Early Childhood.  There are two research studies about children with disabilities that caught my eye because that is what my focus is on for my research stimulation.  These articles focus on factors affecting the transition to school for young children with disabilities and communication through social play for children with autism. 

The site is an advocate for young children and inclusion which is a passion for me.  The site promotes best practices for children birth through age eight and has a  vision for high quality inclusive practices in early childhood education and care. The site assists and support professionals to fully include children with a disability and to achieve high quality outcomes for all children. It is nice to see that there are organizations around the world that are promoting inclusion and want to see all children reach their full potential.  I feel this site can be a great resource for me in the future.

Reference
Early Childhood Australia (2013). Retrieved from http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/