What I've Learned About Research

After taking this course, I have learned an abundance about research. I had no idea how much effort the researchers put into making sure the information was valid. I didn't know there was that much involved in research. I thought it was something you looked up on the computer got valid information about and wrote about it. I guess I never actually realized you interviewed and observed people. I mean that sounds stupid but the research i've been exposed to was research on the internet. I've never done a real research project that involved interviews and observations. Now I fully understand the true meaning of research and how much work is put into it. I respect the researcher for all their hard work. I learned that planning, designing and conducting research is very important. When planning, one must have a time frame in mind so too much time isn't wasted on a certain area. The design of your project must be accurate for the type of research you are doing. Conducting your research is the most important part. The atmosphere and observing area must be setup correctly. If the planning and design was setup accurately, conducting should be no problem!
Some challenges I encountered were getting all the names of the research terms straight. It was hard to remember the definitions of several terms. I overcame it by making sure I used the handbook as a tool. It was a major help.
I've had a wonderful time in this class and have learned so much!

Research Around the World

I am in love with Australia, so I was glad to see what kind of research was going on in australia! I clicked on the Research in Practice Series (RIPS) and it came up with tons of stuff. I would say they are researching some of the same things we are researching in the US. This site is equivilant to the NAEYC website. One reason I compared their research to our research and saying they are equal is because I scrolled thru their RIPS and found "Learning and Teaching Through Play" and this stood out to me because this is kind of what I am doing my research over. I also found an "Agression and Young Children" one which looked awful interesting to me too! I think that was one of the questions on last weeks discussion that we had to pick a couple of them and which could you make a hypothesis out of and which you couldn't! I seen one on "Portfolios: Documenting a journey," I looked into this one because I am going to start doing a detailed portfolio on each child. When I clicked on that link I actually discovered that these are books you can order! Then I had to go back and click on "About RIPS" to see exactly what it was. Where it stated, "The Research in Practice Series is a practical, easy-to-read resource, offering effective new approaches for those challenging issues which arise in the care and education of young children.
Early Childhood Australia's Research in Practice Series is an essential resource for those involved in the early childhood field. The books are idea-rich and to-the-point." This is super awesome! I would absolutely love to have this series of books!
I think its interesting they've come out with a series of books on research. Does the NAEYC have something similar to this? Now I will have to go check because I am in awe about this!