I am excited about our
first weeks of research steps for the class EDUC 6163, Building Research
Competency. We have started our personal research journey. The first week of
class we were required to pick a topic we were/are interested in. The topics
were so broad, so we were instructed to narrow down our focus and list three
subtopics. We had to decide which subtopic will be the focus of your
simulations in the coming weeks.
I have narrowed down my research question
to two questions. I am struggling which question or research is the most beneficial
for me and my colleagues. One of the
questions is: “Can the negative effects of poverty be reversed during
the early childhood years?” The reason I chose this question is because, in the
previous course, we read children of families in poverty are normally at an
educational disadvantage when beginning school. I wonder if young children who
attend head start or pre-K have an advantage over other young children in
poverty who does not attend head start or pre-K. If there is an advantage, will
the advantage lead to the reversal of the negative of poverty?
The other question I am thinking about is:
“How does race and sex affects a
student’s preparedness for early childhood education?” The reason I considered the question is because
during my pursuit of My TED/MA degree, I read about and there were discussions of
how boys are diagnosed with learning disabilities, such as ADD, ADHD, etc more
than girls. The same program also discussed how the diagnoses of learning disabilities
are higher in African Americans males than other groups. In addition, it was
said girls perform better in some subjects than boys. I want to know if the
same trends occur during the early childhood years; and does student
preparedness play a role.
The
beginning steps of research are exciting and challenging as well. The
challenges understanding what questions to ask and knowing which resources are the
best to use for successful research. Once one pick a resources provide quality
and reliable information. There are some great websites to help beginning
researchers critically analyze resources.
Some of the sites are:
Beck, S. E. (2009).
Evaluation criteria. New Mexico State University Library. Retrieved from
http://lib.nmsu.edu/instruction/evalcrit.html
Evaluating web pages:
Techniques to apply & questions to ask. (2010). UC Berkeley Library.
Retrieved from http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html
New York Library
Association. (2010). Evaluating websites: Criteria and tools. Cornell
University Library. Retrieved from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/webeval.html
Ormondroyd, J.,
Engle, E., & Cosgrave, T. (2009) Critically analyzing information sources. Cornell
University Library. Retrieved from http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu/ref/research/skill26.htm
