When I Think of Research......

     As I began the journey of learning about research there were many thoughts going through my
 mind.  Not being able to understand research studies was a little intimidating and I honestly didn't know a whole lot.  As we come to the completion of this course I can say that I know more now than I did starting at week 1. 

     My ideas about the nature of research hasn't changed.  Research is important, it can still be hard to understand but now I have a foundation that will allow be to be better prepared when reading research studies and when conducting my own.

     Some of the lessons about planning research that I have learned is first you have to be interested in the topic and others would need to want to know more on the topic.  A good research design is imperative as well.  I also learned to dertermine what types of research there is and differences between qualitative and quantative research, what to look for when trying to find credible sources for research and here in week 8 about equity being just and fair. Although I believe their is more to learn about research I am confident that what I have learned throughout this course will be beneficial to be as I continue on in the field of early childhood education. 

     The biggest challenge that I had during this course was refining my research topic so that I could find the best information on the topic.  I met these challenges with the help of Dr. Darragh and her providing feedback from the countless emails that I sent to her and for that I say thank you. 

    I would also like to say thank you to all of my colleagues for you feedback, from your post on blogs and in discussion board because reading your comments that were given to me and the post that you all did throughout the weeks were a big help in becoming more familiar with research. 

     Research is and always will be important in the field of early childhood education.

Thanks again for all of your support!!  Good luck in 6164!!

Research Around the World

Early Childhood Australia serves the same purpose as the NAEYC does for us here in the United States.  Some of the international research topics that ECA is doing include learning positive behavior through educator-child relationships.  The topics covered in this research project includes what is meant by positive behavior, both educator and child perspectives on the reasons for the different types of behaviors, being able to understand children’s feelings and intentions, nurturing children and building relationships.

In February in their Early Childhood news they discussed ECA’s submission in advocating so that all children can be exposed to quality early childhood education and it is their belief that it is a child’s right to that education, no matter the backgrounds that they come from.  To improve access to early childhood education, ECA has proposed a target that 90 percent of children three to five years old should be accessing Early Childhood Education and Care(ECEC) by 2020 (ECA, 2014).  ECA is also in the process of trying to implement a new funding system so that all children will have access.

There weren’t really any surprising facts about the international site as many early childhood educators and programs around the world are having the same issues and trends as many early childhood professionals are and they are attempting to find innovative ways to alleviate or work around obstacles so that they can ensure all children receive quality early childhood education and care.

Reference

Early Childhood Australia:  http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/