When I Think of Research

What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?

In  quest for knowledge and being engaged in this course, I have gained that in order to execute a valuable and authentic research; the information and resources used have to be of credible source, reliable and most of  all valid. In ensuring thus, it helps in creating a positive atmosphere for the steps in the research process. Today, I am cognizant that research helps in the total execution of my roles as an educator as it gives information that is deemed to be very authentic and efficient towards making meaningful interventions for not just children that I interact with but also developing a strong and positive relationship with parents/ guardians.
Secondly, I have learned  that there is a third methodological or research paradigm that can be used in executing a research that helps a research to be powerful, informative, complete and balanced (mixed method approach).


In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?  

My ideas  of doing a research have totally changed because at first I thought research was very frustated, boring, time consuming and irrelevant. Howvever, today, I am rather elated, enthused and energized about executing a research on my own.

What lessons about planning, designing, and conducting research in early childhood did you learn?

I have learned that the whole process of planning, designing and conducting research all collaborate and depend on each other for a complete a research. Therefore, all three elements have to be done timely so as to help the smooth sailing of the research process to take place and be effective.

What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them? 

My first challenge that I encountered was writing a hypothesis. However, with the aid from looking closely at various examples given in the course resources, I was capable of overcoming such challenge. Secondly, was differentiating between a qualitative and quantitative research. Nevertheless, with reading about thus as well as viewing examples of these researches I was able to identify the differences that lied between both researches.

What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course? 

 My perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course in a number of ways. One of such is the whole matter of research is an effective process that should be used to help guid one's practice as well as the more current research that is done the better interventions can be made towards the holistic development of our children and self.

Last but not least, I want to take time out to give thanks to all of my colleagues and instructor for your support and feed backs that were given throughout this course. Indeed they were very effective towards my well being. Thanks again and all the best to you all in your other courses!!!!!!     

Research Around the World

As I view the assignments for this week I chose to browse the following website http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/. Therefore, I am able to answer the following questions in this manner.

What are some of the current international research topics?

 Some of the current research topics include- 

• Child care improvement
• Quality early childhood services
• Increase investment in child care accessibility
• Fair, inclusive, quality education every child's right
• Resources to support service, families and children
• Majority of providers back quality reforms in early childhood sector                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      
  What surprising facts/insights/new ideas about early childhood did you gain from exploring this international early childhood website?
  As I browse through this website it was one that amazed me. It was fully equipped with a lot of informative information that is very vital and important towards the field of early childhood education and care. I have gained some facts in regards to children's behavior, parenting, social/emotional learning, service-family relationships by just browsing through the catalogue section of this international early childhood website.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
  What other noteworthy information did you find on this website?
  I found out that ther are different organizations that jointly plays a part in the upliftment of the early childhood sector. I also realise that they are runned using a code of ethics which loudly and clearly speaks about quality as it relates to children's welfare.      

Research that benefits children and families- Uplifting Stories

For this week I chose Option one and here is a research story done on a family:-

I hit the breaking point as a parent a few years ago. It was the week of my extended family’s annual gathering in August, and we were struggling with assorted crises. My parents were aging; my wife and I were straining under the chaos of young children; my sister was bracing to prepare her preteens for bullying, sex and cyberstalking.

Sure enough, one night all the tensions boiled over. At dinner, I noticed my nephew texting under the table. I knew I shouldn’t say anything, but I couldn’t help myself and asked him to stop.

Ka-boom! My sister snapped at me to not discipline her child. My dad pointed out that my girls were the ones balancing spoons on their noses. My mom said none of the grandchildren had manners. Within minutes, everyone had fled to separate corners.

Later, my dad called me to his bedside. There was a palpable sense of fear I couldn’t remember hearing before.

“Our family’s falling apart,” he said.

“No it’s not,” I said instinctively. “It’s stronger than ever.”

But lying in bed afterward, I began to wonder: Was he right? What is the secret sauce that holds a family together? What are the ingredients that make some families effective, resilient, happy?

It turns out to be an astonishingly good time to ask that question. The last few years have seen stunning breakthroughs in knowledge about how to make families, along with other groups, work more effectively.

Myth-shattering research has reshaped our understanding of dinnertime, discipline and difficult conversations. Trendsetting programs from Silicon Valley and the military have introduced techniques for making teams function better.

The only problem: most of that knowledge remains ghettoized in these subcultures, hidden from the parents who need it most. I spent the last few years trying to uncover that information, meeting families, scholars and experts ranging from peace negotiators to online game designers to Warren Buffett’s bankers.

After a while, a surprising theme emerged. The single most important thing you can do for your family may be the simplest of all: develop a strong family narrative.

I first heard this idea from Marshall Duke, a colorful psychologist at Emory University. In the mid-1990s, Dr. Duke was asked to help explore myth and ritual in American families.

“There was a lot of research at the time into the dissipation of the family,” he told me at his home in suburban Atlanta. “But we were more interested in what families could do to counteract those forces.”

Around that time, Dr. Duke’s wife, Sara, a psychologist who works with children with learning disabilities, noticed something about her students. 

“The ones who know a lot about their families tend to do better when they face challenges,” she said.

Her husband was intrigued, and along with a colleague, Robyn Fivush, set out to test her hypothesis. They developed a measure called the “Do You Know?” scale that asked children to answer 20 questions.

Examples included: Do you know where your grandparents grew up? Do you know where your mom and dad went to high school? Do you know where your parents met? Do you know an illness or something really terrible that happened in your family? Do you know the story of your birth?

Dr. Duke and Dr. Fivush asked those questions of four dozen families in the summer of 2001, and taped several of their dinner table conversations. They then compared the children’s results to a battery of psychological tests the children had taken, and reached an overwhelming conclusion. The more children knew about their family’s history, the stronger their sense of control over their lives, the higher their self-esteem and the more successfully they believed their families functioned. The “Do You Know?” scale turned out to be the best single predictor of children’s emotional health and happiness.

“We were blown away,” Dr. Duke said.

And then something unexpected happened. Two months later was Sept. 11. As citizens, Dr. Duke and Dr. Fivush were horrified like everyone else, but as psychologists, they knew they had been given a rare opportunity: though the families they studied had not been directly affected by the events, all the children had experienced the same national trauma at the same time. The researchers went back and reassessed the children.

“Once again,” Dr. Duke said, “the ones who knew more about their families proved to be more resilient, meaning they could moderate the effects of stress.” 

Why does knowing where your grandmother went to school help a child overcome something as minor as a skinned knee or as major as a terrorist attack?

“The answers have to do with a child’s sense of being part of a larger family,” Dr. Duke said.

Psychologists have found that every family has a unifying narrative, he explained, and those narratives take one of three shapes.

First, the ascending family narrative: “Son, when we came to this country, we had nothing. Our family worked. We opened a store. Your grandfather went to high school. Your father went to college. And now you. ...”

Second is the descending narrative: “Sweetheart, we used to have it all. Then we lost everything.”

“The most healthful narrative,” Dr. Duke continued, “is the third one. It’s called the oscillating family narrative: ‘Dear, let me tell you, we’ve had ups and downs in our family. We built a family business. Your grandfather was a pillar of the community. Your mother was on the board of the hospital. But we also had setbacks. You had an uncle who was once arrested. We had a house burn down. Your father lost a job. But no matter what happened, we always stuck together as a family.’ ”

Dr. Duke said that children who have the most self-confidence have what he and Dr. Fivush call a strong “intergenerational self.” They know they belong to something bigger than themselves.

Leaders in other fields have found similar results. Many groups use what sociologists call sense-making, the building of a narrative that explains what the groupis about.

Jim Collins, a management expert and author of “Good to Great,” told me that successful human enterprises of any kind, from companies to countries, go out of their way to capture their core identity. In Mr. Collins’s terms, they “preserve core, while stimulating progress.” The same applies to families, he said.

Mr. Collins recommended that families create a mission statement similar to the ones companies and other organizations use to identify their core values.

The military has also found that teaching recruits about the history of their service increases their camaraderie and ability to bond more closely with their unit.

Cmdr. David G. Smith is the chairman of the department of leadership, ethics and law at the Naval Academy and an expert in unit cohesion, the Pentagon’s term for group morale. Until recently, the military taught unit cohesion by “dehumanizing” individuals, Commander Smith said. Think of the bullying drill sergeants in “Full Metal Jacket” or “An Officer and a Gentleman.”

But these days the military spends more time building up identity through communal activities. At the Naval Academy, Commander Smith advises graduating seniors to take incoming freshmen (or plebes) on history-building exercises, like going to the cemetery to pay tribute to the first naval aviator or visiting the original B-1 aircraft on display on campus.

Dr. Duke recommended that parents pursue similar activities with their children. Any number of occasions work to convey this sense of history: holidays, vacations, big family get-togethers, even a ride to the mall. The hokier the family’s tradition, he said, the more likely it is to be passed down. He mentioned his family’s custom of hiding frozen turkeys and canned pumpkin in the bushes during Thanksgiving so grandchildren would have to “hunt for their supper,” like the Pilgrims.

“These traditions become part of your family,” Dr. Duke said. 

Decades of research have shown that most happy families communicate effectively. But talking doesn’t mean simply “talking through problems,” as important as that is. Talking also means telling a positive story about yourselves. When faced with a challenge, happy families, like happy people, just add a new chapter to their life story that shows them overcoming the hardship. This skill is particularly important for children, whose identity tends to get locked in during adolescence.

The bottom line: if you want a happier family, create, refine and retell the story of your family’s positive moments and your ability to bounce back from the difficult ones. That act alone may increase the odds that your family will thrive for many generations to come.

“This Life” appears monthly in Sunday Styles. This article is adapted from Bruce Feiler’s recently published book, “The Secrets of Happy Families: How to Improve Your Morning, Rethink Family Dinner, Fight Smart, Go Out and Play, and Much More.”

A version of this article appeared in print on March 17, 2013, on page ST1 of the New York edition with the headline: The Stories That Bind Us.

Personal Research Journey

Upon beginning this course, I am fully charged and enthused to choose a specific topic that I deem to be of utmost interest to me.
The topic that I have chosen is, " How to deal with behavioral problems in the classroom?"

My personal reason for choosing this topic is because the whole matter of behavioral problem is not just about children acting up at times in the classroom but its a wide matter that I believe has to do with both internal and external factors. Based on my experience I think I need to indulge in gaining adequate knowledge for both my personal and professional upliftment in executing my roles and responsibilities in a positive and meaningful manner.

Upon creating the research chart, I have gained insights towards creating a research on my own as well as learning about different terminologies that are used in the research process that i consider to be of utmost use to me and my accomplishments within this course.

Therefore, my colleagues I kindly ask you to share and send any information that you have about this topic to me so as to help me gain the knowledge that I need and I too will do the same to you all in return as we work collaboratively to achieve our goals. 

Final Blog Assignment

It is stated that knowledge is key as it helps one to excel in the world. Today, I can attest to those words.
As I embarked in doing this course, " Issues and Trends In  Early Childhood"  I can say that I was driven with a number of opportunities to explore resources from within my online classroom setting as well as internationally from organizations that are strong advocate of change for young children and their families.
In communicating with international correspondents via emails, listening to podcasts and viewing different websites I have attained a vast amount of knowledge that I strongly deem as being very vital and efficient to me as a professional in the field of early childhood care and education.

Therefore, I deem these consequences of learning about the international early childhood field for my professional and personal development as follow-

1. Is to obtain knowledge from others who have long years of experiences in working with children and families. In so doing, I am capable of comparing and contrasting the different strategies used by myself and others to become more effective at reaching out to children and their families on a daily basis.

2. To be aware of the different issues that are faced by others from a global perspective and analyze what is being done to minimize or eliminate the various issues or trends that are affecting young children, families and educators. This aids in strengthening me to be a better advocate of change for children.

3. To learn about different children cultural background. In learning about children and their culture, as educator I much able to reach out to different families in an unique and appropriate manner. I would also be able to have parents come and share with other parents so as to build better relationships in the teaching and learning environment. 

One goal for the field related to international awareness of issues and trends and the the spirit of collegial relations is to stay united and abreast and work unitedly to bring about change in the field that speaks about equality and quality for all because everyone is equal regard less of their economic status in society. Secondly, keeping a strong communication bond with persons intrenationally as this aids in bringing across positive outcomes as we work together as one. 

Getting to Know Your International Contact- Part3

This week though a busy one for my international contact I was capable of reaching out to her via email. As suggested I presented the following questions to her and here are her responses.

What issues regarding quality and early childhood professionals are being discussed where you live and work?

In regards to quality and early childhood professionals, the focus today in the state that I live and work are strongly focusing on the training that early childhood professional receives in collaboration with neighboring states because we are trying to build a bond in ensuring that certain standards and policies all depicts the same long term goals for our young children. We are also looking at the cost that families have to pay for their children entering an early learning institution as we want to ensure that equality is given among all irrespective of different family background.


 What opportunities and/or requirements for professional development exist? 
As it relates to professional development, it was proposed that more parenting and teachers workshop be done. This can be very challenging at times as we have tried this before but we have gone back to the drawing board and have implemented new strategies towards working this out.     


What are some of your professional goals?
For nearly 100 years, Save the Children has worked to ensure the safety and well-being of children around the world. But the challenges for this generation of America’s children—from a culture of violence to a poverty crisis that is affecting 16 million children—are unlike any we’ve seen before.

We cannot stand by and let violence, poverty and other threats become pervasive parts of childhood in America. We need everyone at the table for a national conversation to find bold, new ideas.

That’s why Save the Children is joining forces with caring people like you and our partners to call on President Obama and Congress to establish a new National Commission on Children to ensure the safety and well-being of every child.


What are some of your professional hopes, dreams, and challenges?

Some of my professional hopes is to see our mission being successful as well as our children being free from all these obstacles that they and their families are faced with on a daily basis. While my dreams are to see the field of early childhood being respected and excel in molding and shaping our children's young minds from a global perspective. As it relates to challenges, there will always be challenges but the question is what we do when they arrive is key.   

It was very interesting to have received these responses from my contact.

Sharing Web Resources

Upon following the outside links that I have never had explored before, I have seen that there are a number of newsletters, blogs and articles that have been written by people who are strong advocate for change in the lives of young children. The links also leads to programs that have been planned wherein some are working collaboratively with organizations such as NAEYC.



As I thoroughly searched one area of the site I found developing news about what is taking place in the far east about children's living and access to a good education. It was very profound as well as alarming to have found out that the children are living in such deplorable environment that is exposed to so much violence.



The newsletter that I received spoke about introducing new legislation that will help to enhance early learning opportunities in developing countries as well as putting into place new strategies so as to prevent 57 million of the most vulnerable, marginalized children, including those in conflict zones, from missing out on school. Here is a synopsis of the newsletter that I would like to share with you all
Save the Children thanks Congress for introducing new legislation that would help boost early learning opportunities in developing countries and prevent 57 million of the most vulnerable, marginalized children, including those in conflict zones, from missing out on school.
The Education for All Act, H.R. 2780, introduced by Representatives Nita Lowey (D-NY) and Dave Reichert (R-WA), acknowledges that without basic, quality education we will lose yet another generation of children to poverty, war and disease, according to a statement by Congresswoman Lowey.
"Education offers children in some of the toughest parts of the world a chance at a brighter future. Yet millions of children living in poverty and conflict zones are robbed of the opportunity to learn and fulfill their potential," said Carolyn Miles, president and CEO for Save the Children. "Save the Children applauds Representatives Lowey and Reichert for being a vital voice for these often forgotten children and calling for an investment in their futures."
If passed, this legislation would help millions more children in developing countries realize their dreams of getting an education and create a positive ripple effect on families, communities and nations overall.



The newsletter that I viewed indeed contained information that enhance my understanding of equity and excellence in early care and education as it gave information that was linked closely to the resources that were presented to me about equity  in early care and education for young children. It also informed me that there are persons that are working assiduously towards implementing strategies and programs to help young children. 

I have gain this week that the same issues and trends topics that are being focused on in this course are some of the same things that this weebsite are lobbying about unbehalf of young children and their families from a global perspective. i have also seen that the information are all similar.