Favorite Family Quote

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them."
-Desmond Tutu

Sunday, June 30, 2013

When I Think of Research…..

•What insights have you gained about research from taking this course?
                The insights that I have gained about this research was learning how come up with independent and dependent variables. I also learned about how to make up my own hypothesis question and construct a research paper just by using the questions that I did from the last assignment from week eight.

•In what ways have your ideas about the nature of doing research changed?
                The ways that my ideas about the nature of doing research changed as I begin to do research was a number of ways. One of my ideas about the nature of doing research changed was by learning how to become a better research. Also I think that my idea of doing research has changed because it helps me learn so many different terms that I am able to use doing my research.

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

•What were some of the challenges you encountered—and in what ways did you meet them?
                One challenge that I encountered through this course was trying to come up with my own hypothesis.  The biggest challenge that I encountered during this course while dealing with was trying to narrow down my topic. That has been the biggest challenge because every time I tried to narrow it down it was still too broad. Not only was it to broad but it was also such a hard topic that I picked that made it really hard for me.

•What are some of the ways your perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course?
                The way that my perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified as a result of this course has come a long way. I feel a little bit better trying to do research now than I have ever before. Before doing this research I had felt like I had struggled a lot just by trying to come up with my own topic. Now I am feeling a little bit more comfortable on working with resources to help me do my research. 

Well to end this last blog, I would like to thank everyone who has responded to back to me and that have given me positive feedback. I would also like to thank Dr. Joyce for all of the positive feedback that she has also given to me and for the corrections to help me become a better research writer. To all my colleagues, I wish you all the best of luck on the rest of your journey.

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Research Around the World

What are some of the current international research topics?

There were quite a few current international research topics that I chose and the one that I chose to discuss about was from Nigeria.

The topic is to the international research:
 Assessment of the Caring Practices in Two Motherless Babies’ Homes in Abia State, Nigeria and the Development and Delivery of a Nutrition Training Program to the Staff of These Homes to Improve Nutrition of Children in Their Care

What surprising facts/insights/new ideas about early childhood did you gain from exploring this international early childhood website?
Some surprising facts and insights about early childhood that I gained from exploring this international early childhood website was that when a child was referred as being in a state of bereavement, it was assumed that both parents were dead (Akomas, p.6). Today, there are a variety of definitions:

• A child who has lost both parents.

• Someone or something that lacks support or care or supervision.

• A young animal without a mother.

• A child deprived of parents by death or desertion.

• In general there are variations in the age up to which children are considered orphans (14, 15, 18 and 21 years old) and the patterns of parental death (both parents die, either parents die, or death of mother only).

 
What other noteworthy information did you find on this website?

Other noteworthy information that I found was that complementary feeding is the period during which foods or liquids are provided along with continued breast-feeding. This usually starts when the baby is six months old. Complementary feeding is poorly done in developing countries, due to lack of information about what foods are appropriate, how much should be given, how they should be given, and their inadequacy in quantity and quality among other problems (Allen & Gillespie, 2001) (Akomas, p.10).
 
 
 
 
Reference
Akomas, O. Assessment of the caring practices in two motherless babies’ homes in abia state, Nigeria and the development and delivery of a nutrition training program to the staff of these homes to improve nutrition of children in their care. Retrieved from http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/documents/major_projects/Akomas%20Final%20UVic%20LP.pdf