My Personal Research Journey

New class...new steps to take on my lifelong journey.
The topic I chose for my research simulation is "The Effect of Television on Child Development". The subtopic I have chosen to be the focus of my research simulation is "How Television Impacts Children's Play."

I chose this topic based on my observations of young children playing and communicating during the course of their day at the center. I find it quite fascinating to listen to their ideas and exaggerations as they make up stories and dialogues with their friends. I often find myself wondering, where do they get some of this stuff? Is it real or imagined? Often, they start out with a real event, object, or role, and then they expand or support it with their imaginations.

Just the other day,  I observed a morning circle in a 3-5-year olds' program. The teacher had been given a Spongebob Squarepants book by one of the children to read. The teacher asked 19 children how many had viewed the television show? Not one single hand went up. She then asked the children to tell her what they knew about Spongebob. Every hand went up and every child described some aspect or characteristic of the television program and/or characters. How did they become so well-versed in all things Spongebob? Perhaps they misunderstood her initial question. Perhaps they only watched the DVDs and did not realize they were actual television episodes.

This was but one example of how knowledgeable young children are about television, cartoons, and movies. Their play seems imaginary, but often I will notice undertones from superhero, storybook, television, or cartoon characters. Where do these influences come from? Media? Older siblings? Other children?

In constructing the research chart I used my textbook for support. The instructions and sample entries were great guides in helping me understand what my specific task was and how to fill in the chart correctly. The chart helped me to focus on terms that I was unfamiliar with by making me define them in my own words and I also appreciate any opportunity I get to reflect and extend my thinking.

I have already copied "A Practical Guide to Reading Research Articles" twice because of the abuse it gets from my constant highlighting and flipping the pages over and over. I find it extremely useful. I was relieved to learn how to read research articles-what to read and what to skip.
I have also read and reread chapter two of our textbook several times. The language is clear and easy to understand. It was easier for me to have the steps of the research process broken down and explained individually.

I would like to ask my colleagues to share with me any resources they discover to help me with my topic and also, I would love to hear any suggestions on how to make statistics fun! Or perhaps palatable ☺