Early Childhood Studies : October 2016

When I Think of Research

Hello class, I hope all of you are enjoying your weekend. I would like to first start off by saying that it has really been a pleasure sharing this class with you’ll. I would like to thank you for all of your support that you’ll have shown me especially Dr. Todd. I was terrified of taking this class, and when we had our first discussion board and I read all of you’ll responses you’ll helped to give me the will power to go on. You’ll could never even imagine how much I appreciated all of you’ll support. I learned so much in this class about research and its connection to early childhood education.

This course taught me that research is what you make it to be. I learned about the different steps that are taken when conducting different types of research, which I found very helpful. I was under the impression that research was hard and confusing, but after taking this class I see that it’s really not. I learned that if the correct steps are followed and information is collected and analyzed correctly it is not hard at all. Most important you have to be focused on what you are doing, and have a research outline that you can follow.

I leaned so much about planning, designing, and conducting research. I learned that when planning research you have to make sure that you think everything threw. Also make sure you pick a research design that aligns with the type of research that you are doing, it will make it easier for you when conducting research. When conducting research I learned you should make sure researchers up held the code of ethics related to research, and also if the research involves children it is important to make sure permission is given by parents and the child for them to participate.

The only challenges that I can honestly say I had was trying to understand they different types of research. I also had to really think about things it was time for me to choose which research design would be best for my research stimulus. I did a lot of reading and going back and forth. It was also challenging at times to redefine the definitions that we had on our charts. Once I took Dr. Todd’s advice and began to redefine the definitions along with using examples of what they meant, it became a little easier. My perception of early childhood professionals has been modified by me seeing just how much more important early childhood professionals are. Early childhood professionals are the ones that help students lay the foundation for academic career. They are the ones that work tersely to help children learn basic skills that they will use for the rest of their lives. They support parents through their child’s development. Early childhood professionals are the wind beneath their students and their family’s wings. They leave long lasting impressions on the families that they serve.

I am proud to be an early childhood educator, even though I can’t wait to further advance in the field. Again it has been a pleasure being your student Dr. Todd, and sharing this class with all of my classmates. I almost feel like I know you’ll personally. In the beginning of this course I found out I was five months pregnant with my third child, I am a high risk due to my first child being premature so please keep us in your prayers. So far everything is going fine. I wish everyone much success in their next class, I hope to continue this journey with you’ll. Again thanks for being a wonderful support team.

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ECDVU sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)

Hello Class, in my last class one of our assignments for our blog was to get in contact with an early childhood professional from another country. This was to learn about early childhood in their country and to get their insights on issues in early childhood that we were having here in the U. S. Unfortunately after sending numerous e-mails to countries of my interest I only received one and that was from an early childhood professional in Japan (UNICEF). However the professional kindly stated that there was no one in their office that could assist me this semester because they were busy dealing with other issues. All of the websites that were provided for this assignment were very interesting. The one that I choose to explore and learn about their research in early childhood is http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php.

I hope to one day visit Africa and maybe even do some student teaching there, after my children get a little older. I know it will be a rewarding experience for us both. The website http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php the Early Childhood Development Virtual University (ECDVU) which is an innovative and multifaceted approach to addressing ECD capacity building and leadership development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The ECDVU is supported by a range of international, regional and local organizations, including the employers of participants. It is a unique training and results-oriented program that uses face-to-face and distributed learning methods including: residential seminars, web-based instruction, CD and print material support, and a 'community of learners' strategy within and among cohort countries (http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php). The student at this college have done a tremendous amount of research and studying on issues dealing with early childhood education. Below you will topics that they have researched thus far

Tanzania	Building Community Leadership for Quality Sustainability in Madrasa Preschools: The Case of Madrasa Preschools Post Graduation Support
Zambia	Pilot Study of the Adaptation of an Established Measure to Assess the Quality of Child Services in a Selected Orphanage in Zambia: The Inclusive Quality Assessment (IQA) Tool
Nigeria	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
Ghana	The Status of Coordination and Supervision of Early Childhood Education in Ghana
Malawi	Coordinating the Development and Implementation of the 2003 – 2013 National Action Plan (NAP) for Children in Malawi
Malawi	A Community-driven Rural Early Childhood Development (ECD) Project, with Emphasis on Culturally and Developmentally Appropriate Exploratory Learning Concepts
Ghana	Parents’ and Other Caregivers’ Perception of Early Childhood Development Needs and Quality: A Study of the PLAN-Assisted Programmes in Bawjiase, Ghana
Nigeria	Integrating Indigenous Knowledge in ECD Training and Services
Uganda	Utilizing Indigenous Stories in the Promotion of Early Childhood DevelopmentPrograms in Uganda
Eritrea	Improving the Quality of Childcare Through Parenting Enrichment and Training of Trainers: The Eritrean Model
Nigeria	Involving Fathers in Early Childhood Care and Development
Nigeria	A Guide for Effective School and Parent Collaboration: A Cooperative Development and Delivery Approach
Tanzania	Improving Multisectoral Cooperation and Coordination in Support of Early Childhood Development Programs in Tanzania
Malawi	Assessment of Interaction and Stimulation in Single-Mother Low-Income Families
Tanzania	Leadership Skills Training for Administration and Parent Support Training for Caregivers
Uganda	Professional Associations in Support of Child Well Being in Uganda

(http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php).

I really like how the staff at this University is diverse, I know they all bring so much experience and knowledge to the table. This is a plus to students as well because they get learn about their country along with the experience of their professors thanks to their diverse backgrounds. When I read an research paper authored by Abeba Habtom in the city of Eritera, I found it very interesting that China is one of the countries that emphasizes parents and family education. It recognizes the family as the very first environment that the children grows up in, and parents as the very first teachers in the children’s progress into life (Habtom 2004). I always knew they were very serious about their education. I then read the research paper of Chalizamudzi Matola on the town of Malawi, Twenty-seven percent of the population in rural areas of Malawi have never attended school. Access to early learning opportunities offered through preschools in rural areas is at 6 percent (National Statistical Office, 2002) (Matola 2004). Even the opportunity to attend preschool in Malawi is low I still found it interesting that they even had had any type of preschools in that area. It is good to know that at least some of the children get a head start on formal education. I know that parents who don’t get a chance to attend school themselves or their children do their very best to educate their children the best way that they know how. If you follow the link that I provided you will find a lot more research topics and studies that students have done, so if you’ll have time you should check them out.

References

http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php

Habtom, Abeba (2004) Improving the Quality of Childcare Through Parenting Enrichment and Training of Trainers: The Eritrean Model retrieved from http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php.

Matola, Chalizamudzi (2004) Assessment of Interaction and Stimulation in Single-Mother Low-Income Families Retrieved from http://www.ecdvu.org/ssa/pub.php.