When I think of research.
It has been eight weeks in this research course. I
was really scared at the beginning because I did not know what to expect and
how I will learn to build research competences. But as the weeks roll on, I
began to gain understanding leading to building some confidence, and here I am
now concluding the course with so much joy for the gains I have made and progress
I recorded within this period. Now, I
understand that researches are just questions waiting to find answers or situations
that need further explanation and exploration.
Research is not a mystery, it is a journey that needs careful planning
and design guided with some fore knowledge or theories. It involves detailed explanation of how the research will
be funded, who the participants will be and how the findings will benefit
everyone on the long run.
From this course, I now understand how to raise
research questions, turn them to hypotheses and plan the research. The planning
stage appears to be the most intensive part. It is at this stage that the
participants are identified and which method will be adopted, after which the
data collected will be collected and analyzed, before conclusions are made.
From the readings, I was quite challenged by the
many vocabulary and new words I had to learn and new concepts that I need to
understand, but of course, it got better. I did not find it easy to arrive at a
topic for my simulation paper, even though I knew what I want to
investigate. There is a lot to research
in early childhood because policies are always changing, growth and development
of children are important to the future of the world. In the field of education, understanding the importance of
research, being able to identify quality research paper, and promoting the idea
of being a researcher are all important aspects of being a professional in the
field.
Finally, I want to thank all my colleagues for their
support and assistance in helping me to learn. Your views, thoughts and
responses brought color and richness to the group. Our instructor, Dr Terry
Davis did a good job; you’re too wonderful, thank you for the timely feedback.
I appreciate you all. Hope to see you in
the other courses. Enjoy the break.
Mercy,
ReplyDeleteAgain, it was an honor to work with you! I share your view of research being a journey and that, like many travels, a carefully planned route (or at least a defined starting point and destination) is necessary for success.
I look forward to the possibility of working with you again in the future.
Have a great break!
:~)
I think everyone was a little scared and intimidated and it's great to acknowledge that you have those apprehensive feelings in the beginning and you get to see yourself accomplish something amazing in the end. Good luck with your next course!
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