Course+Reflection+Page_Research

Midpoint Reflection Due 10/19 Survey located at: https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dFpvTHNud3dYbDE4cGNGSkFMUHFUZXc6MA#gid=0

1. Given that we are at midterm, what will you do differently to enhance or improve your performance in order to become a successful student in this class? (AT LEAST A PARAGRAPH)

The way I see it, it's not a matter of doing quality work or improving necessarily. Can I improve in my ability to conduct research? Absolutely! Am I improving? Yes! With every article I read, every EBSCO search, every discussion post, the article comparison and critique chart and the upcoming lit review, I am learning SO much. I am building understanding slowly. So in terms of that I improve constantly (going from super-novice to more experienced novice!). In terms of changing my own modus operandi (my study habits, the time I give to the material and assignments, etc.), I will strive to maintain the level I have maintained for the most part. I do need to become a little more punctual with submissions, and I hope I can do that. I have struggled with giving some of my peers feedback.

2. What have you learned from this class so far? List at least 5 concrete examples (For each category: Knowledge, Skills, Dispositions) with details and/or explanations. (AT LEAST A PARAGRAPH FOR EACH CATEGORY)

Research Skills. I have improved my abilities with finding articles in Galileo. I was already doing this, but this semester, the sheer number of searches I have conducted is making me quite familiar with the practice. Now, when I need to learn about a topic, I go to Galileo. For instance, I was looking for information about building online quality doc programs (to inform myself as I participate in working on the SI Doc's online migration). Where did I go? Galileo. And I read up on some things (all current and peer-reviewed) that turned out being very helpful.

Research Realities. So, I am working on a project concurrently with this class. The research I am doing points to the project and vice versa. What I am learning is that research happens very slowly. You have to be very meticulous and careful. You have to be honest and transparent in what you do and what you think the evidence suggests. I can see why many faculty in the COE struggle with fulfilling research obligations. It takes so much time!

Coding. I am currently learning all about coding. I read about it in the textbook, and then I read about it in Jason's old research text, and I have been doing it myself (and with Jason and another person). It is slow and meticulous and it is interesting to watch understandings unfold from this joint effort. So much truth is just interpretation, isn't it?

Proof. Perhaps my favorite lesson came from the beginning of our text when the authors stress the importance that we understand that research is all about gathering evidence and then interpreting it. We do our best, but it does not generate absolute, timeless, infallible truth. This message is reiterated in a slightly different way in my Understanding by Design textbook. There, the idea that teachers should help students question texts and how they are put together, rather than accepting what they say as inevitable, indisputable fact, reminds me of this idea. Nothing is absolute (unless you're in church), and everything changes. One cool thing about this is that researchers will always have work to do.

Online teaching. I have enjoyed learning from Dr. Baylen's instructional design in his course. In many ways were are similar designers--very meticulous, detail-oriented, etc. I can tell he works a lot at designing an environment where we can interact productively. I have been playing with Google Forms and plan to use it similarly in my own course redesign. I love being able to monitor the comprehensive class schedule: every change he makes I am informed of in real-time. This helps me, the online learner, to remain confident in my own understanding of expectations and deadlines.

3. Reviewing your performance as an online discussion member, what are the things that you can change in your participation and contribution that will benefit future online discussions? (AT LEAST A PARAGRAPH)

As a novice researcher, I feel like I need to learn from quality research. From what I have read this semester (from a book I am reading called Educational Design Research), it sounds like half of more of the peer-reviewed research available in the area of education is quite flawed. When half or more of the exemplars are flawed, the research student has a big challenge in sifting through it and trying to use her emerging evaluative abilities to judge quality. (So my patience for bad research is stretched). Then, reading the submissions of peers is confusing because I think I see problems, but I struggle to point them out, and after a point, I think it's not beneficial for me to do so. Evaluating others' flawed research (from peers) is much more difficult than reading and understanding others' solid research (such as one of my articles by Cavanaugh). And understanding is quite challenging. It is the challenge I need right now.

But to get at the question....I have done okay with discussions in this class. I know I have deviated from what is asked for in terms of the 7+ responses in several instances, and I have done this with the acceptance that I should lose points. I have not found noting similarities and differences to be helpful. My preference is to respond naturally to items of interest in my peers' posts. I have had a few good instances of doing that where I felt I had connected with a peer and they had made me think a little deeply about something and maybe vice versa. Other times, I felt I was forcing a response just to get my count up to the proper number. I absolutely love doing the initial posts. The preparation for doing them takes many hours. I could start at 9 AM on Saturday and still be going at it 12 hours later. I get lost (in a good way) in the research. It's fun, it's messy, and I learn a lot. The greatest cost comes from time spent, and I don't regret a moment of it this semester.

I hope I can be more help to my peers as research proposals come in and we peer-evaluate them.

4. What other comments about this class or your class performance that you want to share with your professor? (AT LEAST A PARAGRAPH) A response of NONE or NOTHING is not acceptable. There must be something you need to share to improve yourself given the demands of your course.

Okay, so I think I am going to apply for the School Improvement Program and begin with the Summer 11 cohort. I am so glad to be in this EdS program (several folks said I should just move on to the doctoral level, but I wanted the training). My Masters research course was a blip on the radar of my life. I was getting ready to head into the classroom back in 2001 when I took it, and I gleaned from that class everything a future English teacher needs to know about T-tests, anovas, coding, etc (I'm being self-deprecating here; I didn't retain much from the class, and I had no idea how to connect it to what I was doing with my life). Fast-forward about 10 years. I have many reasons to strengthen my research skills. Not only do I need these skills in guiding my students (undergrads currently, but any age level needs good guidance), but I need them as I begin conducting my own studies, which I have done to a small extent up to this point, and will continue to do with increasing frequency in the near future.

Retrospective Paper Due 11/20