Demonstrate mastery of APA formatting and researching strategies by reading the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association and by effectively locating relevant articles, citing them, and interpreting the data for current or future use in my profession.
Reflection
Three years ago, when I began the program, this program pillar really intimidated me. Research is not one of my strongest skills. When I am asked to find information, or write a paper on a certain topic, I am always hesitant to begin because of my lack of confidence in research. I think this is mostly because of the small amount of time I have actually spent in research. At times, I felt like a rookie trying to learn all the fundamentals and new plays in a college sport. Fortunately, as I have engaged in the process I have caught the rhythm of research and scholarship and this program has helped shaped my understanding and attitude of it.
Beginning this goal, I researched my classic works list as a reference of scholarly articles (see Classic Works references). This has helped me practice locating, researching, interpreting, and citing. I have had many resources to help me in this process. One of the best resources has been the University of Wyoming library. As I have practiced locating and researching articles using the online library, it has helped me feel comfortable and more confident in the process. EDRE 5530 Introduction to Education Research is where I began to see the value of proper research. From searching and creating a journal matrix (see JM attachment) to analyzing and interpreting data (see both DA attachments), I have seen my researching world develop and expand. While analyzing and interpreting data was one of the most exhausting practices, it helped me appreciate the people or meaning that the statistics represent.
Also, by studying the APA Manual and understanding each formatting concept it has helped prepare me to be more successful in my writing. If I need additional information I use the Purdue Online Writing Lab or ask questions in discussion boards in my classes. In this quest to develop better researching skills and master APA formatting, I have compiled feedback from instructors on assignments completed in numerous courses in my program (see feedback attachments). These documents have provided great insight to me as I have made corrections and learned from my mistakes.
Looking back, I felt excited for the final outcome of this goal but hesitant for the work and effort that it would require. I wanted to acquire the knowledge sufficient to develop a paper without needing to check the manual for correct APA formatting and I believe I have accomplished that. I know it is difficult to quantify or measure my improvements but I think my increased confidence level is proof of mastery. I am still pursuing this goal but the more I do, the more confident I feel using APA format, citing sources, analyzing research and interpreting data. Learning to synthesis different research that I can use in my current and future teaching profession will always be challenging but over the last three years I have come to understand the importance. I have realized that this goal has evolved to a life long pursuit and I hope I can continue to stay on the edge of the competitive teaching world.
Classic Works References
Cattell, R. B. (1950). Personality. A systematic theoretical and factual study. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Clark, R. (1978). Media, mental imagery, and memory. Educational Technology Research and Development, 26(4), 355–363. doi:10.1007/bf02766371.
Finn, J. D. (1953). Professionalizing the audio-visual field. Audio-visual Communication Review, 1(1), 6–18. Retrieved from http://link.springer.com.libproxy.uwyo.edu/article/10.1 007%2FBF02713166
Glaser, R. E. (1962). Psychology and instructional technology. In R. Glaser (Ed.), Training research and education. Pittsburg, PA: University of Pittsburg Press.
Glaser, R. (1963). Instructional technology and the measurement of learning outcomes: Some questions. American Psychologist, 18, 519–521.
Glaser, R. E. (Ed.). (1965). Teaching machines and programed learning. II. Data and directions. Washington, DC: National Education Association.
Jamison, D. T., Klees, S. J., & Wells, S. J. (1978). The costs of educational media: Guidelines for planning and evaluation. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
Keller, F. S. (1974). Ten years of personalized instruction. Teaching of Psychology, 1(1), 4–9. Retrieved from http://www.library.unh.edu/special/forms/keller/ten%20years. pdf
Saettler, P. (1968). A history of instructional technology. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.