Research+Topics


 * At the bottom, two have voted for the gas topic. What do you guys think? We need to get this decided on by tomorrow. (Gina)**

Copied from the Edublog wiki, please post future correspondence here:

gminks

Here are my suggestions:

1. How do grad students in an education major use social media? How do they plan to use it when they graduate? 2. How well do public servants (teachers/police officers/social workers) understand how adults with autism act? I can't think of anything simple. I hope one of you guys can!! Posted: Sun, January 11th 2009 9:45 AM #

lgates

I kinda ripped this off from CNN, saw this the other day but I think it could be something we could all work on...the article stated "Even with sometimes daily reports on how smoking is bad for you, why do people still smoke?" I have co-workers that smoke, family members that do, I know of many former smokers (including myself) and even a co-worker that is recovering from lung cancer and HAS NOT QUIT YET. Not sure if I could get input from her but maybe so. What do you guys think? Posted: Sun, January 11th 2009 4:49 PM # Edit  I searched a little today and one of the benefits of the smoking topic is that there is a lot of research and literature on the topic. Plus it would probably be pretty easy to get a good sample size of people for interviews, questionnaires, etc. However, I agree that it is a little broad and could probably be narrowed down a little more. (Sarah)

gminks

The only thing I would worry about is it being too broad... do you think we need to narrow it down? I also don't know anyone who smokes. But I could use social media to find folks... Posted: Mon, January 12th 2009 4:00 PM #

lgates

I think we can narrow it down to something more specific if that's your concern. However, I think we need to find out app. how many people will need to be surveyed down the line. Does anyone else know smokers or ex-smokers other than Gina or myself? And I'm certainly open to other topics, I was just throwing that out there because I had just heard about it. Another topic we could research is something relating to unemployment. Unfortunately there are plenty of subjects out there for that one. Posted: Mon, January 12th 2009 4:17 PM # Edit

gminks

So, the suggestions so far are: 1. Why do people keep smoking if there are so many warnings it is bad for you? I think this is so broad, would we talk to teenagers who are just starting? People who have smoked for a certain number of years? People who have never tried to quit? 2. Unemployment -- we need a real-world problem here. 3. How do graduate students in the education field plan to use social media? 4. Autism - how can teachers & first responders be recognize when someone is not responding as expected due to autism 5. some one on twitter suggested desertification (that looks too broad too!) Posted: Mon, January 12th 2009 8:43 PM #  gminks

Just got this suggestion via twitter: Talent development during economic downturns - what effects are there on T&D budgets, etc I like this one alot... Posted: Mon, January 12th 2009 8:49 PM # I like this topic, however how easy/hard do you think it will be to find literature on the subject? I read an article the other day (not sure it was from a reputable source though) that said talent coaches are one of the most in demand jobs now due to the economic crisis. It was talking about coaches for independent individuals, so it would be interesting to see how the field looks at a corporate-wide level. (Sarah)

sclamons

I like these suggestions. I think we should keep them all in mind and decide after the group chat tonight. In the discussion forum, it looked like they are open to the due date for this. We can decide by the end of the week. Hopefully TJ will give us some more clarification on the project, so we have a better idea of how broad the topic should be, etc. Posted: Tue, January 13th 2009 8:20 AM #

lgates Perhaps something about how standardized testing in public schools has affected performance in college? Posted: Wed, Jan 14th I am always a sucker for education-related topics, which is probably why I ended up with a degree in elementary education. I do like this topic. (Sarah) 
 * If we do decide to do standardized testing and how it affects performance in college, what would we be measuring? Correlation of tests scores to college performance? Does standardized testing promote a higher level of thinking or just memorization of facts? I still feel unclear as to what our research's focus should be since I'm not really sure what we are trying to accomplish with our research. (Lorrie)

Another thought...What if we researched something to do with the gas situation like "how has the price of gas affected your driving habits - carpooling, combining trips, hybrid car purchase, etc." I was thinking that we are each in very different work and home environments and we need a topic that would appeal to most everyone we know so we would have a large research base. (Lorrie)

This is my favorite -- the how has the price of gas affected your driving habits. (Gina) **

So far I like all 4 of the main topics we have come up with. I would be happy with any of them. (Sarah)

I'll leave my text as black. I like the gas idea. I think that's doable. (Lea Ann)

We're not expected to come up with the exact research question,correct? Because we could take this a bit further. For instance, the price of gas impacts your budget by not spending money on vacations, or high ticket items. And as a result of not spending, the market for travel and electronics declines. Or would this be what we find out when research is conducted on the consequences of spending extra money on gas. Any thoughts? (LG)

**I think right now we are coming up with a not too broad, not too narrow topic. How about we go with "The current gas situation in the United States." I am assuming that we will have to come up with a thesis statement or what we want to prove from there. (LE)

I put " ** **How are consumers reacting to the current gas price situation in the US?" in the table on the front page. I suggest we use that as a staging area before turning in our assignments. Let me know if I should edit it (or if you do not like this staging idea). I think the class is going to have us narrow, define terms, focus the research, and all that stuff. I think we have lots of room to maneuver with this topic. (GM)**


 * I agree with you Gina, I think this topic will be easy to maneuver if it is acceptable to Tristan and Robyn. I also agree with you that so far this class has been frustrating and time consuming without much to show for the time. Hopefully it will get better and more organized. (LE)**

I think the newly proposed gas topic on the home page works. It was my understanding that our research will help narrow our topic as we go.