Research Topic, Outlines & References

Post your research paper topic and brief outline here.  I will respond to you with my approval.  You may post your topic with outlines and references at any time by the end of Week 8, Sunday, October 22, 2017. You will receive 20 points to post your research paper topic with an outline.

An Example:

Topic: Cross-Cultural Investigation on Mourning a Miscarriage or Stillbirth (Title)

Outlines and References:

1. Summary of research theories in cognitive development during infancy.
2. Theory 1 (List specific theorist and theory you would like to research)
3. Theory 2 (List specific theorist and theory  you would like to research)
4. Theory 3 (List specific theorist and theory  you would like to research)
5. Summary of my observation with detailed information about cognitive milestones during infancy.
6. Compare the milestones in my observation with the theories I researched.
7. Conclusion of my research and observation
8. Organization, clarity, coherence, grammar, and APA style citations

References: List at least 4-5 references (in APA citation style) that you will use to write the research paper. The 4-5 references MUST be research articles found from MxCC library databases or books officially published. A web site from Internet would not be counted as the four references required in the research paper.

Step I: Choose a topic: Examples:- Exploring Cognitive Development during Infancy or Is there a Critical period for Language Development or Cross-Cultural Investigation on Mourning a Miscarriage or Stillbirth or Breastfeeding vs. Bottlefeeding: Implications on Children’s Development or A Look at Autism Epidemic or Exploring Implications of Brain Development During the First Years of Life or A Deep Study on World Infant Mortality Rate, etc.  With these examples, you are free to formulate your own topics of interest

Research Paper with observation/interview component (200 Points):

Each student will choose a topic in the field of childhood/adolescence development that is of personal interest. This will be a combination of research and field work/experience.

Step I: Choose a topic:

Step 2: Research your topic. Great journal articles can be found via the college library databases and over the internet. You must have at least four scholarly resources. These four resources MUST be found from MxCC library databases or officially published book (not self-published books on Internet).  Do not solely rely on informational web-sites for your research; this is not considered scholarly research. Your textbook, Wikipedia, Internet based web pages or an encyclopedia cannot be considered as one of your major four research sources.

Step 3: Depending on your topic, you will then either observe a child, (or children,) or you will interview an adolescent. Students in Early Childhood Education are required to observe a child or children.  Your observation or interview serves as documentation to support the research you are doing. For example, if you are researching cognitive development during infancy, you would observe an infant and compare the infant’s cognitive milestones with the findings of your research. Please note: you may use your own children, siblings or relatives to observe for this assignment but if possible for ECE Students preferably in a childcare setting.

Step 4: Write your paper. Your paper needs to be 10 pages, Time New Roman, 12, double-spaced. Given that this is a college level paper, you must appropriately cite your resources. Use the APA standard of citation and references (APA guides found here: Mxcc.libguides.com/apa) Make sure you proof read your paper for spelling and grammatical errors prior to submission. Do not merely rely on your computer’s ability to check for spelling and grammatical errors. It is only a machine and is not fool-proof. You need to review it carefully prior to submission.