How research shapes us

As I’ve thought of this week’s blog prompt, I realized that I could think of many different instances where I have personally seen research benefit children and families in great capacities. Most of these connections, though, stem from my experience working as a special education teacher with children spanning across ages 2-7.

Were those clear benefits seen in special education the only one that’s I knew of?  I had to really think about the different connections that exist between research and the early care and education field. The base of everything revolves around what we know about children, and adults for that matter. Research is the very tool that tells us how, why, and in what ways children grow. Each and every time I interact with a child, or a parent, I think of what I know about the science behind a person’s physical, emotional, social, and behavioral development. I know that when I meet a 2 year old, I will alter my interactions with them differently than I would if I was interacting with a 7 year old.

This fall I was fortunate enough o attend a Columbia Teacher’s College Saturday Reunion. During the day’s workshops, I met a teacher from an inner city elementary school. She was telling me how her school was struggling to meet the needs of their youngest readers. Most of her students were not meeting their benchmark standards in reading, and she was beginning to get frustrated. After researching available resources in her community, she had learned more about the Reading and Writing Project. She spent time reading the different publications and studies produced by Lucie Calkins and her team at TC. After this teacher learned more about the evidence behind the practice, she determined that the Reading and Writing Project would help to support the needs of her students. She developed a clear map of how she would implement the curriculum, and performed a self-study and application of the curriculum in her classroom. After a trial period, she presented her principal with her findings of successful growth in her students through implementation of the Reading and Writing Project. She now has helped to guide the curriculum in her school to better meet the needs of all grade levels. The research she conducted help to support an entire community of learners.