EDTECH Research

This research assignment this week in EdTech 501 was by far the most challenging of the summer.  I remember now how much I hated research projects when I was taking my Bachelor of Education degree.

Things change as we mature.  Even though the assignment was extremely time consuming, and, at times frustrating, I found it very rewarding.  Most of the research was so interesting and full of information that I got caught up and spent way too much time just reading articles and looking for more research about a certain subject area.

I learned so much about research techniques and areas of education that were completely foreign to me.  Google scholar was an excellent place to look for information - especially when I set my preferences for Boise State.  The Google Docs "research tool" was also very helpful.  The place I relied on the most to find the research articles was the Albertson Library at Boise State University.

The main areas of research were literacy and at the use of technology.  My original research topic included "how technology could help students understand and retain financial literacy", however, the information was lacking.  I changed my focus from "financial literary" and technology to just "literacy" and technology and found some amazing articles.  Literacy, online and distance learning, TPACK and so many things about the technologies that can be incorporated into the classroom were just some of the topics I now know much more about.

As rewarding as the research was, frustration is the word I would use for APA.  I had a chat with my instructor about my frustration and he came up with a very valid point. There has to be rules or it would be a "free-for-all" and plagiarism would run wild.

In closing for this week, I read on article that referred many times to the Horizon Report.  I am looking forward to reading this document next week.

Here is my Annotated Bibliography.  I look forward to more learning next week.