Research that Benefits Children and Families

There are so many different needs and uses for research on children and/or families. I believe that the very notion of early childhood education started as an inquiry that sparked research and thought it necessary to establish a foundation that would serve a pillar for advancement in the field. Various topics come to my mind when I think about research involving children including medical, societal, and educational research.

As we proceed throughout this course piecing together the process of research in efforts of becoming competent in doing early childhood research, my task this week is to share a positive example of the effects of research on children and/or families. In early childhood education, children need certain components in their environments that promote safety, healthy development, and well-being.  Within these environments are a web of supporters that contribute to their abilities to learn and their capacities to adjust and adapt through resiliency. Research done on the relationships of children with their caregiver has provided evidential benefits in the field of early childhood education. Theories of secure attachments have supported the ideals of the critical need for infants to develop relationships and how it encourages their sense of security, independence, and competence. As children mature, the roles that these individuals play in their education has proven to be effective attributes in their academic success as well.

                Going further into research, I explored articles that discussed the benefits of research on children relevant to child development. The pioneers in this field have researched the virtues that foster how children grow, development milestones that support growth, and further more activities that can encourage growth. In today’s society, bullying has become the force behind many childhood suicides and attempts, increase in dropout rates, and peer on peer violence. Research that focuses on the behavior of children can be helpful in assisting professionals in understanding the characteristics of the actions and reactions. Behavioral research can also aid in implementing intervention and prevention service that can combat challenging behaviors.

                In my opinion, if we continue to research utilizing ethically sound guidelines, then we as professionals in the field of early childhood care and education will be able to maximize the quality of care of programs being provided to children and families, enhance learning and teaching techniques and strategies of educators, advocate for strong successful families, and a plethora of other crucially important conditions that benefit the lives of children and families through research.