Synthesis

I've been thinking about this course and how I'll apply what I've learned here to my "real life," assuming my real life one day includes working as a Teacher Librarian.  Although this course has peaked my interest in research a bit, I know that I do not want to be an "Academic" forever, and I have no real interest in pursuing a Ph.D.  All of my real interest is in education, and I think I could be most impactful in a K-12 setting.  That means, for me, working as a librarian in a K-12 school is my primary goal, with working in a public library following behind that.

Where, then, does research fit into that picture?  Well, thanks to this course, I am a far smarter "searcher" than I have been in the past.  I am also less intimidated by long, academic (aka stuffy) research reports.  Those are the practical benefits of this class.  But the true benefit is in my understanding of how research "works."  I think the most surprising realization for me, although it now seems obvious, is that the hardest part of research isn't really the research.  It's the analysis and synthesis of the data--identifying the trends and figuring out what it all matters.  Research that stays research isn't all that useful, but research that changes how people do or think about things can make a big difference, particularly in the decisions policy-makers and funders make, and that really does impact me.  So those who can make sense of the data and write about it in a way that policy-makers can understand are the researchers who can really make a difference.

I also appreciate the limitations of qualitative and quantitative research and the need for both in a way I haven't in the past.  In LIS, quantitative data will only get you so far.  You can look at circulation statistics, satisfaction surveys, and attendance records all day long, but that can only tell you how you're doing right now.  In order to learn what you need to do to improve in the future, qualitative research is really necessary.  But it's also messy (and, because it is more open to interpretation, likely less trusted by some), and time consuming, and involves far more than the average person would consider, particularly when you're dealing with youth.  For that reason, you need to balance it out with quantitative data when you can.  While you likely won't be able to get the same type of data with the two methods, you can collect data that, when examined together, can help solidify your conclusions in a way that a simple survey or case study could not individually.

I hope that makes sense.  What I'm trying to say is that using mixed methods appeals to the pragmatist in me.  Collect some quantitative data.  Then do some qualitative research and find out why the quantitative data indicates what it does, or if it even indicates what you assumed it indicated.  If you identify a problem and put a program in place, after a time collect some more quantitative data to measure the difference.  While I appreciate the value of strictly qualitative research in LIS, for my purposes, both are going to be required.

I really like the way Lance (CO study) is building upon previous qualitative research to now focus on more qualitative research in Idaho (and, I assume, other places in the future?).  Now we know TLs have a real impact on student learning, and it's time to move on and look more closely at what, exactly, they do that makes the biggest impact, how big a role perception plays in that impact, etc. 

I also have a much better understanding of why research can take so long.  The concept of research as a "conversation" between professionals was completely new to me and also changes my view of the types of studies that are done.  While in the past I'd simply view something as obvious and wonder why we needed to research that (or research it AGAIN), now I understand how there are gaps in the conversation that, while they seem common sense, must be validated with methods.  I also have a real appreciation for those who can conduct research and maintain their role as the researcher for an extended period of time.  I am a talker by nature, and even my short observation of a library program was difficult for me to complete without engaging in a conversation driven by my personal interests rather than the research at hand.

In a day-to-day way, I do hope I can put some of what we've learned in this course to use in my future career.  I have no real interest in publishing articles (although, who knows, maybe I will), but I would like to use research to improve my performance and the learning of my students (and other teachers).  Knowing how important data is to administrators, this will help me both improve my own practice and communicate the worth of the school library to my principal, superintendent, and school board.

Citing a Kindle e-book

http://booksprung.com/how-to-cite-a-kindle-ebook

Literature Reviews and Research Proposals

Once again, I think I built the Literature Review up to be some giant monstrosity in my head.  In reality, I used the old-fashioned highlighter method mentioned by Joanne in her lecture, identified themes, and sat down to write.  I got through about 3 of my topics before I hit 10 pages.  I did some re-tooling and wrote 12 pages, which I then had to cut down to 10.

If I were doing it again, I'd have organized things differently.  I guess it's been so long since I wrote any kind of research paper (or anything of substantial length on my own--many of my longer assignments have been group assignments) that I can't really judge how much content I have before I start writing.  I'm out of practice.  And tend to be verbose.  There was just a lot to say and a lot that I read that didn't make it into the lit review.  I learned quite a bit, but at the same time it was frustrating.  I think my frustration stems from the fact that I still have the mind of a practitioner.

Teachers are very pragmatic people.  They are trying to get a lot done in very little time and, while they might actually be interested in theory, what they really want is for you to tell them stuff "quick and dirty."  All this research is nice, but it doesn't actually tell them what, exactly, to do.  And since Montiel-Overall (I feel like we are now friends since I typed her name so much in my lit review) found that teachers really didn't know how to collaborate or even have a true understanding of collaboration vs. task division, it's obvious to me that most educators (or people in general?) need explicit instruction in how to collaborate.  Then there's the time issue, but Rome wasn't built in a day.  I think Creighton is right that Web 2.0 tools could help, but you're not going to convince the woman that is worried about teachers using match.com at work that she should start a wiki.

That type of thing just makes me annoyed.  Who are these Luddites who insist on working in education, and why can't we get rid of them?  I'm not saying technology is the answer to every problem, but it is a useful tool that can be harnessed for good.  If a doctor said, "Oh, I'm not going to use that new technique; I'm sticking with this thing I learned in med school," he sure wouldn't have very many patients.  Why do we allow educators to do that?  Then, more often than not, they play the, "Oh, silly me, I just don't understand how that computer thing works" card.  Seriously?  Either learn or get out of the classroom.

And that is why I can never be an administrator.

Really, though, one idea I have for my research proposal is the idea of Web 2.0 as a collaboration tool.  In spite of Creighton's research participants, I do think that most teachers try to use technology and, with training, can become competent at using it.  What I'd like to know is if, with training in specific Web 2.0 technologies and some lessons in how they can be used for teacher collaboration and in the classroom, teachers are better able to collaborate at a higher level (how do we move past task division to true collaboration if we accept that we will never be given adequate time for that)?

My other idea is to explore the impact of TL inservice training on actual classroom practice.  There's all this research about collaboration, but as mentioned in one of my articles, it is not the ONLY contribution the TL makes to student achievement.  One of the abstract articles from my distributed research group mentioned that simply training the staff of a summer program in information literacy skills increased the learning of camp participants.  Maybe if we had more research on the impact of TL inservices, they would become as important as collaboration.  Maybe more important since they are a lot easier to fit in.  I'd also like to know if the experience actually changes teaching practice long-term.

Actually, I wonder that about collaboration as well.  Does the act of collaborating improve teaching in subsequent lessons, even when the TL is not as directly involved?

I will probably go with that second idea.  At least that's what I'm thinking right now.

Either that or I'm going to pull a Hadley and go to Kindergarten with my daughter.  Not really, and I'm there every Thursday as part of my participation obligation, but it does seem fun.

I am going to try to keep my head on about this assignment.  It is 9-12 pages.  It is not cause for panic.  Stay calm and carry on.

I Love

• The ProQuest dissertation database.  So much good information is there!  I would never have looked specifically for dissertations if not for the CA study.
• ERIC.  I have not used ERIC since I was an undergrad and I had to go to the actual library to access it (and then find half the articles on microfiche).  I can't believe I forgot about it for all this time!  I particularly love ERIC when they have full text available, but I can always use:
• CitationLinker.  Someone told me about it when I first started the program, and it is AWESOME.  I don't know how people find anything without it.
• Mining the references of other people's writing.  Why didn't I ever do this before??
• Children who nap.
• Chocolate.  A little too much.  I am slowly eating all of my children's "good" Halloween candy.

I know the point of this class is research methods:  how to find information, and what to do with it when you get it.  But because we're focused on youth in general and are given the freedom to explore topics of interest to us in particular, what I'm really gaining the most is a depth of understanding of the role of teacher librarians and how they can be most impactful (as well as the history of CA school libraries and why they are so poorly funded/staffed).  I'm really grateful for the focused research methods options.