Sharing Web Resources

When I began to explore the newsletter from the Society for Research in Child Development this week, I was drawn to an article about policymakers and research.  The article talked about how the individuals in charge of our decision-making need more substantial, research-based information.  Instead of creating more policies, the author suggests they should be investing in the work of social science researchers.  It went on to say that federal funding should be allocated to this area to help the long term effects of issues like poverty.  How can we solve a problem if we only work to make programs to aid once someone is impoverished?  Their idea is to try to get to the root of the issue instead.  This article seemed particularly relevant to our work in this course.

One article that made me think in new ways was about taking on grad school with two small children.  The author talked about what a juggling act it is to be a mom and try to grow professionally.  Each new course brings new struggles with how to balance life, a full-time teaching job, and grad classes for me.  This article made me really think about my fellow classmates with children, though.  While I have many things on my plate, I do not have little ones expecting me to care for them.  It makes it a lot easier for me to schedule my time and finish my coursework.  It was a good reminder that things will always be busy, but you need to be able to prioritize the things that are important in life.

The first article I mentioned urged politicians to back researchers and social scientists.  This is one way that politicians can have early childhood agendas on their radar.  It will help them in the long run to be able to work towards a solution for issues like poverty.

While the website and newsletter contain great information, I found this week that there were many roadblocks if you are not a member of this organization.  All of their excellent scholarly writings and journal articles are available online – but only if you are a member.  Membership runs about $140 a year depending on where you are in your education.  I would love to be able to shell out that kind of money and access the site in its entirety, but that isn’t a feasible financial option for me at this point.