Where do I begin?

When thinking about my research project I feel like I'm all over the place. Based on all of the capstone project ideas that I've seen I've come to the conclusion that I can take this quite literally anywhere. This project can be about anything and I can choose to take it many different directions. I've noticed that many students have taken creative approaches to their project and added their own personal touches.

I feel like my stress is coming from deciding on a topic. Theres so many things that interest me- I can take the route I've taken in the past year of this program and tie everything back to my current job in higher education. But- I've come to the realization that I'm not sure how much I feel like I could really go in depth with that and enjoy it or if its just something Im comfortable with and have prior knowledge and a connection with it. OR I can do something completely different and base my capstone project on something that I am passionate about.

Ideally- I'd love to choose a topic that I would like to take something from. Going in completely blind- well not completely blind- but being able to actually learn. I would like to challenge myself here. All this to say I have no idea where I'm starting, unlike my peers, this has only made me more stressed and not eased my anxiety at all. I think I'm too indecisive for this...

With that said, I think that I would like to talk about the experience of being first generation in the United States, I could go the academic route and maybe talk about how it affects education or I can research it on a more personal/emotional way of moving to a new country. Though I was born here, many of my family members were not so I could interview them and see how moving to the US at various ages can affect development or how it can make you feel isolated, not knowing how to define your identity. 

Thats all for now, stay tuned to see what I pick! 

Research Pizza

When reading Clemon's article "Journey to Praxis: Supporting Youth Activism" I learned a lot not only about her research but her approach to research. Below I have created a "Research Pizza" as a way to analyze her approach. 

Research pizza 

Crust (arguably the best part of the pizza): Type of Research

* Clemons used a Qualitative study, as the "crust" of the pizza, this sets the tone for the type of research that you will be reviewing 

Sauce: Ideology 

* Critical Theory 

Toppings: Tools 

* Interviews with 9 youth workers 

* Analysis

* Observations

* Sampling

Utensils, How is it served?: Analysis 

*  Tables, cross analysis, data 

Box: How is it delivered? 

* Peer reviewed research article

Lets put on our research hats

    This week, I dove more into three research ideologies that I never thought much of, Critical Theory, Positivism and Constructivism. Let me start off by saying that I had to watch the videos multiple times- add captions and read the transcript to try to grasp what was being taught. After that didn't work I ran to my tried and true- ChatGPT to explain the difference between the three.

    When thinking about myself as a researcher- I think I am most aligned to the critical theory research ideology. I feel like I’m more in line with the critical theory side of research because I don’t just want to look at numbers or surface-level outcomes; I want to dig into the why. Why do certain groups of students have a harder time in higher ed? Who created the systems that make it easier for some and harder for others? To me, research isn’t just about collecting data, it’s about telling stories and shining light on voices that usually get ignored. I don’t believe there’s just one “truth,” because everyone’s experience is shaped by their background, culture, and the way society treats them. I care about equity and access, so if my research can call out unfairness and maybe push things to change, then that feels way more meaningful. That’s why critical theory fits me- it’s about questioning, pushing back, and making space for justice.

Based off of this question: How can we adjust the college recruitment process and make it more accessible to first generation students?

    If I were taking a critical theorist approach, I would determine what barriers might have been put in place in certain school districts for their numbers to be lower when it comes to first generations students not having access to resources. Is there a language barrier between the college recruiter and the students? Is their  lack of information being provided to students? If I were taking a Positivism approach I would determine the amount of students of this group applying to college without a college visit from a recruiter vs the amount of students applying after having a college visit. I would measure how different external factors influence the amount of first generation students applying to higher education based on information they receive during the college recruitment process. As a constructivist I would make the college recruitment process more accessible for first-gen students by listening to them. I’d want to hear their stories and really understand how they’re experiencing recruitment, because everyone makes sense of college differently based on their background.

Lets play 20 questions!

When thinking about this capstone project, I'm gonna be honest and tell you that I have NO idea what I'm going to do. I've never been a person to really ask questions that dig deeper. Even in undergrad I never had to do a research project and I have two degrees. So...with that said, its time to dust off the wheels in my brain and get to turnin. If you had 20 chances to ask questions that would be answered; what would they look like? I'll start...

1. Why is it so hard to get into public schools when the information that you're delivering could provide opportunities for students? 

2. How can arts provide an outlet for students to express themselves in schools? 

3. What is the correlation between bridge programs and student success in higher education? 

4. How more likely are students to succeed if provided early intervention? 

5. What is the correlation between student athletes that have been injured and grades? 

6. Are students that are more involved in campus life more likely to succeed? 

7. Do HSI/MSI's have higher retention and/or graduation rates?

8. Are students that are MLL more likely to attend 2 year or 4 year institutions? 

9. Are students that are MLL more likely to take longer to graduate high school and/or college? 

10. To what extent does a student’s school district shape their ability to adapt to higher education expectations?

11. How can education adapt to the changing needs of students? 

12. Why is pursing a higher degree so expensive? And why is cost increasing more every year? 

13. How can we adjust the college recruitment process and make it more accessible to first generation students? 

14. Why are college materials not provided in multiple languages if its 2025?

15. Purposeful recruitment: how can this change on both the high school and college side? 

16. Okay you got them here, now how do you keep them? What does retention look like on the inside? 

17. Where is all the money going when its given to schools? 

18. How does music affect people? Positively? Negatively? 

19.  How are content creators changing the world of marketing? 

20. How can students use social media to their advantage? 

Bonus question: Will any of these questions make it my final topic? Who knows. Stay tuned!