research proposal

Your 8-page research proposal will address a specific issue in a particular domain of cognitive development. The specific issues include but are not limited to children’s memory, language, concept acquisition, biological or physical understanding, problem-solving strategies or skills, mathematical or scientific reasoning.

• POSIBLE RESEARCH TOPICS:

Infants’ Cognitive Development:

Memory of objects, pictures, actions and events
Physical understanding
Causal understanding
Categorization of objects or pictures
Object concepts
Imitation and transfer in problem solving

Preschool and School-Aged Children:

Memory
Strategy development (e.g., organizational, rehearsal)
Children’s memory of events and stories
Effects of knowledge base on memory performance
Role of metamemory
Factors that influence children’s eyewitness testimony

Language Development
Infants’ comprehension of words
Toddlers’ strategies in learning word meanings
Children’s acquisition of new words (underextensions and overextensions)
Bilingualism

Conceptual Development
Children classification of objects (superordinate, basic or subordinate level)
Causal understanding
Biological understanding
Understanding of physical laws and rules
Symbolic understanding

Logical Reasoning
Young children logical reasoning abilities
Development of transitive reasoning ability
Development of children’s scientific reasoning (making hypothesis and testing hypothesis)
Development of scientific strategies involved experimentation

Analogical Reasoning, Learning, Problem Solving and Transfer
Children’s discovery and learning of problem solving strategies
How do children solve scientific problems?
Factors influencing analogical reasoning and transfer
Age differences in analogical problem solving
How do children transfer analogical solutions?
Effects of similarity between source and target problems on analogical problem solving

• THINGS TO CONSIDER IN DESIGNING AND WRITING YOUR RESEARCH PROPOSAL:

You are encouraged to use the journal articles (your additional readings) as models for organizing your research proposal. Of course, your paper should be more concise, and your design, relatively simple (two or three conditions in a single experiment), but you can follow the journal articles in structuring your proposal.

I. Introduction — Why?

A. Select an issue that is interesting to you.
B. A brief opening summary that describes what you want to do and why you want to do it.
C. Review the background literature:
1. Cite other work done on this topic;
2. Show how your study fits in with this work;
3. Indicate ways you are extending or replicating specific studies.
D. Identify the general hypothesis to be investigated.
E. Operationalize independent and dependent variables:
1. Indicate why you are using these variables;
2. Point out how these variables are observable and measurable.

II. Method — How?

A. Indicate what subjects you are using and why:
1. Identify the reason for selecting a particular age;
2. Justify sample size.
B. Summarize materials and equipment to be used:
1. Describe specific tasks and tests;
2. Justify adequacy of recording responses.

III. Expected Results — What?

A. Anticipate expected results (need to be specific);
B. Indicate how the anticipated results are connected to your major hypothesis and how they add to our knowledge about that particular area in cognitive development.

IV. References

• STRUCTURE OF YOUR PROPOSAL:

Specific Aims
Background and Significance
Hypotheses
Research Design and Methods
Anticipated Results and
Possible Conclusions
References

• FORMAT

Your paper will be 8 pages in length, typewritten, and double-spaced with 1” margins.
Please refer to the APA manual for appropriate formats. For citation style in text and references, please also see the journal articles as examples.

APA style resources web sites: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

• EVALUATION CRITERIA:

Importance of the topic (issue) that you address (How does the project advance our knowledge about children’s cognition?)
Originality of ideas
Creativity of methods
Clarity of expression
Soundness of arguments
Appropriateness of format
Citations of relevant journal articles

preview of the answer..

Over the years, mixed reactions have been raised on the effects of children’s TV viewing on the educational achievement. Despite the fact that the television is a rich source of entertainment to the children, its effects on cognitive development and academic achievement are well articulated. The study aims at identifying the positive and negative effects of children’s TV viewing on their educational achievement. Based on the fact that the television is readily ..

APA 2327 words