If I were to describe myself in terms of a researcher I would say that I enjoy the research process, in that I am beginning to put the puzzle together. And the PhD with regards to the literature review is very much like a puzzle. What started off as a broad topic has suddenly become a number of small topics, all interlinked, but leading to the same point. I have collected most of the side pieces of the puzzle (see my Research page if you don’t believe me!), and am now putting together the middle pieces with their myriads of colours and patterns – to put the project in a metaphor.
Needless to say that Google is my friend, and by using more focused search patterns through Google and Google Scholar I have found that even the obscure is available – to a certain extent. Case in point would be one of the more recent references I have found:
Goldman, H., & Lowis, M. J. (2007). An Investigation into the Respective Influences of Nature and Nurture on Musical Ability. Korean Journal of Thinking and Problem Solving, 17(2), 43-56.
…as a side point it just goes to show there is a journal for just about every field of human endeavor you could possibly think of!
This particular article is obviously useful as the sub-topic I am looking at at the moment is on nature/nurture with regards to music learning with emphasis on motivation of students to learn music – me being me thought I had hit the jackpot finding this article however finding it and getting it are two different matters altogether.
To cut the story short, normally I would have used my universities very extensive database of journal links and eventually downloaded them. With this one, after initially finding that the home site it was based on was written in Korean and therefore I couldn’t find an obvious way to download it, I went to The British Library website where I had to buy the article and download it – it’s just one of the things you have to do sometimes.
Still, it is just one piece of a very extensive puzzle which is gradually coming together, even at this early stage. Focusing the finding of articles is a skill I have to practice, as with the writing up of content, which is a process I also enjoy. I hope to post a little more regularly on PhD progress.
the next life journey starts…
Sunday, July 12th, 2009I was going to make the next blog post much like the previous two – a sort of mini essay on some aspect of my current reading. But since I’m only part of the way through the book Thought and Language by Lev Sevenovich Vygotsky (or Vygotskiï) it wouldn’t make sense to write something until I have finished the book or I’m a good way through it. But I am finding this book, and some extension articles I’ve found, very interesting…
The real reason I’m writing to day is to just say that my academic journey is about to start again. I have received a place at Monash Universtiy to commence a PhD in Music Education where I will be looking at the ways school-aged students learn while participating in community bands and school ensembles, and how one style of learning can benefit the other – or something to this effect.
This topic is of interest to me as it was sparked by some aspects I touched on in my last Masters project where I wrote up the development of a community training band. Since I finished this paper I have been building resources in the hope that I would be able to continue further research in this area. I’m also hoping through my research that there might be a way where community music can be used as some kind of extension activity for school music students.
I’m under no illusion about the amount of work that has to be done. But my reasoning is that while my brain is active and wanting activity, and while I have the time then why not? I am fairly sure that I will enjoy the research side of things and working to bring various parts of research together. So I’ve decided to undertake this “journey” to achieve another life goal which I hope will end up making a difference.
Tags: community arts, general comments, research, school, university
Posted in education, general, research | No Comments »