OU - Exploring Psychology DSE 212 let's chat and worry over assignments!

[muppetgirl]

I?ll start off with an introduction.

I?m Muppet and I?m 32 and have 2 children ( 4.6 and 10 months) I used to be a teacher, early years trained but taught in yr3/4/5. I loved teaching but when I worked in a difficult school I knew I?d found my vocation so would really love to become an Educational Psychologist.

I started this course in Feb. 07 and completed 2 assignments but became pregnant with ds 2 and developed a serious case of baby brain so stopped with a view to re enrolling when I could.

Very excited to start!

Hello ladies sorry not been around, I had wisdom tooth problems, was ill then both boys snotty so I'm back and thinking about TMA1

How's everyone getting on?

I am finding it VERY hard to keep to the wordcount and my essay is now starting to look more like a list rather than a well thought out essay.

How are you all managing with it?

OMG, I have not started my TMA!

I am finding the strengths and weaknesses bit difficult as I prefer compare and contrast essays...

Still loads of time though Docket!

OK, I've finally started writin gthe TMA, and God, it sounds boring. How do we make these darned things interesting and relevant. I feel as if I'm just regurgitating the basics (which, let's face it, is pretty dull).

Aargh.

I hate this bit of the process...

how's everyone doing?

I've done an essay plan and have started the essay. I've no idea whether what I'm doing is the right thing/any good, I'll actually be pleased to get marked as I could do with some feedback. I didn't realise we had to do both ethics questions so that bit is going to take me longer than I had planned.

I'm enjoying it though. I think.

How is everyone else?

Woo hoo, I've done the ethics section. It was quite tough (I found myself hedging my bets quite often but I think I've covered quite a lot of points).

Need to crack on now with the essay - I had started it but got a bit bogged down so moved onto the ethics bit.

My dh is doing this. He hasn't even started on the essay and only discovered yesterday he had the ethics part to do . Guess who will be watching the kids all this weekend while he studies.
Will try and get him to come on here and introduce himself.

He went to a tutorial a few weeks ago and was the only male there.

Good luck everyone.

How long did the ethics bit take you ihh?

colie, there has only been one man so far in my tutorials, I had no idea this was such a 'female' subject! Hope you get some time to yourself this weekend!

Anyone about tonight? Am seeking a bit of a discussion about the ethics stuff.

I seem to be unsure about the first question - whether the fact it involves children (and all those ramifications) overrides the fact it is an observational study and therefore it is unlikely the children would have it explained to them/debriefing would take place.

Anyone care to chat with me about it?

Please don't make me venture onto the OU forums

GreenEggsAndSpam Asked dh, who is still unwilling to type in person . He has said there is a link on the ou website for ethics, that he couldn't get into but they have now updated it.

Not sure if this makes sense. Hopefully by now you will have your answers.

Colie - thanks for asking your DH! I have downloaded the document from the web I think your DH means (ethics...human participants), but am still unsure about how to treat the first scenario. Could you tell him I am asking really nicely if he would like to come and chat?

Docket, I pretty much wrote it up in one go, but that was after a lot of faffing around reading and thinking about it. So I'd say that once i got going, I got into the flow and it wasn't so bad - took maybe 4 hours.

GreenEggs, for question 1 I said that the playground scenario was technically ok, but that she would have to be aware that it is a sensitive issue, so be prepared to withdraw any data if asked to.
Also, I decided 'Mary' did need a CRB check even for the playground scenario, because she would be creating data relating to those
children, even if they weren't aware of it. Does that make sense? To be honest, I couldn't find anything to back this up, so I used my common sense. I got the impression from my tutor that if we can show that it is not clear cut, and that we are aware of why this is, then we are demonstrating a good understanding of the issues, which is what they want.

The guidelines clearly state that observing someone in a public setting where they would expect to be observed is ethically defensible. So I took this to mean that I could argue that it is ok.
Q2 gives you the chance to discuss the implications of this e.g. what would happen if while doing her research, Mary witnessed something dodgy (violent parent, unaccompanied child) and where would she stand ethically. At least that's how I understood the question.
Hope this helps.

Iheart - thankyou!
I agree with you re the CRB, but not sure about the q's on explaining the purpose to the children etc. If you go by the guidance in the Methods book, then you have to do all that, yet the study is an observational one, so surely Mary wouldn't have contact with the children/parents?
Hwr she might have to explain things in the play group setting, which would then skew her study as one set would know about what she was doing and the other wouldn't. Does that make sense?

stumbled across this laydeeez....

i did dse212 last year..... really enjoyed it. am now in middle of online research project dzx222..... which i'm finding hard going.... if you possibly can do the residential one instead!

good luck to you all.

Hello cfb - I was wondering about that course. How many hours a week do you need to do it?
Why is it hard going?

Any advice re the ethics stuff btw?

your ethics ?'s sound different to mine... (they're not stoopid those ou people), we definitely didnt have anything about a playground and crb checks....

if i can help with anything specific i will.... if i can!

when's it due in?

the online thing is sooooo much harder than it need be because of the lack of rl / real time interaction.... working "collaboratively" with a load of strangers online is crap.

cfb - it would take to long to explain I think, but ta!

How did you find the DSE212 in general?

GreenEggs, I can see what you mean about the results maybe being skewed by playgroup knowing and playground not, but then that is a methods problem not an ethics problem. I read the question to be "Is there any ethical problem with watching kids in a playground", simply that. Given that it's only 120 words to discuss, I don't think they're expecting much more.

i thought it was a really good course, challenging but well supported and the materials were good. found some assignments harder going than others..... but really glad i did it and am ploughing on with ou psychology.... finish the online thing at xmas and then child development ed209?? starts in feb...

Thanks iheart. So do you think that the children need to be told and debriefed in the playgroup seting then? I assume the parental or in loco parentis consent issue is a given there.

Also, I couldn't find anything to say it was ok to observe anyone and use the data but not tell them , which is what the park scenario would be surely?

Sounds really hard to me!

GreenEggsAndSpam - asked dh who said he has not done the ethics part yet or started on the essay . Sorry, otherwise he would have spoken to you. I am worrying about the lack of time he has spent on this. Don't know why as totally up to him.