Michelle Belanger

Competency 9: Reflection
SEI 650

The products that I choose represent my knowledge and competency in
Policy and Research.
My first product was completed in the Spring of 2014 for SEI 514. I created a
student led discussion about the benefits of Public Pre-K. I had to research the
history of public pre-k and find facts to back up my statement of public pre-k being
beneficial and needed. This is a subject that I feel very passionate about and really
enjoyed putting together the presentation and actually presenting to my colleges. I
used Google and the ERIC database as well as some resources that I already had to
find the resources for the presentation. I wanted to focus on public-pre-k on a
national and state level so that is where I focused my research.
The second product was also completed for SEI 514 in the Spring of 2014. I
choose the write up on my advocacy/public policy assignment that I completed. I
researched the court case Eliezer Williams v. State of California. This case really
interested me because it was about a fair education for children in high poverty
areas. I work in with a majority of low-income families and advocate for them in
every way that I can. I feel that this court case really embraces what I try to stand
for in my work.
The third and final product is my Graduate project (proposal) that was
submitted in SEI 514 and completed in SEI 650 in the Summer of 2014. This
represents a extensive research project, that starts with a proposal and includes a
literature review, methods section and results. The proposal is the first step in lying
out how I will conduct the research project. I also had to take many aspects of my
proposal into an application for the Institutional Review Board in order to get
approval to conduct my research project. I feel that this project really tests my
ability and competency in conducting research.