Learning Journal 6

This past Friday for class we discussed our research question. I think one thing stands common amongst us all, we all have a lot of narrowing down to do. Much of what we proposed as our "main question" was very broad. However, this is fine for right now since we are all in the beginning steps. I guess it just made me realize that although I still have time to work on bringing my project to a focus, I really need to work a little faster. Determining the question is the first part of the whole process, but it is just the beginning. Like those commercials for Tootsie Pop that ask "how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop", I feel in a similar position. I have just taken off the wrapper and am taking my first few licks. It has just hit me that this process will take a lot more licks to get to that delicious center. So until then I am just licking and licking away, hoping to make progress. Once I decide on my question, I will still have a lot more decisions to make; how will I gather my data, who will I use, what questions will I ask? I really think that once I pick my topic the whole process will proceed much quicker.
Another aspect that caught me about the project was how I was going to ask the people my survey questions. I probably can't translate the questions directly and I probably can't just ask them in the same way that I would ask them in the US. I was thinking I might focus on a younger age group, so I would have to determine how I would ask them in a way that they could understand. Then I would also have to decide how I would go about picking that age group or if I would try to ask everyone I thought was in that age range. This whole process will actually take a lot of time and I may come to realize that I won't actually know what to ask them until I get there. There are a lot of questions to be asked. There are a lot of questions that I need to answer before i hop on that plane.
I have been trying to spend more time focusing on what I can specifically research as I see that as my first step in getting closer to my proposal. This includes spending more time on the internet learning more about oral care and current practices. I want to look into Ayurveda a little more to get the common practices. I appreciate the extra comments from classmates, teachers, and Rem.