Research
NRCEC 2024
As a Study Coordinator in Dr. Amanda Moreno's Brain Breaks Lab at Erikson Institute, I was granted the opportunity to present our preliminary findings in June, 2024. The goal of this study was to look at the effectiveness of brain breaks on student attention and learning. We had the pleasure of presenting our findings at the National Research Conference on Early Childhood in Arlington, Virginia. This was my second time getting to present research in person and it was somehow an even better experience than the first! Having been integrated in every step of the research for this project, I was able to speak on various facets of the study. It was amazing to discuss further angles of research and network with peers who share an interest in early childhood education!
Syeda, N., Moreno, A., Godwin, K.E., & Jacobson, M.. The Effectiveness of Brain Breaks at Enhancing Attention
Regulation and Instruction Uptake in K-2nd Grade: Preliminary Results. National Research Conference on Early Childhood, 2024, Arlington, VA.
Senior Capstone
My senior year of college, 2021-2022, I pursued a capstone course under the tutelage of Dr. Joyce Hopkins and her PhD student, Jennifer Kurian. Together, we worked on a school-based project using data previously collected at an elementary school. The goal of this study was to look at teacher ratings of behavior compared to objective ratings of behavior, see if those ratings were impacted by student race, and then look at the implications of this on student achievement. We had the pleasure of presenting our findings at the 94th MPA Conference in Chicago in April 2022. This was my first time getting to present research in person and was such an amazing experience! Being able to discuss our findings and related topics with others who shared the interest was heart-warming in a way I didn’t expect!
Syeda, N., Kurian, J., Hopkins, J., & Murray, D. W. Does child race affect teachers' ratings of behavior and academics? Poster presented at the 94th Annual Meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, 2022, Chicago, IL.
Research Assistant
My first foray into research was during my sophomore year of college starting in 2019. Working in Dr. Arlen Moller’s Social Psychology lab was crucial in building my psychology research foundation. I worked on various projects and learned about all the little pieces that go into a big research study. I also learned how to translate in-person tasks to online formats when COVID-19 hit the world during my second semester. One of the things I did as an RA was help create an online presentation for Dr. Moller’s research on burnout in physicians which was remotely presented at the 2020 Lewis College Research Day.
Class Experiences
My Psychology courses built a solid foundation for my research experiences. Here, I learned how to use RStudio and Jamovi for data analysis as well as the intricacies in every step of a research study. I learned how to create, test, and implement surveys. I also conducted numerous literature searches and worked on my report writing skills. For my Research Methods class, we had to conduct a replication study over the course of the semester as a group. This included participant recruitment, background research, data collection, data analysis, and individual report writing. We then had to present our findings at the 2021 Lewis College Research Day, where we won first place!
*Request paper on topic via https://forms.gle/PDW688U2Uy6v63nc8 *
Breakfast
Ideas
Syeda, N., Blanchard, P., Brandstrader F., Rehman S., & Zia E. Personal preference: a replication study on mortality. Poster presented at the Illinois Institute of Technology: Lewis College Undergraduate Research Day, 2021, Chicago, IL.