Research Assignment

The Role of Sports on Improving the Whole Child Development in School

Micheaux Hollingsworth

Liberty University

SETM 415

Dr. Clark Zealand

November 29, 2021

The Role of Sports on Improving the Whole Child Development in School

1. Research Topic/Title of Proposal: (State your topic here as it will appear as the title on your final research proposal; don't worry, you can continue to revise it.)

This research will explore the following topic: The Role of Sports on Improved Whole Child Development in School.

2. Key Components (Restate and/or include the most up to date, a revised version of the following):

a. Highlight the fundamentals for your proposal:

i. Quantitative, Qualitative, or Mixed-Methods

ii. Applied or Basic research

iii. Descriptive, Explanatory, or Predictive research

iv. Primary or Secondary data sources

This is qualitative research, targeting to collect and analyze non-numerical data to reveal concepts, opinions, and experiences on the role of sports in the whole child development. The study focuses on non-numerical statistics to understand individuals' experiences and perceptions of circumstances, phenomena, or experiences by obtaining in-depth insights or details regarding the studied subject matter. Therefore, qualitative research is preferable in this study to obtain a rich or detailed description of a complex experience or phenomenon.

b. Unit of Analysis:

The unit of analysis for this research relates to a connection between the topic and the research questions. The whole child development is the unit of analysis for this research, incorporating the aspects of development related to social-emotional, physical, cognitive, and creative concepts. A primary focus for the whole child development as the unit of analysis for this research is to adopt an all-inclusive sphere by integrating creative, cognitive, physical, and social-emotional components of the development. Furthermore, every element of the unit analysis will be assessed using diverse qualitative metrics. For example, the physical component can be explored fitness, flexibility, improved motor skills, etc. The cognitive part of the unit analysis incorporates aspects related to the quality of reasoning, memory, language, etc. Creativity entails the aspects related to expertise, motivation, and creative thinking, as a center for analysis. The social-emotional component includes the sub-units associated with the quality of the relationships and discipline of the child.

c. Problem Statement:

It is crucial to note that many educators and the professionals responsible for child development in schools have placed more emphasis on curricular activities and have disregarded the role of full participation in extra-curricular activities, especially for school-aged kids. As a result, several children are smart and grown academically, mainly defined by their educational or academic prowess, but remain physically unfit, unable to develop quality relationships, and creative and emotionally intelligent. This outcome shows a one-sided growth, which disregards the development of a child as a whole. Therefore, the non-participation in sports disregards integrating the social-emotional, physical, cognitive, and creative domains. Further, the insensitivity of the professionals on the role of sports in children's development renders the kids vulnerable to social-emotion, physical, and creativity-related problems such as poor health, unhealthy relationships, etc. As a result, educators need to learn the role of sports in the school environment for children to grow cognitively, physically, creatively, and socially-emotionally.

d. Statement of Purpose:

This study targets an exploration of the role of sports on the child's health, behavior, education, and social aspects, alongside the emotional, physical, and creative components of development. The research will incorporate the outcomes for integrating sports on whole child development, demonstrated by physical, cognitive, creative, and social-emotional skills. This research is focused on establishing a link between the development domains and sports' contribution to such development. As a result, factors related to discipline, healthiness, tolerance, activeness, etc., will be incorporated to encourage holistic child development.

e. Statement of Significance:

This research targets to improve professional practice and general service delivery by justifying the need for professionals' diligence in promoting whole child development in school through sports and physical activity. Research on the identified subject matter stands an opportunity for providing strategies for emotional support and feedback on sports essential for the professionals dealing with kids. It is an opportunity to provide professional advice on the role of sports in child development as a central objective in the school environment. Therefore, this study is a background for enhancing the development domain for the children by providing objective and solution-focused approaches.

f. Research Question:

RQ. What is the role of sports in improving whole child development in school?

i. (also hypothesis for quantitative projects):

g. Theoretical Framework or Conceptual Model:

Figure 1: PPCT Model

This research is embedded in the aspects of the Process, Person, Context, and Time (PPCT) Model, recognizing the role of diverse levels of the environment on a child's development. The PPCT model contextualizes that the proximal process, persons, ecological context, and time determine child development. Therefore, as explored in this research, child development entails an interaction of personal and environmental factors.

h. Variables:

i. Dependent:

ii. Independent (if applicable):

iii. Intervening (if applicable):

i. Sampling Technique:

A purposive sampling technique is a preferred selection for this research. It is a non-probability sampling method reliant on the researcher's subjective judgment in choosing the sample for the participation. It is desirable to obtain detailed knowledge and information on a phenomenon through the audience's experiences and opinions regarding whole child development.

3. Specific Research Design: (Using information from presentations and readings, write what specific research design you are planning on using that is associated with your general approach (qual, quan, mixed) below.)

a. Specific Qualitative Design:

A phenomenological research design is preferable for this qualitative research to account for lived experience within the world. This research design examines people's experiences of a phenomenon. In this research, it will be helpful to better understand the role of sports in child development by obtaining in-depth insights into people's motivations and actions.

b. Specific Quantitative Design:

c. Specific Mixed-Method Design:

4. Integrity and Rigor: (Using information from presentations and readings, choose appropriate criteria for evaluating integrity in a quantitative design or strategies for rigor in a qualitative design. If mixed-methods, you must determine a combination of both.)

a. Qualitative Designs: (Choose a minimum of two strategies and explain why they apply.)

A strategy to ensure rigor in a qualitative design includes member checking, where results can be returned to participants to check the resonance and accuracy of their experiences. Additionally, data triangulation is the second preferable approach by obtaining and using a variety of data sources. It is a crucial approach for minimizing data errors by avoiding being misled by non-representative samples.

b. Quantitative Designs: (Choose a minimum of three internal validity criteria and one criterion from either external validity or sampling error, whichever relates, and explain why they apply.)

c. Mixed-Methods: (Choose a minimum of five from a combination of qual and quan and explain, for each, why they apply.)

5. References: (In correct APA format, list all seven peer-reviewed sources to date. If you have more, you are welcome to include them.)