38 / 40
38
Speak Out
December 2016
www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.auBranch
News
Victoria
VIC 1911
members
as at October 2016
Creating Future Speechies
Starting our second
year of the University
of Melbourne's Master of Speech Pathology,
we were excited at the prospect of completing
a research project. Having learned about
the importance of evidence-based practice,
the opportunity to contribute to the literature
was compelling. We would be investigating
communication development in children under
the supervision of Katherine Sanchez and Angela
Morgan at the Murdoch Childrens Research
Institute.
As our project concludes, we can reflect on
our experience of being novice researchers.
We valued being able to direct our project and
problem solve its mechanics. It was satisfying to
delve deeply into a topic, apply our knowledge
of statistics, hone our skills in scientific writing
and author an original piece of research.
Understanding the process better, we now feel
more confident asking questions of researchers.
We noted the relationship between research and
clinical practice. As students, it was sometimes
difficult to interpret results and consider clinical
implications without much clinical experience
ourselves. We feel that research is something we
may return to after gaining clinical experience. At
the same time, the months spent analysing data
attuned us to the intricacies of child language,
which is directly applicable to clinical practice.
Tips for student researchers:
• Organisation is key! Establish effective
systems (e.g. reference management
software, summary notes) from the beginning
to facilitate finding information.
• Keep a research journal handy to jot down
ideas; "eureka moments" often happen away
from the computer.
• Before you begin, develop a timeline with
mini-deadlines for each project component
and review it regularly. This allows you to
break down large tasks into smaller goals,
and see your progress.
• Create agendas and minutes for meetings
with your supervisor. This strengthens
communication.
• To maximise the clarity of your writing, accept
offers of feedback from readers who are both
familiar and unfamiliar with the topic.
Linda Leem bruggen and Stephanie Mills
Research in speech pathology: a student perspective
Linda Leem bruggen and Stephanie Mills