Navigating the Selection of a Research Topic for a JP Seminar when Unfamiliar with the Subject Matter
In the heart of the Woodrow Wilson School, a student finds herself immersed in a captivating seminar on Maternal and Child Health in the U.S. This seminar, she finds, is not just an academic exercise, but a reflection of her everyday life as a woman and a student.
The focus of her Junior Paper (JP) project, however, was initially a source of panic. Faced with a list of research options, none seemed to perfectly align with her interest in race and discrimination. But a conversation with Professor Udi Ofer, a renowned advocate for civil rights and social justice, sparked a change in her attitude.
Professor Ofer's insights led her to delve into the documented racial and ethnic disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes. This journey would involve studying differences in mortality rates, access to care, and health conditions among racial groups, with a particular focus on the disproportionate impact on Black women and infants compared to White or other groups.
The student's research would be centred around several key areas. These include investigating racial disparities in maternal and infant mortality rates, exploring structural and systemic factors driving discrimination, researching community innovations and support interventions, studying the impact of perceived discrimination on health-seeking behaviours, and comparing maternal health indicators among racial and ethnic groups.
The student's mother's advice to maintain a positive attitude played a significant role in her approach to the seminar and the JP project. With a renewed optimism, she decided to focus her JP on the inconsistencies surrounding maternal health policies in women's prisons and why they exist. She plans to layer this topic with prison reform, drawing from her experiences as a Petey Greene tutor.
By situating her JP at the intersection of race, discrimination, and maternal-child health, the student hopes to contribute to understanding how inequities arise and potential pathways for reducing them, drawing from recent data and ongoing public health efforts.
Whether shared in print, online, or on platforms like Reddit, this student's journey serves as a testament to the transformative power of academic inquiry and the pursuit of social justice.
The student's Junior Paper (JP) project, initially a cause of worry due to its lack of alignment with her interest in race and discrimination, will now focus on the disparities in maternal health policies within women's prisons. This exploration, set to intertwine with prison reform, will also foster her personal growth in the field of education-and-self-development, centering on a pursuit of personal-growth and social justice.
