Dominique McLean Presents at 2017 CREATE Conference

2017 May 2

The Third Annual CREATE Conference at Eastern Connecticut State University took place on April 21. CREATE stands for "Celebrating Research Excellence and Artistic Talent at Eastern," and is the University's premier conference showcasing student research and creative activity.

Dominique McLean '18 of Windsor presented two oral presentations: "Effects of Toys on the Quality of Young Children's Play: Effects of Age, Socioeconomic Status, Gender, and Ethnicity" and "How Preschool Teachers Introduce New Play Materials: Impact on Play Quality." McLean majors in Early Childhood Education and Psychology.

"The TIMPANI toy study is an acronym for Toys that Inspire Mindful Play and Nurture Imagination," said McLean. "A committee selected ten toys on which it wanted us to do research. We recorded children's play using these toys and used a play quality measure to analyze the quality of play in five key areas which were thinking and learning, creativity/imagination, social interaction, verbalization and autonomy."

The one-day conference featured more than 300 Eastern undergraduates who presented talks, professional posters, live music, dance performances, art and photography exhibits, documentary films and panel discussions.

"Presenting at CREATE is a huge honor for me," said McLean. "Being part of this study has been valuable to me, especially because I am studying to be a teacher. I've learned a lot of valuable life skill. I'm very excited to present this study because it's important to convey the message that the field of education can conduct research that has purpose and meaning."

"CREATE is a reaffirmation of Eastern's commitment to undergraduate research as Connecticut's only public liberal arts university," said Niti Pandey, business administration professor and conference co-chair. Reflecting on this year's record number of participants, she added, "There is a wonderful variety of presentations and performances for people to see. CREATE 2017 showcases the hard work and talent of our students and demonstrates the dedication of their faculty mentors. We look forward to an excellent event!"

From art to zoology, Shakespeare to social media, tax law to terrorism, Eastern students of all majors explore important concepts and produce exemplary research and creative work; the culmination of their work for the 2016-17 academic year was on display at CREATE.

Patricia Szczys, biology professor and conference co-chair, added: "CREATE is a superb learning experience for all who participate and a true celebration of our student's achievements."