Leading up to this course, I was dreading it. A professional colleague had dropped this course last year due to the intensity and rigor. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by the content that was covered. The Dana textbook was quite extensive and the Harris, Edmonson, and Combs resource was informative and straight-forward.
Prior to this course, I had no inkling what action research was or how it would be distinguished from traditional educational research. Not having a teaching background, I was never introduced to practitioner inquiry. Understanding the concept of the action research process took a little time for me to grasp. It was foreign for me to think that by focusing inward on personal practice, beneficial change for student achievement could be enacted. Now I comprehend the process and relevance that this leadership skill holds for commencing continuous improvement in schools.
“An unshared practitioner inquiry is like the stone lying beside the pond. Unless that inquiry is tossed into the professional conversation that contributes to the knowledge base for teaching and administration, it has little chance of creating change. However, once tossed in, it disturbs the status quo of educational practices, creating a ripple effect that begins with the principal himself and his immediate vicinity (the teachers and students in the building) and emanates out to a district and a state, eventually reaching and contributing to a transformation at the perimeter of practice – in the education profession itself” (Dana, 2009, p. 135-136).
I have thoroughly enjoyed learning about the action research process and developing my own research plan. The progress and process of my action research study will be shared through the use of a professional blog. I agree with Dana when she states “The conventional wisdom is that writing reflects thinking. I am drawn to a different position: writing is thinking” (Dana, 2009, p. 145).
Dana, N. (2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher. Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin.
During Week #4 of my Lamar University Research course, my studies ventured into the realm of sustaining improvement and related strategies such as Force Field Analysis, the Delphi Method, Nominal Group Technique, and the CARE Model. In addition, I continued revisions of my action research plan. Professional colleagues and my site mentor made suggestions through face-to-face meetings, discussion boards, and blog posts. Please review the latest revised draft of my proposed plan. Thank you for your continued assistance with this project.
It is the third week in my Lamar University Research course. Please review the draft of my action research plan which answers the following inquiry:
How does the implementation of interactive whiteboards (e.g. Promethean ActivBoards) affect student engagement and achievement? Specifically, given similar demographics, do classrooms with interactive whiteboards produce higher student grades and TAKS scores compared to classrooms without interactive whiteboards? What role can campus principals play in affecting the success of this technology solution?
What are some educational areas that are ripe for inquiry?
Nancy Fichtman Dana describes nine educational areas as major wonderings for many school leaders. Here are some examples for each category and reasons why they would be important areas for action research:
- Staff development: How does the use of a campus technology facilitator enhance teacher professional development with technology integration? In what ways can I as a technology leader assist campus administrators with this endeavor? This would be an important area for action research because technology is such an important aspect to our digital society and global business models. Districts must engage in research to see the benefit and impact that a campus technology facilitator can have on staff development.
- Curriculum development: In what ways does CSCOPE provide for grade-level, as well as, vertical and cross-campus curriculum alignment given the new 4x4 state standards? This would be an important area for action research because if our school district continues to pay for and utilize CSCOPE, we need to be ensured that the curriculum documents, scope and sequence, and vertical alignment are keeping up with state-mandated changes.
- Individual teacher(s): How can I as a principal assist my veteran teachers to retain invigorating instructional methods throughout their careers? This would be an important area for action research because there seems to be a correlation between years of experience and a lack of enthusiasm toward teaching.
- Individual student(s): How do inclusion environments improve student achievement for low-performing students, high-performing students, and special education students? This would be an important area for action research because our community and district administrators have expressed concern about the curriculum being “watered down” in such education environments.
- School culture/community: In what ways can our school instill our campus culture and mission into our students while appealing to parent and community member support? What role can I as principal play in this venture? This would be an important area for action research because our traditions are very strong with our staff, but not well-communicated to students and parents.
- Leadership: How can I modify my leadership practices and those of my teachers to sustain our campus quality, even after I retire? This would be an important area for action research because building a strategy for ongoing, sustainable leadership and striving for continuous improvement should not depart when a single leader leaves our campus.
- Management: How can grade-level and team leaders assist in the budget process to affect a positive change in classroom and campus goals for our students? This would be an important area for action research because budgets are a major factor in regards to their resulting resources for teachers and students.
- School performance: What is the relationship between “making a connection” with a student and that student’s academic performance? In what ways can all campus staff (administrators, teachers, paraprofessionals, office staff, custodians, maintenance workers, etc.) assist with students connections. This would be an important area for action research because if it could be determined that our students feel acceptance and believe that campus staff members are dedicated to their success, academic improvements will occur.
- Social justice or equity issues: Do our resources, activities, events, and instructional methods truly support our diverse student population with regards to race, gender, economic status, and ability? This would be an important area for action research because we, as a staff, need to have a level of awareness when it comes to accidentally excluding or not adequately relating to a student group.
How educational leaders might use blogs?
Nancy Fichtman Dana quotes Harry Wolcott who stated that “the conventional wisdom is that writing reflects thinking.” Dana takes this a step further and declares that “writing is thinking.” Blogs represent the online version of a public journal. Educational leaders can and should use blogs for a variety of reasons. Certainly, blogs are a means of expression, but more importantly, they are an interactive and collaborative method to share information and “test the waters” with certain ideas. Within the context of my RESEARCH course, Blogs allow for reflection within the context of action research. “Writing about your research activities encourages thought and reflection, and perhaps creates new questions that are resolved, which shape and complete your research” (Dana, 2009, p. 149). Additionally, blogs may empower administrators to challenge the status quo. Another reason for their use is that blogs are an interactive, collaborative accomplishment that can be shared with professional colleagues, parents, and the community. Leaders can use blogs to explore and develop ideas while invoking responses from a larger audience of professionals. A final use mentioned by Dana is that it is an archive of thoughts, ideas, concepts, and inquiries that can be referenced over time. This revisiting may produce “critical insights“ or “new and deeper insights with each visit” (Dana, 2009, p. 88).
What is action research?
During Week #1 of my RESEARCH class with Lamar University, I read excerpts from the following resources:
- Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
- Harris, S., Edmonson, S., and Combs, J. (2010). Examining what we do to improve our schools: 8 steps to improve our schools. Eye on Education Press.
- Ringler, M. (2007). Action Research: An Effective Instructional Leadership Skill for Future Public School Leaders. AASA Journal of Scholarship and Practice, 4(1), 27-42.
Action research is performed by an administrator and involves inquiry into his/her own practices with the ultimate goal of changing those actions to better the teaching and learning at his/her school. In Examining What We Do To Improve Schools, the authors define inquiry as “the process of thinking and questioning that undergrids the Framework for Examining School Improvement” (Harris, Edmonson, & Combs, 2010, p. 5). The framework consists of eight steps: setting the foundation, analyzing data, developing deeper understanding, engaging in self reflection, exploring patterns, determining direction, taking action, and sustaining improvement. In the Dana text, administrative inquiry or action research is “the process of a principal engaging in systemic, intentional study of his/her own administrative practice and taking action for change based on what he/she learns as a result of the inquiry” (Dana, 2009, p. 2). Administrators first ponder a topic, collect and analyze data, research applicable literature and articles, develop an action plan for changing the related practice, and finally share the results with peers. Administrative inquiry and reflection facilitates a deeper and better understanding of administrative actions and the reasons behind those practices. This enables administrators to enact modifications to that practice and change for the better of the teaching and learning within the school. Action research allows for personal professional development and permits the campus leader to become the “head learner” at his/her campus. It is an ongoing process that should be made a part of the principal’s job, not set apart from it. Turning inquiry into practice is key. According to Principal Donnan Stoicovy, “It is the nagging question (or questions) that stirs me to take action based on data, investigations, instincts, and more questions. It is a never-ending process. It is the process of creating and re-creating my school, my life, and my practice a question at a time” (Dana, 2009, p. 9).
How does action research differ from traditional educational research?
Action research differs from traditional educational research in a few ways. Traditional research has been governed by two methods: process-product research and qualitative or interpretive research. The first is transmissive and the educators implement research findings and curricula designed by experts outside their school. The second method is usually focused on explaining a process and is usually written by university researchers for academic audiences. Both methods implement outside research. Action research is designed to implement inside research focused on teachers and students inside your school. Practitioners investigate their own issues and play a significant role in the research and action processes. This type of inquiry is “focused on providing insight into an administrator’s own practice in an effort to make change and improve the school” (Dana, 2009, p. 7). As Mark Barcewell (a middle school principal) states, “it’s not me sitting down in a chair and somebody else, who doesn’t know me, my school, my teachers, my community, or my kids, telling me what I should be doing… through engagement in inquiry, I’m learning with my teachers and with the students in my building by closely taking a really hard look at what I’m already doing and what I need to do to change it” (Dana, 2009, p. 8). In a nutshell, action research is based inside the school and conducted by the principal while traditional research is not.
What are the benefits of action research?
Administrators can realize numerous benefits from conducting action research. Dana lists many in her textbook. First, a benefit to administrators includes diminishing the isolation that many administrators feel since they are the only position in charge of all staff and functions within a campus. Inquiry forces them into organized group discussions about the issue at hand and allows them to feel directly involved with practice decisions. Second, principals engaged in inquiry “become role models for their teachers and students in their building. A critical belief about learning is ownership. Learning must be something teachers and students do, not something that others do to or for them” (Dana, 2009, p. 12). Principals must not only be instructional leaders, but “head learners,” as well. A third benefit is that action research can facilitate best practices within a campus. Common notions and perceptions may be proven incorrect through inquiry exercises. A fourth benefit to administrators is that it allows them to decelerate their day, even for a short time, and become proactive rather than reactive to certain issues. Finding the time for this type of focus is difficult, but necessary.
To reflect or not to reflect?
Reflection is an important leadership skill that administrators can utilize for deeper understanding of a given topic and hopefully assist them to focus their ideas and practices to improve their schools. Proper reflection of data, processes, and outcomes can produce astounding results. “By scheduling a planned, consistent time for reflection and inquiry… you’ll be surprised at how much you can accomplish and how you will feel a greater sense of control over all of the other line items on the principal’s ever-growing ‘To Do’ list” (Dana, 2009, p. 19). By documenting their reflections, administrators can “return to them at various times in the evolution of the inquiry, gaining new and deeper insights with each visit (Dana, 2009, p.88).
Reflection is an important aspect of action research. Adequate time should be scheduled to contemplate an issue thoroughly. Critical assessment of one’s own practices and those of the organization is a fundamental strategy in determining what can be done to make a significant difference in student achievement. “Reflection is a key process in the evaluation of the action research results and the revision of a plan. "Inherent in reflection is the process for improving instruction” (Ringler, 2007, p. 35). Additionally, reflection can spawn new questions which can help to complete one’s research, challenge the status quo, explore concepts beyond a fleeting thought, and make an educator more intentional about administrator practices each and every day” (Dana, 2009, p. 149-150).
How might I use action research?
In our current age of accountability, we have all felt the pressure to increase student achievement for the student populations that need the most improvement. One question in my district is if this comes at the expense of our high-performing students who now seem to receive the least amount of attention and resources from our staff? I believe an action research inquiry into this issue would produce some answers to this question. Specifically, our action research question would be the following:
What teaching and leadership strategies can be altered or implemented to accommodate our low-performing students as well as our high-performing students? Can these approaches exist in unison while assisting both student groups, increasing attention and resources to all students, and allowing both groups to excel?
I believe this is a problem of critical importance because while we may be bringing our low performers up to state and federal standards, we are neglecting our gifted students that could be molded and guided to achieve our school district’s prominence and distinction, not to mention recognition of those particular students' intelligence and hard work. Nothing makes a teacher more proud than to have a struggling student finally demonstrate understanding of a concept by producing results on a project or assessment. However, equally important is witnessing an exceptional student who takes the knowledge beyond the concepts taught in the classroom and excels by participating and placing in a regional or state-level contest. All students can learn, but we must provide opportunities to students at all levels. This is difficult when we are spending 90% of our time and efforts assisting our students that need vast improvement.
An action research study would be beneficial by analyzing the data and providing possible solutions to serve both student groups effectively. This would be particularly beneficial to my school district because we would be attempting to resolve an issue and enact change in our practices to improve student achievement for low and high-performing students. This would also serve to facilitate professional growth of our teachers and administrators. “By cultivating this inquiry stance toward practice, principals and teachers play a critical role in enhancing their own professional growth and ultimately the experience of schooling for children” (Dana, 2009, p.11).
