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MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Bethlehem Moravian College
Abrilene Johnston-Scott, EdDResearch Coordinator
Action Research Workshop Presentation
Education Department
September 11, 2014
1-2MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Action Research Any systematic inquiry conducted by
teacher researchers, principals, school counselors, or other stakeholders …
in the teaching/learning environment … to gather information about how their
particular schools operate, how they teach, and how well their students learn.
Research done by teachers for themselves
1-3MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Goals of Action Research
To improve the lives of children To learn about the craft of teaching
1-4MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Process of Action Research
1-5MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Mills’ Dialectic Action Research Spiral
MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Ethics
1-7MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Informed Consent Ensures that research participants
enter the research of their free will understand the study are aware of any possible dangers
Intended to reduce the likelihood that participants will be exploited
Ongoing dialogue between participants and teacher-researcher
Written permissions if necessary
1-8MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Freedom from Harm
Students must not be exposed to risk anonymity: researcher does not
know identity of participants confidentiality: researcher does
not release personally identifiable information
There is no place for deception in action research!
1-9MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Parental Permission Required if
students are underage data identify students
Not required if school personnel have “legitimate
educational interest” records are anonymous
Request must specify what data may be disclosed for what purposes to whom
1-10MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Deciding on an Area of Focus
Clarify your area of focus. Do reconnaissance. Review related literature.
1-11MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Clarifying an Area of Focus
General idea: statement that links idea to action and refers to a situation to change or improve
Area of focus: explicit question or problem to investigate involves teaching and learning focuses on your own practice within your locus of control something you feel passionate about something you want to change or
improve
1-12MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reconnaissance
Preliminary information gathering Taking time to reflect on your own
beliefs Taking time to understand the nature
and context of your general idea 3 forms
self-reflection description explanation
1-13MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Self-reflection
Reflect on theories that affect your practice educational values you hold
historical contexts
how your work in schools fits into the larger context of schooling and societyhistorical contexts
1-14MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Activities
What evidence do you have that this is a problem?
Which students are affected? How is the content currently taught?
1-15MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Explanatory Activities
Develop a hypothesis focus on the why try to account for critical factors
that have an impact on the general idea
1-16MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Review of Related Literature
Systematically identifying, locating, analyzing documents related to the topic/area of focus major themes promising practices
1-17MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Data Collection Techniques
1-18MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Data Collection
Largely determined by the nature of the problem qualitative quantitative mixed method
1-19MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Qualitative Data Collection Techniques
1-20MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Using and Making Records Archival documents
attendance and retention rates discipline referrals standardized test scores
Journals Maps, video and audio recordings,
photos, film Dictation software Other artifacts
1-21MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Quantitative Data Collection Techniques
Teacher-made tests Standardized tests School-generated report cards Questionnaires etc
1-22MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Triangulation
Use of multiple sources of data “multi-instrument” approach
1-23MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Triangulation Matrix
1-24MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Realigning Your Focus
Other directions appear more interesting, relevant, or problematic
That’s fine — Action research is intimate, open-
ended, unforeseen Action research is done to benefit
you and the students
1-25MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Validity
Degree to which data collection methods measure what they are supposed to measure
1-26MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reliability
Degree to which a test consistently measures whatever it measures expressed numerically, usually as
coefficient high coefficient (near 1.00)
indicates high reliability no test is perfectly reliable
1-27MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reliability in Qualitative Action Research
Degree to which data would be consistently collected same techniques utilized
repeatedly same techniques used by different
researchers
1-28MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Generalizability
Degree to which behavior of one group can be used to explain the behavior of a wider group
Generalizability is not the goal of action research. Instead, it is to: understand what is happening in
your school or classroom determine how to improve things
in that context
1-29MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Data Analysis and Interpretation
1-30MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Ongoing Analysis & Reflection
Is your research question still answerable and worth answering?
Are your data collection techniques catching the kind of data you want and filtering out unwanted data?
Conduct interim analysis Avoid premature action
1-31MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Analysis & Interpretation
Data analysis summary of data technique determined by type of
data Data interpretation
finding meaning in the data
1-32MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Organizing Qualitative Data
Reading/Memoing record initial thoughts
Describing include context, actions,
interactions Classifying
develop themes
1-33MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Data Analysis Techniques Identify themes
work inductively Code surveys, interviews,
questionnaires try to find patterns, meaning
Analyze interviews annotate and identify themes
Ask key questions
1-34MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Data Analysis Techniques Concept map
1-35MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Data Analysis Techniques Display findings
matrixes, charts, concept maps, graphs, figures, audiovisual media
State what’s missing avoid making unwarranted assertions
1-36MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Analyzing & InterpretingQuantitative Data
Descriptive statistics shorthand way of giving lots of
information about a range of numbers
1-37MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Analyzing & InterpretingQuantitative Data
Descriptive statistics central tendency
mean (average)median (middle) mode (most frequent)
variabilitystandard deviation (spread)
1-38MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Qualitative Data Interpretation
Extend the analysis raise questions note implications that might be
drawn, without actually drawing them Connect findings with personal
experience Seek advice of “critical” friends
take time to build relationships
1-39MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Qualitative Data Interpretation
Contextualize findings in literature Turn to theory
link to broader issues provide rationale, sense of meaning
1-40MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Action Planning for Educational Change
1-41MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Developing Action Plans
Reflect: “Based on what I have learned from this investigation, what should I do now?”
1-42MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Steps to Action
Summarizing findings Recommending action Determining responsibilities Sharing findings with colleagues Ongoing monitoring (data
collection) Creating timeline Developing resources
1-43MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Levels of Action Planning Individual
curriculum development, implementation instructional & assessment strategies classroom management strategies/plans community involvement
Team teachers, administrators, parents
Schoolwide
1-44MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Action Should Be Ongoing
Taking action is a regular part of teaching based on formative feedback often intuitive and informal
1-45MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reflection What were the intended and
unintended effects of your actions? What educational issues arise from
what you have learned about your practice?
1-46MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Challenges Facing Teacher Researchers
Lack of resources Resistance to change Reluctance to interfere with others’
professional practices Reluctance to admit difficult truths Finding a forum to share what you
learned Making time for action research
1-47MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Writing Up Action Research
1-48MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Format and Style
Format: general pattern of organization and arrangement
Style: rules of grammar, spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and word processing
1-49MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
APA Style Manual
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association most widely accepted by colleges,
universities, journals
1-50MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Outline, Action Research Report
Area-of-focus statement Related literature Definition of variables Research questions Description of intervention or innovation
1-51MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Outline, Action Research Report
Data collection Data considerations Data analysis and interpretation Action plan
1-52MillsAction Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher, 5e © 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Conclusion
This Concludes my presentation. Thank you for your attention.
No action without research; no research without action.”
—K. Lewin, cited in Adelman, 1993, p. 8