Recent Posts
- Group 2 – Article 8: Fostering Inclusivity Through Teaching and Learning Action Research
- Group 1 – Article 8: Fostering Inclusivity Through Teaching and Learning Action Research
- Group 1 – Article 7: The Cyclical Process of Action Research
- Group 2 – Article 7: The Cyclical Process of Action Research
- Group 2 – Article 6: Critical Literacy for School Improvement: An Action Research Project
The purpose of this article is to introduce the characteristics of action research and to discuss the similarities and differences among action researchers. The information from the article is an accumulation of interview responses from members of an action research editorial board. Action research challenges what people view as truth. It is promoted using a systematic approach involving human interaction and dialogue. The process is described as continuous and open-ended with the goal of making sure theory and practice are interwoven. Similarities of action researchers include the commitment to the field, the respect for others and the research process, and the pursuit for positive social change. The differences lie in researcher’s background and professional training and their ability to face the different challenges that result from change. Specifically, action research is rarely found in university and doctoral curriculum. Thus, action research is learned from other students and independent reading. Other challenges for this type of research/researcher includes blocks to direct interaction, morals, rigidness of institutions, and the difficulty to generalize findings on a large scale. Although action research has commonalities and controversies, it aims to promote positive social change through action, reflection, and interaction.
One of the commonalities between researchers is the struggle for congruency between theory and practice. Action researchers often stem their actions from the dissatisfaction or lack of understanding of a specific practice. This is what sparked the idea for my Research 1 proposal. Tubs and tubs of manipulatives are found in Elementary school classrooms across the country, including my own 4th grade classroom. This can be in the form of blocks, tiles, or even bottle tops. In Chesterfield County, we are strongly encouraged to use this instructional practice/ tool in our classrooms because it “promotes hands on learning and manipulation of abstract concepts.” This classroom practice has also been pushed as a best practice in all of the undergraduate education classes I have enrolled in, but I never challenged the what or why. I wanted to utilize action research due to its hands on systematic approach to answer if the use of manipulatives truly integrates the mathematical and psychological theory into practice.
Furthermore, action research also leads to the examination of our own practices as teachers. Critique, reflection, and collegial sharing are critical aspects of the research process that teachers should also be doing in their everyday lives. As a whole, I believe teachers do a great job sharing ideas and practices with one another. Through conversations, mentoring, and even websites/blogs like Teachers Pay Teachers, we are able to communicate and share on a variety of platforms. This is strength in the education world because there is a common passion for students and their success academically, socially, and emotionally among the individuals who are collaborating. Unfortunately, I do not think teachers take the necessary time to stop and reflect/critique themselves. A day in the teaching world is fast-paced and we are exhausted mentally and physically after the day. Instead of stopping to think about ourselves and the practices we are doing (or not doing) in our rooms, we are already planning for the next day. I am a strong believer that it is important to reflect purposefully and daily. Self-reflection and/or critique of a lesson delivery or educational practices is a powerful tool that helps differentiate decent teachers into great teachers. I also believe it is critical to celebrate your strengths and characteristics not just harp on mistakes or negatives. You can work on certain areas of improvement systematically through action research.
Action research is a vital tool for practitioners, whom in your case, Carly, are educators. The purpose of action research was described in this reflection as, “dissatisfaction or lack of understanding of a specific practice.” As teachers it is true that sometimes we are forced or encouraged to use programs, systems, and/or tools and we don’t even question why we are doing or using this, for example the use of math manipulatives in this reflection. As educators, we want to know that what we are doing is meaningful for our students, the participants. For this reason action research is crucial to become more effective at our practice, which is teaching.
Action research plays an integral role to an educator’s daily practice. The dissatisfaction and lack of understanding that you mentioned, Carly, serves as the catalyst for conducting the research. As educators we informally conduct action research for the purposes of improving the performance our students and practice. Constantly reflecting and modifying our practice is crucial for making sure our students have strong outcomes. Earlier, this year I had student who would not interact with his peers. We quickly learned that he enjoyed building. My aides and I planned building activities for him. Each activity included peer to help him build. The peer would suggest a building to build. Through observation we learned that he would speak with his peer to gain details about the building. After three weeks, he slowly began to seek out a building buddy. After another three weeks, he started to explore other activities. Through our unofficial research we gained a new strategy to reach this student.
Is action research contradicting truth or is it the ability to conduct objective research? I read the article as action researchers are trying to change how research is viewed. Not so much by examining the truth but accepting that action research gives automatic feedback because it gives the information right then and there and is constantly evolving. But a similarity has been forgotten is that none of the interviews were actually encouraged to focus on action research. Those interviewed for the article were motivated to complete action research because it gave them an outlet to complete their own questions.
While I believe there is some credence to the idea that manipulative’s can be helpful in math classes, why has there not been any research on manipulative uses in other classes? Within my own classroom, we have used ‘break outs’ where the students must move around and figure out riddles and put together items to make a lock open. The students have learned more this way than lecture alone.
Darrell, Thank you for sharing an example of an exemplary teaching practice. Your approach to support your student demonstrates care and concern.
In the context of an exploration of action research, the example does not measure up to the characteristics of scientific inquiry since it missed the required elements of a question, a methodology (data collection and analysis).
I mention this to highlight the difference between reflective teaching and action research.
Kim, you pose two insightful questions! One of my soap box issues related to instructional strategies is that a school system or for that sake the Department of Education can mandate a certain strategy and approach without having to collect data to show it’s effectiveness. But, when teachers have an idea to improve instruction, they often have to go through hurdles to try out their ideas. This power imbalance often quells teacher innovation and creativity.