The Action Research Process

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The Action Research Process

• Sponsored by Project CENTRAL
• A Project of the Florida Department of Education
• In Collaboration with the University of Central
  Florida
• With rights given to Seminole County Public
  Schools Professional Development Department for
  use in training personnel

Understanding Action Research
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The idea of action research is that educational
problems and issues are best identified and
investigated where the action is at the
classroom and school level.
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By integrating research into these settings and
engaging those who work at this level in research
activities, findings can be applied immediately
and problems solved more quickly (Guskey,
2000).
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Action Research is NOT-

• Writing a Research Paper

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A Model of Professional Development

• Action research is a model of professional
  development in which educators study student
  learning related to their own teaching, a process
  that allows them to learn about their own
  instructional practices and to continue to
  improve student learning.

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What is Action Research?

• Action (teacher) research is a natural extension
  of good teaching.
• Observing students closely,
• analyzing their needs, and
• adjusting the curriculum to fit the needs of all
  students have always been important skills
  demonstrated by fine teachers (Hubbard Power,
  1999).

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The Action Research Process
PLANNING
EVALUATION
DELIVERY
FOLLOW-UP
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ACTION RESEARCH is a CYCLE!!

• Plan
• Act
• Observe
• Reflect
• REVISED
• Plan
• Act
• Observe
• Reflect

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Approaches to Action Research

• Individual Teacher Research
• Collaborative Action Research
• School-wide Action Research
• Emily Calhoun, 1993

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Individual Teacher Research

• A teacher focuses on an area of concern in his or
  her classroom.
• May receive support and guidance from colleagues,
  coaches, and/or outside support personnel from
  district, state, or university.

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Individual Teacher Research

• A problem or issue within a single classroom to
  study--
• What impact can daily phonemic awareness
  activities have on my kindergarten students oral
  language development? (Kindergarten teacher)
• How can using concrete objectives (manipulatives)
  improve my students ability to identify and
  extend patterns in mathematics? (Middle grade
  teacher)

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Collaborative Action Research

• Co-teachers
• in one classroom instructing a specific group of
  students
• Team of teachers
• focusing on a grade level issue
• Teacher and district, educational agency, or
  university personnel
• learning and studying a particular instructional
  practice
• Group of teachers
• in the same school studying the same
  instructional concern

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Collaborative Action Research

• Focuses on studying a problem or issue within one
  or more classrooms.
• How can students with disabilities experiencing
  deficits in phonemic awareness show improvement
  in those skills by participating in additional
  and intensive instruction in phonemic awareness
  activities at least four times per week? How
  will it affect their overall reading ability?
  (ESE Teacher FDLRS HRD Specialist)
• How can implementing Organizing Together a
  Strategic Instruction Model curriculum, improve
  6th graders ability to come to class organized
  and prepared? (6th grade teachers in a middle
  school team)

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School-wide Action Research

• School-wide action research
• is a school reform initiative.

Every faculty member of the school is involved in
studying a specific issue identified from school
data.
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HOW CAN I GET STARTED

• Located on right side of this web page
• http//www.scps.k12.fl.us/staff_development/HTML/a
  ctionresearch.cfm
• Seminole County Action Research Forms
• Action Research LogAction Research Summary

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ACTION RESEARCH LOG
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ACTION RESEARCH LOG CONTINUED
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http//www.scps.k12.fl.us/staff_development/Docume
nts/ACTION20RESEARCH20SUMMARY.doc
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RESOURCES

• SEMINOLE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS PROFESSIONAL
  DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT ACTION RESEARCH
• http//www.scps.k12.fl.us/staff_development/HTML/a
  ctionresearch.cfm
• ACTION RESEARCH LOG
• http//www.scps.k12.fl.us/staff_development/Docume
  nts/ACTION20RESEARCH20LOG.doc
• ACTION RESEARCH SUMMARY
• http//www.scps.k12.fl.us/staff_development/Docume
  nts/ACTION20RESEARCH20SUMMARY.doc

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Action Research Samples

• Web Question Samples
• http//www.sou.edu/education/actionresearch/tasks.
  htm
• http//www.sou.edu/education/actionresearch/questi
  ons.htm
• Video Samples
• http//home.sou.edu/jablonsd/ARfair.HTML
• PowerPoint
• To use with faculty
• Blackboard course