Feddy James

8/3/2019 Feddy James

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An Introduction toAction Research

Presented by: Freddy James


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Session Objectives

Themes for the day

Reviewing the field of action research: Nature

and Purpose

Reviewing the process of enquiry: AR Phases

Action research models

Examples of AR projects


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Long history: Lewin (1946)

Distinct approach to educational change

Bottom up rather than top down approach

Improve understanding

Participatory

It is teachers who in the end will change the world

of the school by understanding it (Stenhouse, 1981)


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Improve practice

Improve understanding of practice

Improve the situation where the practice takes place

(Carr & Kemmis, 1986).


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Popularised by Kurt Lewin in 1946.

The research needed for social practice can best be characterized as research forsocial management or social engineering. It is a type of action-research, a

comparative research on the conditions and effects of various forms of socialaction, and research leading to social action. Research that produces nothing but

books will not suffice (Lewin 1946, reproduced in Lewin 1948: 202-3).


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Action research- systematic enquiry designed

to yield practical results capable of improving aspecific aspect of practice and made public to

enable scrutiny and testing (DCSF)


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Action research is a form of collective self-

reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in

social situations in order to improve the rationalityand justice of their social or educational practices,

as well as their understanding of these practices

and the situation in which these practices are

carried out.

(Kemmis and McTaggart. 1988, p5)


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Corey (1953) advocated action research

specifically for the study of education.

Teachers, supervisors and administrators would

make better decisions and engage in more

effective practices if they were able and willingto conduct research as a basis of these

decisions


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Lawrence Stenhouse

It is teachers who in the end will change the world of the school by

understanding it (1981) and that being an extended professional

involved studying the work of teaching and researching it oneself, notleaving it to others (1975). It involved three main elements:

The commitment to systematic questioning of ones own teaching as abasis for development

The commitment and the skills to study ones own teaching andThe concern to question and to test theory in practice (p.143)


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Commonalities among definitions:

It is research by teachersIt addresses a problem of concern to them.

It is a process that involves:problem identificationdesign

implementationevaluation and identification of new problems.

It involves collaboration with colleagues.


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1. Individual

2. School

3. Triad (3 schools)

4. Inter-triad

5. Inter-network

6. Beyond networks


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Phase 1a) Defining the enquiryb) Developing a focusc) Collecting and analyzing data

Phase 2

d) Introducing change

e) Monitoring change

f) Analyzing data and review change

Phase 3


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Phases of Action Research

What is happening now?

What change can we introduce?

What is the effect of the change?

There are four key principles to action

research:

Planning -> Acting ->Observing -> Reflecting


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Disadvantages Advantages

TimeExpertiseConfidenceInsiderproblems

Insider opportunitiesPractitioner opportunitiesPractitioner-researcheropportunities

Proximity to change(adapted from Robson, 1997)


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You do not have to start with a problem!You may seek to improve something

ASK

What is happening now?In what way is it problematic?What can I do about it?


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1.I would like to improve the...2.In what ways could..improve3.To what extent does..enable4.What difference does..make to5.How can the use of.increase.6.I have an idea I would like to try out in my class7.How can the experience ofbe applied to


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Issues that you can do nothing aboutExample:

1. What is the relationship between socio-economic status andachievement?

2. What is the effect of same sex schools on performance?


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Examples

A. Students are unhappy with current assessment methods

How can we collaborate to improve student assessment?B. Students seem to waste a lot of time in class.

How can I increase the time students spend on task?

NOTE: Each example has two characteristics:

1.Identifying what is currently happening2.Trying ordoing something to improve


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Good action enquiry is

SystematicIlluminatingInformativeInterestingMotivatingTime efficient

And

Very, very messy


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Argyris, C. Putnam, R., and McLain Smith, D. (1985)Action Science, Concepts, Methods

and Skills for Research and Intervention, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Argyris, C. and Schn, D. (1974) Theory in Practice: Increasing Professional

Effectiveness, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Boutilier, M., Rajkumar, E., Poland, B., Tobin, S., Badgley, R. (2001) Community action

success in public health: are we using a ruler to measure a sphere?, Canadian Journal of

Public Health, Vol 92, pp.90-4

Carr, W.and Kemmis, S. (1986) Becoming Critical, Education, Knowledge and ActionResearch. London:

Corey, S. (1953). Action research to Improve School Practices. New York: ColumbiaCollege

Day, C (1999) Developing Teachers: The Challenges of Lifelong Learning. London: Falmer

Press

Elliott, J. (1991)Action Research for Educational Change. Buckingham: Open University

Press.


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Mkomboz: Participatory Action researchhttp://www.mkombozi.org/publications/research_report/2006_03_research_report_education.pdf

Teaching and Learning Research ProgrammeHome-School Knowledge Exchange and Transformation in Primary Education (2001- 2004) http://www.tlrp.org/proj/phase11/phase2e.html

What money meanshttp://www.pfeg.org/Primary/WMM/AboutWMM.asp

Art, action and articulationhttp://www.creative-partnerships.com/content/researchAndEvaluationProjects/

53062/53077?view=Standards

Action research and its role in reviewing teaching styleshttp://www teachernet gov uk/CaseStudies/casestudy cfm?id=188

Feddy James

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