Tai lieu Tap Huan he 2011

ACTION RESEARCH
as part of Teacher Professional Development


Presented by: Tran Kim Dung
Quang Tri High School




Dong Ha city, August 2011
SESSION OUTLINE
What is Action Research?
Why should we do Action Research?
Steps in Action Research process
Samples of Action Research Proposal
Reflection & Questions
Teachers
who creates professional knowledge;
who is a reflective practitioner;
who is a lifelong learner;
who continually improves on
the quality of teaching and learning.
A teacher as a professional
Action Research Definition
Action Research is the act of reflective planning for school improvement.

It includes analyzing our own situations and professional practices to improve our program.

Action Research is concerned with changing situations, not just interpreting them.

Reflect…Analyze…Implement
Action Research History
Kurt Lewin(1946) credit with development of concept of action research
Evolved and influenced by Kemmis(1983), Ebbutt (1985), Elliott (1991), Hopkins (1985) and others…
ACTION RESEARCH

is NOT just
writing a research paper
Reasons to do action research
Help you build a reflective practice based on proven ideas or techniques
Allow you to try new ideas and reliably assess their effectiveness
It will help you build confidence in your managerial or instructional decisions
It will contribute to the professional culture of teaching at your school
It can create meaningful and lasting change in order to improve student achievement


Primary purposes of Action Research
Improve one’s own educational practices
Improve one’s own understanding of those practices
Improve the situation in which those practices are carried out
STEPS IN ACTION
RESEARCH PROCESS
Problem / Research Question
Plan of Action
Data Collection
Data Analysis
Reflection => plans for future action
Howard & Eckhardt 2004
11
Action Research Spiral
Action Research: Main Steps
Problem Identification
Why do you want to study this topic?
Is this problem broad enough to allow for a range of insights and narrow enough to be manageable?
Action Research: Main Steps
Plan of Action
Will you look at your existing practices or develop and implement a new strategy?
What data do you need to learn about your question?
Action Research: Main Steps
Data Collection
What, why, when, where and how will you collect your data?
How will you ensure that you have multiple perspectives?
Action Research: Main Steps
Data Analysis
What can you learn from your data?
What patterns, insights, and new understandings can you discover?
Action Research: Main Steps
Reflection & Plan for Future Actions
What will you do differently in your class/school as a result of this study?
How will you write about what you have learned so that your findings will be useful to others?
Reflection is the bridge between thinking and acting
Action Research: Main Steps
Plan
Act
Observe
Reflect

Revised
Plan
Act
Observe
Reflect
THE CYCLE OF ACTION RESEARCH
Action Research: Possible Process
Identify the Topic
Brainstorm Topic
Consider Community, School, and Library
Develop your Question
Data Collection
Analyze the Data
Develop Timeline and Action Plan
Share the Results
Continue the Process
Data Collection Tools
Questionnaires
Interview
Observation
Field Notes
Archival Information
…the major difference between action research and other research methods is that action research aims at developing a theory about what works in classrooms
False
True or False?
…the data collected in action research should be tangible
True
True or False?
…the topic of action research is derived from issues arising from the application of theory to practice
True
True or False?
True or False?
…generalization beyond a particular classroom is not a primary concern of most action research
True
…the results of action research can be used to alter and improve professional practice
True
True or False?
True or False?
Action Research is an evolving process of changing both the researcher and the situations in which he or she works.
ACTION RESEARCH LOG
ACTION RESEARCH LOG CONTINUED
A product of Project CENTRAL, 2004
http://www.scps.k12.fl.us/staff_development/Documents/ACTION%20RESEARCH%20SUMMARY.doc
This methodological approach can then be developed as an action plan, which can take the form:

What is my concern?
Why am I concerned?
What do I think I can do about the situation?
What will I do?
How will I show whether I am influencing the situation for good?
How will I produce evidence of my influence?
How will I ensure that any claims I make are reasonably fair and accurate?
What will I do then?
Jack Whitehead and Jean Mc Niff
Jack Whitehead at the University of Bath
“Living Educational Theory”
Don’t stop there…
Write an Action Research Paper!
Why?

The process of writing requires the writer to clarify meaning.
The act of putting information on paper for your peers and teachers necessitates honesty, accuracy, clarity, and thought.
Research, once written, can be shared with a wider audience.
PUT THE

INTO
ACTION !
ACTION PLAN