Action Research

Action Research Defined:

Action Research refers to the process of engaging in a systematic collection of information based on one's own practices, to be analyzed and processed. This intentional study follows a posed question by the action researcher who is seeking to take action for change based on what is learned as a result of the inquiry. Thus, action research can become a powerful tool for administrators and teachers in school and learning improvement.

Action Research vs. Traditional Research

While traditional research offers valuable insights and knowledge about teaching and learning, it does not include the people who are most familiar with the hands on processes of teaching and learning. Action research on the other hand, is a continual set of spirals consisting of reflection and action. It engages educational leaders in the practice of designing questions, data collection, and the interpretation of data around their posed questions. Each spiral involves the following:

• Clarifying and diagnosing a practical situation that needs to be improved or a practical problem that needs to be resolved
• Formulating action strategies for improving the situation or resolving the problem
• Implementing the action strategies and evaluating their effectiveness, and clarifying the situation, resulting in new definitions of problems or areas for improvement to the next spiral of reflection and action

Action Research Benefits

This educational approach to research has many benefits that include the following:

• Opportunities to be surrounded with other professionals conversing about practice in systematic and meaningful ways.
• Opportunities to become role models for teachers and students
• Engagement in action research helps best practices to flourish
• Participation in action research results in a slowed pace from the harried pace that typically characterizes a principal’s role.
• Engagement in inquiry forces you to devote sustained attention ot one issue, tensionk, problem, or dilemma. This focus enables you to vecome proactive rather than reactive to administrative practices.

• Through participation in action research, the principal develops a sence of ownership in the knowledge constructed which contributes to the possibilities for real change in schools
• Through participation in action research, principals and teachers benefit in the enhancement of their own professional growth

• Theories and knowledge are generated from research grounded in the realities of educational practice
• Practioners become collaborators in educational research by investigating their own problems, and

Practioners play a part in the research process, which makes them more likely to facilitate change based on the knowledge they generate