Real Life Action Research

I was able to focus my attention and learning on examples of action research in educational settings. I learned that teachers need to be data driven and take data to impact instruction because what we can change today can and will impact how teachers teach on tomorrow. Action research should be about increasing student performance. But most important, action research needs to be practical.

Use of blogs by educational leaders

Educational leaders can use blogs as a way to reflect on previous courses of action taken. Reflection is an important leadership skill because as a leader on campus it is important to better yourself. A part of becoming a better leader is based on making better informed decisions through better research. This is done by reflecting on previous research to outline the quality of the research and how it can be improved upon for the next plan. Through blogs, the researcher will be able to gain feedback on their current course of action to better the research and better make informed decisions. This will allow the leader a deeper and more interesting approach to the inquiry made before. Reflecting on your plan through a blog is also a way to improve the plan of action in the future. But more importantly a way to provide background information, show the action plan, state the learning, and support the data and provide conclusive insight to your thoughts. 

Action!

Action research is a course of action that involves collaborative inquisition, reflection and communication. It is a progression in which a principal engages in a study of his/her own administrative practices and as a result take action for change based on what was learned. Teachers can learn about their own instructional practices and collaborate on how to monitor and improve student performance and learning. Administrators can investigate and identify the action outside the classroom and school in research activities to address issues in a timely manner. A major part of action research as a practice involves posing the right questions, analyzing data, reading relevant literature for learning and school improvement and making necessary changes based on new findings. This creates a continuous course where teachers and administrators can reflect and collaborate on their new findings.  Action research can also be an effective tool for principal professional development as well as focus on the concerns of schoolhouse administrators and teachers to bring about change. This focus is on providing insight into administrators’ own practices in effort to make a change that will improve the school. The benefits of conducting action research first gives administrators like principals time to highlight one major course of action. This course of action will allow the principal adequate time to implement the best practices in an effort to change and improve the campus. In addition to providing administrators the opportunity of professional growth, action research also provides principals with collaborative professional circles out of professional isolation. Another benefit is that principals will become role models for teachers and students on their campuses. Through learning and leading principals possess the “do as I do” as well as “I say” portrayal that seems to work best.