Action Research Through My Eyes

After reading through Dana's Leading with Passion and Knowledge (2009) and Harris, Edmonson, and Combs' Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools (2010), I have a new-found knowledge on action research and realize that I have been participating in this style of research since I joined the Richardson High School staff. Action research to me is the constant inquiry and betterment of a school, and as a member of the staff at RHS, we are always doing just that. I am currently on our Differentiation Instruction team, and we are in the middle of an action research project about building community with our staff and in our classrooms. We understand that without community, our classrooms will never truly achieve differentiation, and with the new Special Education and ESL requirements, our classrooms have to be a place of differentiation.  Now that I have studied what action research is I can make our research more purposeful. We can discuss exactly what questions we need to ask our staff and send out a survey for our staff. After looking over the results of that survey, we can create action plans for our PLCs – what do we want to discuss, what ways can we strengthen our community, and how can they translate that information into the classroom setting. I am excited about the possibilities.

For other educators, I think they need to examine what are the goals for their school. Then decided how can they turn it into an action research project. Every school can use improvement, even the exemplary schools. Bottom of Form

The educational world is a constantly changing and growing place, and if schools are constantly in state of inquiry, then our schools will meet those challenges and succeed.

Dana, N. F. (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Harris, S., Edmonson, S., & Combs, J. (2010). Examining what we do to improve our schools: 8 Steps from analysis to action. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.