Reflections on EDLD 5301 Action Research

The EDLD 5301 Action Research course taught me the difference between traditional research and the inquiry method of action research.  As I mentioned in my discussion board post this week, my concept of research coming into this class was “traditional notions of research and the process-product paradigm.” (Dana, 2009, p. 176)  Before, I viewed research as the gathering and review of data on methods that could be applied to general situations. Through this course, I have learned that the action research process is primarily an internal, ongoing cycle of examination of one’s own practices and methods, with the action researcher constantly seeking self improvement.  The action research process presented in this course teaches purposeful steps to center your inquiry, and provides the tools and proven methods to carry out our action research project.   

The readings from this course were very helpful.  The Harris et. al. text in particular has incredible tools to help with the action research process, and is written in a very practical, easy-to-follow manner.  The Dana text was also helpful in defining the action research process, as well as provided additional tools, but was written in a more cerebral fashion.  The content of the lectures helped to clarify the assignments each week, and in week two, it was interesting to hear from the three administrative professionals regarding their action research process.   The weekly assignments were set up well, building upon each other, mimicking the step-by-step process of the action research process itself.  Using the action planning template from the Harris et. al. text to set up our action research draft reinforced the stages of the inquiry process, and was the most helpful activity that I completed during this course. 

Participation in the discussion board was difficult for me during this course because of the hours I was working, and many times I was unable to post to the board until Saturday or Sunday of the week that the discussion board was due.  This meant that many times I did not receive replies to my posts.  However, I gathered very useful insights and examples from my classmates via their discussion board posts.   The blog posts of fellow classmates have also been extremely important in my learning from this course, giving me insight into my own learning, and providing me with the knowledge that I was not going through this process alone.   

References

Dana, N. F. (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

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.

EDLD 5301 ET8032 Week Four Meeting With Site Mentor

I met with my site supervisor, Mrs. Jerrie Sue Cleaver, on Wednesday, June 8, 2011, in her office on campus of Central Texas College, Office Technology Department (Building 101, Room 1A).  I presented Mrs. Cleaver with the three topics I had identified as potential action research projects, which were:

Topic one, in the area of school performance, stated that the purpose of this research project is to investigate the completion rate of a course offered in two venues (POFT 1329 – Beginning Keyboarding, traditional versus online), what factors affect the completion rate, and methods that may improve completion rates.

Topic two, in the area of management, stated that the purpose of this research project is to investigate and restructure the course management system for Skills Center students, including grading and attendance.

Topic three, in the area of social justice, stated that the purpose of this research is to investigate if there is bias (gender, race, class, ability, etc.) present in the units/modules taught in Skills Center courses and what can be done to lessen bias and include varied perspectives.

We discussed the potential impact of each of these topics, and which would have the most impact upon faculty and staff of the Office Technology Department.  Mrs. Cleaver felt that topic three was interesting, but would have the least amount of impact.  Topics one and two were identified as those having the most effect.  As Mrs. Cleaver is already conducting a research project similar to topic one, she felt that topic two was the one that should be chosen.  This was identified as a great need because the current system is all paper-based and needs to be updated.  We talked about course management methods, and what items needed to be looked at first, which were attendance and student/faculty grading assignment.  Attendance is currently done by students presenting timecards when signing in and signing out of the Skills Center.  At the end of each week, the faculty member to whom the students is assigned pull all of the timecards and logs the hours onto a paper calendar and calculates the hours, and then communicates these hours to the appropriate office (VA, Financial Aid, etc.) with a copy of the paper calendar.  The students are currently assigned to a faculty member by the alpha character of their last name for grading purposes, even if that faculty member is not approved to teach a specific course that the student may be enrolled in as part of their degree plan.  My plan for the attendance issue is to research and implement timeclock software that can be downloaded into spreadsheets to calculate hours of attendance and then use the electronic format to communicate with other departments.  For the assignment project, I will be seeking consensus amongst faculty members to assign students by course to assess completion of course requirements and assign grades as appropriate.  These plans were discussed and incorporated into the Action Research Plan after the conference.

EDLD 5301 Action Research Project

Yvette Pawlowski/EDLD 5301:ET8032 Action Planning Template
School Vision/Mission Statement:  Central Texas College provides education for a global community through responsive, innovative instruction and educational services for diverse student populations. Goal/Objective-Outcomes: The purpose of this action research project is to investigate and restructure the course management system for Skills Center students, with inclusion of grading and attendance software.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation (Monitoring/assessment)
Setting the foundation:  Topic:  The purpose of this research project is to investigate and restructure the course management system for Skills Center students, including grading and attendance	Self, Skills Center students and faculty members, site supervisor.	June 2011		Skills Center is a self-paced, face-to-face program in the Office Technology Department of Central Texas College.  Evaluation will be done with observation, interview/survey, and software trials.
Analyze data:  Research available literature and products regarding timekeeping and grading software, specifically open source software to minimize costs	Self	June/July 2011	Internet - Vendor websites, education literature, department budget amounts	Trial 5 different timekeeping software; 2 different grading software Interview/survey faculty and student members regarding changes to CMS Observation of current system
Developing deeper understanding: After initial research, organize focus groups to look over research findings and narrow down choices	Self, Skills Center students and faculty members	August 2011	Meeting place	Meeting notes presented to site supervisor
Engage in self-reflection: Reflect on research, explore options and resources available	Self	September 2011		Weblog
Exploring programmatic patterns:  Narrow down to one to two choices of systems, meet with faculty to determine what issues may be encountered on rollout	Self, faculty members, site supervisor	November 2011	Financial resources, meeting place	Use Delphi Method to identify and document pros and cons of each system prior to meeting with faculty
Determining direction:  In same meeting, determine what system will be instituted	Self, faculty members, site supervisor	November 2011	Software	Meeting notes – set timelines and stages for implementation
Taking action for school improvement:  Rollout CMS, monitor issues encountered	Self, faculty members, students	February 2012	Software, financial resources, personnel resources	Monitor feedback from students and faculty, observation of results.
Sustain improvement:  Follow up on results of rollout, make improvements or changes as needed based on feedback.	Self, faculty members, students	May 2012		Survey faculty and students on results.  Disseminate results of project to colleagues.

Reflection on EDLD 5301 Week Two Lessons

The primary lesson that I learned from the reading and videos this week is that research cannot just be based upon qualitative data, but must also be based upon quantitative data.  As such, I learned that for action research to be effective, so that it can be practical and applied, the human factors (quantitative) such as home life, environmental, societal, economic, and personality must be part of the research database to establish effective outcomes of an active research project. Whereas my topic is mainly focused in the area of management, it will have an impact on the students and faculty involved.  Therefore, especially in the implementation phase, student and faculty personalities will need to be a major factor in the data gathered.  This was an important lesson for me because from my prior experiences with research, albeit mainly academic research, the data was primarily qualitative, and I will need to ensure that I maintain an additional focus on quantitative data during the action research process. 

How educational leaders might use blogs

Educational leaders might use blogs as a personal journal to document their own reflection and learning encountered in daily work and life.  However, they can also use this to share their ideas, successes, failures, experiences, and/or growth with other educational leaders.  By sharing this information, they can guide other educational leaders along the path to successful reflection.

What I have learned about action research

In my readings this week, I have learned that action research is the step-by-step investigation of an issue and/or problem that an administrative professional believes needs improvement or change, with the steps carried out in orderly process. 

There are eight steps involved in the action research process, which are meant to be followed in the sequence below:

1. “Setting the Foundation" is identifying the issue on which to base your action research project. 
2. “Analyzing Data" is gathering data (research) and analyzing your initial results. 
3. “Developing Deeper Understanding" is using additional research tools to gain further understanding of the issue. 
4. “Engage in Self-Reflection" involves the practitioner asking questions of himself or herself about the potential solutions to the issue. 
5. “Exploring Programmatic Patterns” involves further research of potential solutions, including soliciting outside opinions of peers and supervisors.  
6. “Determining Direction” is finalizing the plan for the action research, such as timelines, methods of monitoring, and guidelines for revision. 
7. “Taking Action for School Improvement” is implementation of the action research project, with formative and summative evaluation of the results. 
8. “Sustain Improvement” is examining the ways that the improvements implemented through the action research plan can be maintained and improved.

Action research is accomplished from an “insider” approach; this is initiated and performed by the administrative professional himself or herself.  In this it differs from traditional educational research, which is initiated and performed from an “outsider” approach, an expert in the education field, “almost exclusively university researchers.” (Dana, 2009, p. 7)  In contrast, action research is a personalized approach, with the research gathered from actual educational practice and, as such, it produces more commitment in the participants.  

I can foresee many uses of this process in my practice as a community college instructor as this will help me to focus on the main issues that need change or improvement, develop an effective plan for change implementation, and maintain the changes or improve these as needed based on additional research. 

References

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. (2009). Examining what we do to improve our schools: 9 steps from analysis to action. Larchmont, N.Y.: Eye on Education.