Week 2 Action Research Thoughts

This week, I took the nine areas that are essential for a successful action research project and look at them in a more detailed light. I really like how Dana (2009) referred to the 9 areas as “passions.”  Watching and listening to the interviews of the school administrators was very educational pertaining especially to action research. Their suggestions to research being data driven and basing your action research project on the needs of your school and students will come in handy throughout my project. Through narrowing down my possible topics for action research, I learned to really look at the needs of my school and students to come up with the best possible action research project.

How can leaders use blogs???

I think blogging is already being used as a valuable tool for educators and will only be used more in the future. Blogging is a way to share thoughts and ideas with others in the profession without having to meet face to face or by some other less effective medium. It can be an instant link to new and effective ideas on education. Blogging can also eliminate any professional isolation if relevant.

What I learned about action research...

I learned so much about action research this week. I learned about the nine areas that are key for action research projects. I found out that it is vital to make sure that all action research is relevant to specific district/campus issues that will directly impact student learning. When conducting action research, there has to be multiple data collection strategies used to be well rounded in all aspects. It is definitely our jobs as educational leaders to strongly suggest for our teachers take a look at their approach and technique to teaching and make sure that they are doing all they can in order for their students to be successful in the classroom. An educational leader conducting action research can help them find the best approaches and techniques! Dana (2009) stated that action research is “one tool that can be used by principals to untangle the web of demands in which they become entangled each day, take charge of their own professional development, and become the “head learner” of their school” (p. 2). Finally, the most important thing I took from this week is the need to be able to focus in on specifics in an action research project and not be too broad.