Southeastern Louisiana University COEHD - ELT

Educational Technology Leadership

Action Research Primer

for students in the Master's Program
written by: Nan B. Adams, PhD

The Role of Action Research in Effecting Educational Change

The cycle of exploration and reflection provided through Action

Research has the potential to be a powerful tool to facilitate
educational change. By incorporating action research into education
programs, education professionals will learn to value themselves as
guides and learners rather than experts.

Definitions of Action Research

Action research is any systematic inquiry conducted by teacher

researchers, principals, school counselors, or other stakeholders in the
teaching/learning environment, to gather information about the ways
that their particular schools operate, how they teach, and how well
their students learn. This information is gathered with the goals of
gaining insight, developing reflective practice, effecting positive
changes in the school environment, and improving student outcomes
and the lives of those involved (Mills, 2000).

Goals and Rationale for Action Research

Research is often categorized by the research methods employed in

conducting the study. Different research approaches are required for
each different research problem. The two main types of research
methodology include Quantitative research, which focuses on
controlling a small number of relationships to determing cause-effect
relationships; and Qualitative research, which uses narrative,
descriptive approaches to data collection to describe and provide
understanding of how things are and to help provide meaning.
The focus of action research is to describe and help guide the
educational change process in the specific environment that is under
study. While many of the principles of traditional research may be
employed as a part of the study, significantly different assumptions
regarding the goals of the research and how it will be conducted must
be understood. These differences are summarized in the table below:

Comparison of Traditional Research and Action Research

Traditional Research Action Research

Conducted by university
professors, scholars, and graduate Conducted by professional
students on experimental and educators in educational settings
control groups
Conducted at every level of the
Conducted in controlled educational process, to include
environments state and district offices, schools
and classrooms
Research methods employed to Research methodology employed
show some predetermined degree to describe what is happening as a
of statistical significance, a cause- part of the study and to
effect relationship between understand the effects of some
variables educational intervention
Conducted to take action and
Conducted to report and publish
effect positive educational change
conclusions that can be
in the educational environment
generalized to larger populations
that was studied.

The Process of Action Research

Action research is systematic investigation done by educational

professionals to gather information to provide strategies for
improvement in the ways that their particular system under study
operates, how they teach and how their students learn. The following
diagram illustrates the cyclical refinement process of action research.
An action research project is completed when the collected data begins
to show little variability and there are no more refinements to be
implemented as part of the reflect, rethink and replan portion of the
cycle.
Writing the Research Proposal
(1) Picking a Topic

There are some important criteria that requires consideration when

identifying an action research topic (Elliott, 1991; Sagor, 1992):

 The area of focus should involve teaching and learning

 The area of focus should be within the researcher's locus of
control
  The area of focus should be something the reflect the
researcher's interest
 The area of focus should be something the researcher would like
to change or improve
 The area of focus should be narrow enough in scope to enable
researcher to draw conclusions about results

The researcher should also consider the following:

 What theories impact the focus of the study?
 What educational values/philosophy does the researcher hold?
 What evidence exists that the focus of the study represents a
real problem or opportunity for improvement?
 How is the problem currently being addressed?

(2) Creating an Action Research Plan

Review the Literature - Once the general focus of the study has been
determined, a survey of the professional literature should be
conducted. Through examination of what other research has done in
this area of study will help focus the study and provide the researcher
insight into possible strategies and pitfalls when creating the action
research plan.

Create an Action Research Plan - the following list represents the steps
in creating an action research plan:

 Write an area of focus statement

 Consider personal/community beliefs and current status of
problem area in the school setting where research is to be
conducted
 Review the literature
 Develop research questions
 Describe the intervention or innovation to be conducted
 Describe the population to be studied
 Describe negotiations and leadership actions needed to be taken
by the researcher to successfully conduct research
 Develop a timeline
 Develop a description of resources
 Develop data collection ideas and techniques

ETEC 660 - Academic Improvement Plan Action Research Model

(3) Implementing the Research

Identification of appropriate data collection and analysis techniques

will provide focus for the study and contribute to the understanding
and resolution of the problem. Collecting and analyzing data is critical
to the revision cycle of the action research process, therefore both
must be considered during both the planning and implementation
portion of your action reaserach project.

-Collecting Data

While traditional quantitative data collection is appropriate for

inclusion in an action research project, emphasis here is on the use of
qualitative (descriptive) data collection techniques. For example:

 Conventional sources (questionnaires, surveys, etc.)

 Existing school data (LEAP scores, ITBS scores, school scores,
etc.)
 Inventive sources (exhibits, portfolios, etc.)
 Interviews
 Rating scales
 Inventories
 Observation
 Mapping
 Visual recordings
 Photography

Whatever data sources are chosen, the researcher should consider

using the kind of data that occur naturally, and are regularly collected,
by teachers and administrators. The researcher is trying to answer the
question, "What is happening in this specific educational setting?" The
data collected should attempt to increases understanding of the
phenomenon under study.

General Research Considerations:

a. Validity

Validity generally refers to the degree to which scientific observations

actually measure or record what they propose to measure. Validity
has historically been of critical concern to numerically-based research
conducted in a quantitative, positivistic tradition. Validity in the action
research setting refers to how credible the data collected may be
considered and the degree of trustworthiness of the results.

b. Reliability

Reliability refers to how consistent data measures may prove to be

over time. When conducting action research, the repeatablity of the
research methodology proposed should be considered during the
planning stage. If the goal of action research is to provide inquiry into
educational innovation in a specific educational setting, the ability to
replicate the actions and measures of the study in the same
educational setting should be paramount to research methodology.

c. Generalizability

Quantitative research in education has historically concerned itself

with the applicability of findings to settings different from the one in
which they were obtained. The goal of action research is to
understand what is happening in a specific district/school/classroom
and to determine what might improve student learning in that setting.
Action research is more concerned with finding appropriate solutions to
problems in a specific setting than with the ability to generalize to
other educational settings.

-Analyzing Data

Data analysis and data interpretation should be considered during

every phase of the planning, implementation and analysis of an action
research project. It may sometimes prove harmful to collect data that
you do not intend to use or do not know how to analyze.

Action Research Cycle

An action research project should provide data that can be used
formatively and summatively. As part of the action research cycle it is
critical that the researcher take time during the study to analyze and
reflect--to pay attention to what is being attended to and what is being
omitted from the study. The researcher should be careful to avoid any
premature action. It is not uncommon for beginning action researchers
to make rash or impulsive decisions based on limited data. The
researcher must allow the action research process to unfold and avoid
the pitfalls of basing actions on premature analysis.

Data Analysis Techniques

The researcher must take the time to become extremely familiar with
the study data. The researcher must work to understand the data
collected by approaching its analysis from many different viewpoints.

Techniques to consider:

 Identify themes
 Code surveys, interviews, and questionnaires
 Ask key questions: who, what, where, when, why, and how
 Do an organizational review of the school
  Develop a concept map
 Undertake a problem analysis of cause and effects

Data Interpretation

Data interpretation is an attempt by the teacher researcher to find

meaning in the data. Data interpretation focuses on the implications
or meaning of the findings (analysis) of the study. Data interpretation
also challenges the researcher's taken-for-granted assumptions and
beliefs about what it is they have investigated. Data interpretation
techniques include the following:

 Connect findings with personal experience

 Seek the input of others
 Contextualize findings in the literature and educational theory

(4) Presenting the Research-Reporting Results

Below is an example of some appropriate headings for inclusion in the

formal presentation of research results:

Title page
Abstract
Table of contents
List of tables
List of figures
Abbreviations
Statement of original authorship
Acknowledgments

Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1 Background to the research (leadership role, school discription,
student need)
1.2 Research problem and hypotheses
1.3 Justification for the research
1.4 Brief overview of Methodology
1.5 Definitions
1.6 Delimitations of scope and key assumptions
1.7 Conclusion

Chapter 2 - Review of the Literature and Research issues

2.1 Introduction
2.2 Discussion of Philosophical underpinnings of research (parent
disciplines/fields and classification models)
2.3 Discussion of recent studies specific to the proposed research
topic (immediate discipline, analytical models and research)
2.4 Explanation of relevance between reviewed disciplines and
research under proposal
2.5 Conclusion

Chapter 3 Methodology
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Justification for the paradigm and methodology
3.3 Research procedures
3.4 Ethical considerations
3.5 Conclusion

Chapter 4 Analysis of data

4.1 Introduction
4.2 Subjects
4.3 Discussion of data for each research question or hypothesis
4.4 Discussion of results
4.5 Conclusion

Chapter 5 Conclusions and implications

5.1 Introduction
5.2 Conclusions about each research question or hypothesis
5.3 Conclusions about the research problem
5.4 Implications for theory
5.5 Implications for policy and practice
5.6 Implications for further research

Bibliography
Appendices

Action Research Resources and Example Studies

REFERENCES

Elliott, J. (1991). Action research for educational change. Briston, PA: Open
University Press.

Hopkins, D. (1985). A teacher's guide to classroom research. Philadelphia: Open

University Press.

Mills, G. (2000). Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher. Upper Saddle
River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Sagor, R. (1992). How to conduct collaborative action research. Anexandria, VA:

ASCD.