When I first started this course, I had little
training on action research. I was fortunate enough to be working on an action
team for the district, in regards to our graduate profile. The team I worked
with had a focus on improving interpersonal relationships with the students. Throughout
this course I have gained a greater insight on what it means to do action
research. I thought the blog was a very interesting way to share ideas and
comments on my plan. I have always marveled at teachers who blogged about
different subjects. I thought it was something that was too technical for me to
accomplish. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to create and do. I
am very grateful for learning a new strategy on how to communicate with others.
Reflection was a big concept that kept
recurring in the book, the videos, and webinars with Dr. Abshire. I learned that an effective administrator
takes the time to reflect on action research projects both on their own and
with collaborative groups. I know in a
lot of our science professional developments, we are asked to do a reflection form
at the end for an evaluation. To be honest, most of the teachers just write ”Great
job today,” so they can leave. I admit, I have done this many times. However,
after this course, I now understand why they want us to use the reflection form
for evaluation. Reflection time allows you or a group to really stop and think
about the process or plan fully. It gives you the time to think about what is
good in the plan, but also what needs to be changed. We need to take this time
to think through potential problems, and be able to plan accordingly. Reflection is also a good thing to do
collaboratively to be able to bounce different ideas and opinions off each
other. During this process, if you are
working with a group, then you need to have a strong leader that allows
everyone to share their ideas . The leader of the group should be a good
listener, speak when needed, and guide the conversation in the correct
direction.
The strategies such as; Force Field Analysis,
Delphi Method, Nominal Group Technique, and the CARE model were of particular
interest to me. As a teacher, I am always interested in learning new strategies
to teach my students, so learning new strategies is always something that I
have been interested in . These strategies for sustaining improvement in an
action plan, were both easy to implement and helpful. I really liked the CARE model
because it not only identified concerns, but also positive policies going on at
a school. I feel when implementing a change, we sometimes look so closely at
the negative we forget the positive.
This model has you look to the positive aspects in your school that will
help make those changes. Again, when I
used the CARE model to write up my plan, it was very straightforward and not at
all hard to do. I think this is a major benefit of these strategies.
I feel that I have gained a greater
understanding of what action research is and how to complete a plan. I know
that as I continue to reflect and revise the plan, I will grow to understand it
even more. The best way form me to continue my understanding is to ask to be
involved in action plans in the district and on my campus level.
Citations:
Dana, N. F. (2009). Administrator Inquiry Defined. Leading
with passion and knowledge the principal as action researcher ;Thousand
Oaks, Calif.: Corwin Press, a Joint Publication with the American Association
of School Administrators
Harris, S., Edmonson, S., & Combs, J. P. (2010).
Sustaining Improvement. Examining what we do to improve our schools: 8 steps
from analysis to action (pp. 94-96). Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.
