Reflections

As I reflect on the past five weeks and the design of my action research plan, it is almost humorous when I think about what I was originally considering doing for my research. I was selecting topics too broad and almost impossible to measure. It wasn’t until after talking with my site supervisor and an educational specialist in research in planning that I was able to look at action research with a different lens. These ongoing conversations with research and planning in addition to the readings in class and dialogue with classmates have helped me to keep my topic narrow and measurable. After learning more about action research and capturing meaningful data, it was very difficult to look at my classmates’ plans without wanting to jump in and say “Wait! Stop! How in the world are you going to measure that ____ was the one variable that impacted standardized test scores?” or “How can you prove that school start times impacted test scores?” I started looking at research topics and all of the variables that would be impossible to measure. I definitely  have a much better understanding of the difference between traditional research and inquiry action research and the purpose of conducting action research. It makes me wonder how many administrators actually make action research (or some form of action research) a part of their ongoing practices. It seems to be a powerful and invaluable research when wanting to be an agent of change or even when determining if a change needs to be made. 

It was helpful having access to classmates’ blogs and to be able to have continuous dialogue with others about their research and my own research. We also have a class Facebook page which has proven to be a helpful  and effective means of communication. We share resources, blog addresses, feedback, troubleshooting tips etc. When blackboard is down, the Facebook page allows us to still communicate. We also use this page to encourage each other  to not give up and to persevere when the workload is sometimes overwhelming.

My site supervisor is also the Director of School Improvement. It is the first time our district has had this department so my site supervisor is developing a lot of training and resources for school leaders. In this first year her focus is supposed to be on the training and development of the principals. It has been helpful to have both textbooks Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools and Leading with Passion and Knowledge and to share this information with her and help her in the designing of some of her presentations and trainings for principals.

I feel like I have not only expanded my knowledge of action research but I have adjusted the lens in which I look at schools and possible topics or inquiry that could possibly lend itself to future action research. I am excited to work through all of the steps of my action research plan.