Week Five - Reflection

“Research tells us that engagement in inquiry is an important ingredient for the overall professional health of an educator” (Dana, 2009, p.15) I as an educator must make the time to reflect because we will be more self assured and make more educated administrative decisions. I must reflect in order to remain on track and to successfully reach our goals. Reflecting is a way to keep our minds sharp just the same way we must maintain our bodies with regular exercise. I will be stronger and better off with regular reflection.
Reflection is vital aspect to action research. With reflection I can review to see if I am remaining on target or if I am straying in a dysfunctional direction. During reflection I ay discover things that need to be addressed from the research. I will have the flexibility to make vital decisions. Also from reflection, if the action research needs a change in direction or refining it can be done. Reflection allows this to take place because without reflection normal research may forge forward as establish from the beginning. Reflection is a progressive method of reaching the outcome of action research and is not as ridged as standard research.
I plan on acquiring the majority of my data through a questionnaire designed for teachers on my campus. I will reflect throughout the data collection and at the conclusion. Through reflection I hope to be able to answer if this is the best method of data collection and is this accurate and thorough enough. I will have to strive to “not depart from the daily work of administrators by become a part of their daily practice.” (Dana, 2009, p.71) The action research process should not be an excessive burden to my daily activities. It should fit seamlessly into my routine and I am going to work to make sure that it is not encumbering.
As my action research comes full circle I will have to decide who the information should be shared with and what suggestion I will make. Nancy Dana mentions four critical tasks that must be performed to effectively share an action research project. First, is to “provide background information” (Dana, 2009 p.163). I will mention this whole process was conducted with the supervision of Lamar University’s guidance and parameters. This should help give legitimacy to the action research process. The second critical task is to “share the design of the inquiry” (Dana, 2009 p.163). I believe this is very important for me to do because again it will give authenticity to the project. People that I share the data with should not be wary of where the info is coming from and how it is gathered. If others are skeptical of the data collection then they will be suspect of the findings. The third critical task is to “state the learning and supporting the statements with data” (Dana, 2009 p.163) I must be transparent in how I tied my finding with my data. I cannot make wild judgments without data to back it up. I have to be wise when coming to conclusion and make sure the backing is there. The last critical task is to”provide concluding thoughts” (Dana, 2009, p.168-169) I will summarize my findings and note suggestion on how to improve the process. If the action research goes well I may ask for permission to expand the scope to other campuses and possibly district wide.
I the end I hope the action research will have been worth while and some interesting facts are discovered on my topic of “what motivates teachers to remain the profession long term?” I am a teacher but I know that I am not like everyone. In reflection, to answer my own question a couple of motivations that keep me “coming back for more” are in no particular order…1. I enjoyed my time in school and in some ways this is a way to never “graduate”. 2. I enjoy the prestige and respect that being a teacher brings. For example, lawyers don’t always receive the same respect. 3. Teaching is a steady profession with job openings available. At this point in my career I should be able to find a job anywhere in the sate if needed. 4. Teaching provides a steady but not extravagant pay check. With my wife in education, we can pool our salaries and provide a comfortable lifestyle. 5. There are few professions that allow for extended time off during the summer, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break. 6. I enjoy influencing kids in a positive manner. I know that I can do better than most in being a positive influence when many in their lives are a mediocre influence. I will display a quality work ethic. I will remain upstanding in my professional and private life. I cannot wait to see what this process produces.

This is my Action Research Plan. I wrote it in Excel but when I cut and paste the plan it came out this way and this. These are my seven steps of the plan.

Action Step(s),
Person(s)
Timeline:
Needed
Evaluation
Responsible
Start /End
Resources

1.Final copy of questionnaire
R.Wright
8/2/10
Computer, Microsoft Word
Have final copy

2.Distributes questionnaire to the staff
R.Wright
8/12/10
Xerox copy, district email
Successfully reach staff

3.Due date for questionnaire
R.Wright
8/18/10
Xerox copy, district email
Collect all possible

4.Compile the questionnaire data
R.Wright
8/18/10
Questionnaires, teacher roster
Have 90% returned

5.Visit any staff members to record questionnaire data missing
R.Wright
8/19/10
List of unresponsive names
Reach 90% of staff in total

6.Research additional data
R.Wright
Throughout
Internet, journals, books
Have additional information

7.Complete action research findings complete for review, use and implementation
R.Wright
8/27/10
Computer, Microsoft Word
Finalized action research findings

Week Three - Classmate's Blogs

Week Three -After reading a few classmates blogs I saw some quality ideas for their action research plans. I was most envious of Sheree's initial research idea on block scheduling vs. traditional scheduling. I believe she has since changed her direction to a new topic but I like the initial one. I personally have done both and their are pros and cons for both. My first three years in teaching were at a junior high on block scheduling. My last seven years have been in a traditional schedule setting at a high school. If I had to choose which has more positives I would say the traditional. I would especially say traditional is best in the key areas of math and science where they may be some weeks where the teacher may only see the students twice. I would hope the research would show that students need more exposure in the classroom that every other day. Anyway, it was a good topic and maybe someone will delve into this more in the future.

Week Two Reflection

The most important idea that came to mind while reflecting on the Week Two assignment is to follow what you are most interested in. While coming up ideas for possible action research topics, I felt like I was being drawn to one in particular. I really want to look into what motivates teachers in their profession. By selecting this one with the help of my campus principal, I will put much more effort into it than some topic that I have little interest in. I don't want to waste my time rehashing a topic that has been covered repeatedly before. I want to follow what I am interested in. This is the same reason I am in the teaching profession. If all I wanted to do is collect a pay check then I would have gone to work in the business world. I like teaching and coaching with the kids and that is what interests me. Maybe my interest in the action research topic can devise a way to elicit change that will benefit the students.

Uses of Blogs

Blogs are a great resource for educational development for educational leaders. Technology is here and we should use it to the best advantage. Blogs allow many people to view postings in a centralized site. Blogs are a great place for a collaborative forum and active learning and discussion to take place.

Action Research and Uses Of

The book written by Nancy Fichtman Dana provided myself with the first real in depth look at action research and the uses of it. She describes action research as "the practitioner inquiry movement focuses on concerns of practitioners (not outside researchers) and engages practitioners in the design, data collection, and interpretation of data around their question" (Dana, Nancy (2009). Leading With Passion and Knowledge, Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin, p.5). I have learned that action research is much more progressive than standard research. The researcher is actually inside of the research and not a bystander from the outside. With the research is done in a cyclical or spiral method consisting of "reflection and action." (Dana, 2009, p.5) Each spiral involves different steps to reach an outcome. First, the practitioner clarifies and diagnosis a practical situation that needs to improved. Second, the practitioner formulates strategies to improve the situation. Third, the practitioner implements the strategies and notes the effectiveness. Lastly, the situation is clarified and readdressed. The process will begin again after completing the steps.

As an administrator I could include action research in my position and spread it to the rest of my campus. As principal, I will make the time to reflect and evaluate a situation. The reflection time will allow me a more objective view of the situation. I would also spread the action research to department meetings where I would expect the teachers to take an active role in a situation and an ultimate solution. I would sit in the department meeting and collaborate with the teachers involved and help guide them if needed.