ACTION RESEARCH

Seminar on Action Research

Contents

Throughout the Training School initiative at Brislington School, it has been acknowledged that an action research orientation could assist the work of both staff (school and university) and PGCE trainees engaged on the programme. A seminar was offered for the summer of 2001, to induct staff into the perspectives and possibilities of action research. The seminar explored the following questions:

Q:	What do we understand by the term Action Research?
A:	Action Research is a process by which practitioners investigate their own actions and the consequences of their actions, and through making changes to their practices, and evaluating those changes, improve the environment in which they work. It fundamentally involves self-reflection, and a commitment to improving one’s practices. It leads to the development of one’s own ‘living educational theory’, and opens to scrutiny one’s claims to have made improvements in practice.
Q:	What values underpin it?
A:	Some core values of relevance to action research include: a commitment to professional development and support for practitioners in taking ownership of the experience of professional development a commitment to collaboration and democratic relations (action research is not something done to others but something done with others) a commitment to social justice - that everybody has the entitlement to an enabling life experience and support for self-actualisation an openness to change - through enquiry, self-reflection and through opening up one’s practices to others a willingness to question one’s beliefs and preconceptions an ability to admit where one feels things are not going well, where one is vulnerable or unable to realise one’s aspirations or intentions a belief that theory and practice are intimately linked: that we ‘know’ better by self-critically ‘doing’, and we ‘do’ better by self-consciously ‘knowing’
Q:	How does it differ from ‘reflective practice’?
A:	There are many similarities. However, for something to legitimately claim to be ‘research’, there needs to be a process of systematic, critical and self-critical enquiry. Or to quote one of the principal action researchers of the day, Jean McNiff:
"Action research (for that matter all kinds of research) is more than just doing activities. It is a form of practice which involves data gathering, reflection on the action as it is presented through the data, generating evidence through the data, and making claims to knowledge based on conclusions drawn from validated evidence." (McNiff: 2002:16)

Q:	Why should teachers or teachers-in-training consider using this as a professional development tool?
A:	In today’s environment, when there are multiple pressures on all educators to improve and achieve externally set targets, action research is an opportunity for practitioners to (a) focus their attention on matters of priority and (b) to feel empowered to be developing one’s own professional practice and identity in a systematic and supported way. It puts the ‘self’ centrally in the equation: the ‘subject’ of enquiry and improvement, not the ‘object’ of regulation and testing. In this, it is a more generative and creative way to achieve improvement. It also recognises the importance of context for sustainable change - one has to try out and explore development in specific and real contexts (one’s own classrooms, faculties, schools) not abstract and idealised settings.
Q:	What are the steps involved in planning and executing a piece of action research?
A:	Action research entails a cyclical process of change and enquiry. This can be characterised in a number of ways but the fundamental cycle entails the following: At each stage of this process, we need to acknowledge that ‘theory’ (i.e. underlying beliefs by which we make sense of the world), context and values will be significant to what we do and how we understand the outcomes. A practical guide to action research exists in McNiff.J, Lomax.P and Whitehead.J (1996). In here, they elaborate a basic action research planner: review current practice identify an aspect to improve imagine a way forward try it out take stock of what happens modify plan in light of what is found and continue with the ‘action’ evaluate the modified action and so on until satisfied with that aspect of work
	Where to begin can be challenging. Whitehead (1989) suggests that the impetus to change can arise when we experience a ‘living contradiction’ in our work, and where our educational values are denied in our practices. His proposal is, that the first stage involves imagining a solution to that contradiction or tension. The following steps may help in deciding where to begin: look closely at what is currently going on and look for ‘clues’ as to where to focus your attention explore the qualities of your imagined solution and try to identify the constituent parts use your intuition as well as rational evaluation research what interventions others have tried in relation to your area of concern talk it through with colleagues or critical friends, participants etc; seek the perspective of others be prepared to begin somewhere and learn from the response It may be useful to plan out your actions using an Action Research Planner format
	Lomax P and Whitehead J, You and Your Action Research Project, London: Routledge.

A. Cyclical process of change and enquiry

(Click to go back)

B. Action Research Planner

(click to go back)

There are a number of steps in the action research process, the first of which is to draw up an initial plan for action.

1.	Who is going to be your ‘critical friend’ or part of your critical friendship group/validation group?
2.	What is your concern? What do you want to improve or change?
3.	What are the reasons for your concern? Do you need to collect any ‘data’ at this stage to check out what is going on?
4.	What improvement or change do you think you could make? What is your imagined solution to your problem?
5.	How could you implement this? Who else do you need to involve? What resources/support/input might you need?
6.	What data could you collect to judge the effectiveness of your action? What would count as effectiveness?
7.	How will you disseminate your findings?
8.	Do you anticipate this being an on-going cyclical process?
9.	What are your worries about starting?
10.	What ethical issues are involved?

A Third Research Paradigm for the Teachers: Action Research

Action Research is characterised by the following:

it is research by teachers into their own practices
it provides teachers with a means to take increased ownership and control over their working lives
it seeks improvement in those practices by exploring change
it tends to involve interpretavist forms of enquiry, through quantification and evaluation of outcomes if not excluded
it draws upon collaborative and democratic support and debate between participants and colleagues. By opening up our practices to others it involves risk and trust.
theory is evaluated and developed through practice; we ‘know’ better by self-critically ‘doing’ and we ‘do’ better by self-consciously ‘knowing’
it involves ongoing cycles of planning – acting – observing – reflecting, with a systematic focus and deliberate gathering of evidence. The focus may shift as new issues are thrown up in the process.
it often starts with a feeling of dissatisfaction and unease about how things are going with a class or particular pupils, and may indicate a gap between one’s values and practices as a teacher
it enables shared definition of priorities and helps to reduce stress by targeting attention in the classroom. Action research begins with shared discussion of concerns and use of an action research planner.

Data gathering techniques in action research may include:

the teacher-researcher and/or participants keeping a diary
participant observation and systematic observation
questionnaires or structured interviews
semi-structured/unstructured interviews, chats and conversations
reviewing samples of work
taking photographs, audio or video recordings
observation and commentary provided by a critical friend
‘within methods’ and ‘between methods’ triangulation