Week Three
What will you have to know and do to begin your research?
To begin my research, I will have to formulate a good action research question. A well written question can not be answered with a yes or a no. "We have found that good questions are free of educational jargon. They use simple everyday words that make the point clear to all. They do not prejudge the result." (Rust, 5) The question that I have been working on is: Would a different type of homework assignment assist student
learning?
After formulating the question I will need to set up a timeline. A timeline will help me keep track of my steps and make sure that I complete the research before this course is complete.
I will also need to decide how I am going to record my thoughts/reflections. Some of the ways I thought of include keeping a journal, taking photos, conducting student interviews, and giving students a pre-assessment and post-assessment type survey. I also need to keep in mind that I want three data points so that I can triangulate my findings.
Some of the tips that Gwendolyn Mettetal mentioned in her paper on action research include remembering that "the researcher is, first and foremost, the classroom teacher and that the research cannot be allowed to take precedence over student learning". (Mettetal, 3) Additionally "the question or problem should be feasible in terms of time, effort and resources". And finally she mentioned that a teacher doing action research for the first time should do the research in a class that is going well and not in a class where there is a problem. First timers should "think small -- to look at one aspect of teaching in a single course". (Mettetal, 4)
Photo Credit: Innovative Education in VT https://tiie.w3.uvm.edu/blog/how-to-get-started-with-action-research/#.XjEhjmhKhPY
Mettetal, Gwendolyn. “The What, Why and How of Classroom Action Research.” Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 2002, 1589-Article Text-6368-1-10-20120225.pdf.
Rust, Frances, and Christopher Clark. “How to Do Action Research in Your Classroom.” https://teachersnetwork.org/tnli/Action_Research_Booklet.pdf.
After formulating the question I will need to set up a timeline. A timeline will help me keep track of my steps and make sure that I complete the research before this course is complete.
I will also need to decide how I am going to record my thoughts/reflections. Some of the ways I thought of include keeping a journal, taking photos, conducting student interviews, and giving students a pre-assessment and post-assessment type survey. I also need to keep in mind that I want three data points so that I can triangulate my findings.
Some of the tips that Gwendolyn Mettetal mentioned in her paper on action research include remembering that "the researcher is, first and foremost, the classroom teacher and that the research cannot be allowed to take precedence over student learning". (Mettetal, 3) Additionally "the question or problem should be feasible in terms of time, effort and resources". And finally she mentioned that a teacher doing action research for the first time should do the research in a class that is going well and not in a class where there is a problem. First timers should "think small -- to look at one aspect of teaching in a single course". (Mettetal, 4)
Photo Credit: Innovative Education in VT https://tiie.w3.uvm.edu/blog/how-to-get-started-with-action-research/#.XjEhjmhKhPY
Mettetal, Gwendolyn. “The What, Why and How of Classroom Action Research.” Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 2002, 1589-Article Text-6368-1-10-20120225.pdf.
Rust, Frances, and Christopher Clark. “How to Do Action Research in Your Classroom.” https://teachersnetwork.org/tnli/Action_Research_Booklet.pdf.
Keri,
ReplyDeleteI think it's a good idea to re-evaluate your homework assignments as a way to improve students success. One thing I would attempt to do is narrow it some, to get more specific. For example, different in which way?
Carrie
Thanks for the suggestion. I was thinking of offering an online option for homework, either with desmos or CK12, both of which are free resources. I was also thinking of using PowerSchool (the LMS that my school uses) and having an online option for homework using that platform.
DeleteHi Keri, great post! I love that you have set yourself up with a great plan. I also think taking in a variety of observations and recordings is a terrific way to have quality data. I thought your last sentence about "thinking small" is really important when we probably have a list of things we'd like to focus on or even change. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your words. I think starting small and having a focused question will be helpful as I'm doing this type of research for the first time. I also really like the idea of doing the research in a class that is going well.
DeleteKeri,
ReplyDeleteReally great post. I like your quote in the bottom about how a first time researcher should focus on a class that is actually going well. This will give us an opportunity to go through the process and focus on a relatively small change going forward. Then in the future you can tackle a more pressing concern or question after already experiencing the research process.
This made sense to me when I read it. If you are doing research in a class that isn't going well, then are you addressing a research question or a problem (behavior) in the class?
DeleteI think you will need to refine what you mean by different kind of homework. Perhaps look at some flipping of some of the homework. That puts more ownership of the learning into the hands of the students. We will all be watching and wondering what you might find.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you mean by flipping some of the homework? Do you mean have students make the homework problems or give homework that is completed online?
DeleteKeri,
ReplyDeleteTwo thing really stuck out to me in your post: The quote about 1st timers doing the action research in a class that is going well and the "think small". I have a tendency to think big. I need to remember that this is my first time doing action research. I am also glad i chose my personal finance class because it is really going well and I have really engaging students and we have great conversations in the class.