At first, I was a little worried about taking the action research course. Research for me was a complicated course I had taken long time ago when I was in college back in 1987. To my amazement, I discovered that action research simply meant, “Systematic, intentional study of one’s own professional practice.” (Dana, 2009, p. 9) and that I have performed this process before for the past six years while reading and studying for myself. I have posed questions and had wonderings that led to collecting and analyzing data while making decisions that would lead to change in my classroom and my school.
I have learned a lot in this Research course, although it was a little difficult at first to understand because I was not actually conducting my research, but I had to prepare to conduct the research through research information, inquiries, wonderings and questions to ensure that my research was a related and relevant topic to the action that needed to be addressed.
This Research course was very demanding compared to the other courses that I have taken so far for this master’s program. It required a lot of time and research. I acquired a lot of information through the readings each week and enjoyed the weekly discussions with my peers. I found that the assignments were reasonably understandable and I did learn a lot when I did the assignments because I had to research and read the required readings for this course.
I found spending the first two weeks in investigating and looking at examples of inquiry very beneficial in developing my own inquiry topic. The paces of the assignment requirements were valuable in fully realizing, reflecting, and organizing my inquiry. On week 3, it was beneficial to do the Action Research Plan using the template because it forced us to get the “big picture” of how we would conduct the research. It also made us reflect on areas that we did not consider such as what materials would be needed to do the research.
The Discussion Board was an instrumental tool for the course. I learned a lot from reading other people’s research topics. The feedback and resources I received from others was key to helping me organize my research. The interactions with others allowed me to share some of my experiences and find connections.
I believed that after all the research is conducted and analyzed the importance of sharing my work with others is very critical in solving the problem or issue on our campus. (Dana, 2009) That's why it is critical that you “get into the pond” and share your inquiry not only for yourself, your teachers, your students, and other administrators but for the profession as a whole as well!” I believe in this proclamation because once you share your wealth of information or knowledge about your inquiry or findings, you can benefit by making a positive change or explanation on your own thinking. I also believe in using the four critical tasks to share my inquiry with others. By utilizing these four critical tasks, researchers can better understand and reflect on their findings and begin a new cycle of inquiry in the future.
Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press,
Harris, S., Edmonson, S., and Combs, J. (2010). Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools: 8 Steps to Improve Our Schools. Larchmont, NY. Eye on Education Press.
