ACTION RESEARCH DESIGNS - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

ACTION RESEARCH DESIGNSSlide2

Our presentation today:

Chapter Summary

What is ARD? What makes it different?

What are the types of ARD?

Key Characteristics

Ethical Issues with ARD

Our thoughts on ARD

Examples of ARD

Using ARD - an activity and a discussion

Slide3

What is ARD & what makes it different?

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

A method of research that shares some characteristics with mixed methods in that it collects data through qualitative, quantitative or bothCan draw from all other forms of research in its designDiffers in that the research focuses on a specific and practical issue and built into the research is the implementation of a solution

Stringer, E. (2004)

Action Research in Education. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide4

What is ARD & what makes it different?

Starts with practitioners and always works within the settings where the problems exist

(collaborators vs. participants)

Seeks to:

1) address local, practical problems OR 2) empower, transform and emancipate individuals from situations that limit their self-development and self- determination More participatory and collaborative approach to research Creswell, J. (2012) Educational Research. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

www.enchanted maths.caSlide5

THE DEVELOPMENT OF ARD

3 Stages of development:

1) Identifying a means to address issues in society

2) The need to include practitioners (teachers) in the resolving the issues that they face

3) The participatory, emancipatory, or community action research approach in which groups assume responsibility for their own emancipation and changeCreswell, J. (2012) Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

www.managementpocketbooks.wordpress.com

ARD Today:

Encourages change in the schools

Fosters

a democratic approach to education

Empowers

individuals through collaborative projects

Positions teachers and other educators as learners and seeks to narrow the gap between practice and their vision of education

Encourages educators to reflect on their practices

Promotes a process of testing new ideas

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide6

TYPES OF ARD

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide7

Practical Action Research:

TYPES OF ARD

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide8

TYPES OF ARD

Look: collecting data, recording and analysing data, constructing and reporting to stakeholders about the issue

Think: Interpreting the issues in greater depth and identifying priorities for action

Act: planning, implementing, reviewing, evaluating, repeating

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

Participatory Action Research (PAR):Slide9

Participatory Action Research (PAR):

Focuses on research for emancipation or change in society through looking at issues within a community or societal context as opposed to specific/practical problems

(

ie

. Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed)TYPES OF ARD

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide10

Participatory Action Research (PAR):

Also known as participatory research, critical action research or classroom action research

This distinct Ideological Foundation shapes the research:

1) the

direction of the process of inquiry:2) the type of issue that commands attention of the action researcher3) the procedures of research - especially data collection4) the intent and outcome of the inquiry(Mason, T. & Delandshere

Citizens Not Research Subject: Toward a More Democratic Education Inquiry Methodology.)

TYPES OF ARD

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide11

Beth's Blog: Nonprofits and Social

MediaSlide12

Participatory Action Research (PAR):

studies relate to a need to address social problems that constrain and repress the lives of students and educators

engages

in a process of research that promotes egalitarian and democratic aims

strives for open, broad-based involvement of participants in their studies by collaborating in decision as consensual partners and engaging participants as equals to ensure their well-beingresearchers emphasize the importance of:establishing contacts identifying stakeholder

groups locating

key people

negotiating

the researcher’s role

building

a preliminary picture of the field context of

the

study

TYPES OF ARD

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide13

Cartoon © Simon Kneebone and

Yoland

Wadsworth – from What is Participatory Action Research? Action Research International online journal, 1998Slide14

KEY CHARACTERISTICS OF ARD

it has a

practical

and/or

empowering focusthe educator-researcher focuses on his/her own practicesit involves collaboration

it is a

dynamic

process

it involves a

plan of action

is involves

sharing research

Riel, M. &

Lepori

, K. (2011). 

A Meta-Analysis of the Outcomes of Action Research.

 Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association conference, April 2011, New Orleans.Slide15

researchers should adopt ethics based on the caring relationships among partners involved in research and shared commitment to social justice (

Brydon

-Miller, 2009, in Creswell)

research needs to be in best interest of those involved in the problem

continuously renegotiate purpose of study, consider how results will be used, involve participants as much as possibleconsent form – like “act of seduction” (Newkirk, 1996, in Creswell) ETHICAL ISSUESSlide16

The researcher:

Identifies a practical issue or a societal/community issue

Uses multiple sources of data: qualitative/quantitative

Works with others to achieve the best outcomes

Creates working relationships whereby all are equal partners as opposed to participantsComes up with and implements an action plan to address an issueReflective component for the initiating researcherSeeks to empower by solving a problem or facilitating individuals’ ability to solve their own problemsReporting is done in a way that is has utility for those practitioners

EVALUATING AN ARD STUDY

Creswell, J. (2012)

Educational Research.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.Slide17

Our thoughts on ARD

Gabrielle:

Efficient way for teachers to implement change in their own classroom (practical action research)

Cost-effective, time-saving – research is done directly with the people, and in the location, it will affect

Small-scale research project, with a specific focus, undertaken directly in the school communityA viable alternative to traditional types of research; more appropriate type of research for the classroom/school environmentSlide18

Jason

Research 2.0

Re-humanizing of the Social Sciences

Appeals to me in terms of language and concepts

Works toward a solutionAddresses some concerns artificialness of research and how the research will be used.Our thoughts on ARDMalcolm Gladwell

: The Strange tale of the Norden

bombsight (Ted Talks)

Click on the picture to watchSlide19

what

ard

has the potential to address

The Predictable Failure of Educational Reform,

by Seymore B. SarasonAddresses some failures of actions taken based on research findings that fail to connect the experiment to the classroom

Failure

to account for the individual climate and relationships at individual schools

Failure

to involve educators in the process of educational

reform

“Theory is a necessary myth that we construct to understand something we know we understand incompletely. Theory is a deliberate attempt to go beyond what we know or how to correct what we think are the erroneous explanation of others. It is intended to make a difference not only on the level of theory but on the level of action, be it in a laboratory, a classroom, or a school. It is a statement that says: if you

think about problems this way, and you do such and such, you will observe something the theory predicts that was not predictable before

. Theory is suppose to change our perceptions of phenomenon in a certain context, and that change requires actions consistent with that change.

Educational reform rarely derives from whatever we mean by theory but rather from opinion, anecdote, and uncritical acceptance of research, or a desperation

.” (p. 123

Sarason

)Slide20

what

ard

has the potential to address

Dirty Rotten Strategies: How We Trick Ourselves and Others into Solving the Wrong Problems Precisely,

by I. Mitroff & A. Silvers“[People] are not confronted with problems that are independent of each other, but with dynamic situations that consist of complex systems of changing problems that interact with each other.... I call such situations messes. Problems are abstractions extracted from messes by analysis....” pg. 29“Therefore, when a mess, which is a system of problems, is taken apart, it loses its essential properties and so does each of its parts. The behavior of a mess depends more on how the treatment of its parts interacts than how they act

independently of each other. A partial solution to a whole system is better than whole solutions of each of its parts taken separately

.” pg. 29

“Confusing

exercises with

problems”

pg. 30

“Nature

is not organized in the same way that universities are

’”-

105

 Slide21

what

ard

has the potential to address

U. Dieter.

Praxis des Neusprachlichen Unterrichts. V25 n2 p115-19, 1978.

Abstract:

Finds that the critical situation in foreign language teaching in German schools and universities is partly due to divergence between theory and practice, particularly in teacher training and in the failure to orient methodological innovations to actual teaching experience.

Geelan

, D.

Undead Theories: Constructivism, Eclecticism and Research in Education.

Rooterdam

: Sense Publishers, 2006.

“Understanding the complication

of schools and classrooms at the technical, practical and emancipatory (sometimes also called ‘critical’) levels begins to suggest that these systems are too complicated for simplistic, reductionist analysis to be of real value in supporting services to students.” (pg. 13) Slide22

Jason:

1) McKay, R. & Orr, J. Living Citizenship through Classroom Community.

Canadian Social Studies, v31, pg 131-4

Spr

‘97.2) Pope, A., Stotle, L., & Cohen, A. Closing the Civic Engagement Gap: The Potential of Action Civics. Social Education, 2011: 75 (5): 267-270.Gabrielle:Curry, M. J. (2006). Action research for preparing reflective language teachers. 1-4.

Crookes, G. (1993). Action research for second language teachers: Going beyond teacher research. Applied Linguistics, 14

(2), 130-144.

Examples of ARD related to our researchSlide23

What are some

practical issues in education

or

societal/community problems that prevent teachers/students from being empowered

as they relate to your area of research?If you were to use ARD methodology to address the problem related to your current research interest what would that look like? How would it differ from what you are currently planning?What would the strengths and weaknesses of using ARD methodology to research your area of interest?What ideas from ARD could you incorporate into your existing research plan?

Discussion & activity:

(pick one group member’s research area)