This reading is very interesting to me because how more in depth it is going in to Action Research. I have taken a course where we completed an action research project, but this instantly goes way deeper. One of the first things that really caught my attention were the different types of Action Research. I presumed that Action Research was simply research that helped to cause change (action) in different ways. Which it is, but those different ways are where the different types come in. For instance Technical Action Research, where you adopt and apply a practice that has been used (hopefully successful) somewhere else and apply it into a new setting. I would imagine Technical Action Research would be good in many different settings depending on the practice that is going to be used. I however picture it being used in a service industry type setting.
I had a few main takeaways from the readings. First off, many of the points felt familiar as my senior undergrad work sample was an action research project as well. While the process may be the same, the context has completely changed. I find action research extremely relevant to teaching, especially in the sense that it looks to inform practice. The reading provides some excellent points to remember while I conduct this new research project. It is vital to routinely examine my biases so that I can begin to work towards a more equitable approach. Biases pop up everywhere, thus remaining vigilant and aware can help me reach my goals. Another takeaway I had from the reading is just how focused, actionable, and relevant action research is. Traditional research that is looking to inform theories simply doesn’t have the same impact as action research in educational settings.
The biggest takeaway from the readings is how we should approach our subject in our action research -“It is a way of thinking about being logical, but also empathetic.” (Duesbery & Twyman, page 41). I don’t have a specific topic on mind yet, but my students are at elementary school level; and many of them come from a traumatic family background. There are many layers of unseen causes for them not be able to learn at the pace as peers of their age. My intention of this action research project is to improve my teaching practice as well as my students’ learning at their own pace.
Another takeaway from the readings is that action research is cyclical. It is an ongoing problem solving process. And I am hoping that I will be able to narrow down the problem I want to solve, and report an expected result for my action research.
My initial thought after this week’s reading was: “well, this is what I already do in my job!” In teaching, and even more so in special education, we are constantly designing interventions, implementing them, taking data on the response, and making adjustments based on the outcome. A good IEP, with meaningful goals and accommodations, should naturally fit into the realm of action research.
Another thought that came to mind was the Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) and Behavior Support Plan (BSP) process. This is not surprising, as my life is currently consumed by writing two FBAs with BSPs. The FBA/BSP process parallels the action research model, as it is localized, seeks benefit for those involved, and follows the Action Research Cycle (ARC). While an FBA is an established method for behavior modification, it requires individualizing and experimentation. Looking at the FBA process through the ARC, I am currently working in the ‘Make an Action Plan’ portion of the cycle and getting ready to present my findings to the family before moving into the ‘Implement the Plan’ phase.
On the teaching side of our work, I think many of us in special education are confronted with limited resources and curriculum, forcing us to get creative in designing meaningful and effective learning experiences. When I began teaching last year, I had no curriculum for my social communication and reading/writing intervention course. It took a lot of time, trial and error, and research to create lessons that were impactful. While that was extremely taxing, I ended the school year with a much better understanding of how to serve my students and what I needed from the curriculum I would be selecting.
For my Blog I will reflect on the statements that intrigued me the most.
“Whatever position you hold, or whatever you work, think about something you really want to change, ask a good question, document it, and act.” (page 9)
There are many things I would like to change. It is the asking the good question, documenting it, and acting that seems like a mountain I am not sure I have to skill or willingness to climb. However, I do advocate for my students, but I am not one to rock the boat too much. As a self-contained special education teacher who has several students who have inclusion minutes but no support staff to make that inclusion accessible, I question if support staff should be assigned to special education or to general education classes. I also question if the 90-minute classes and even/odd day makes inclusion inaccessible for highly impacted students. These questions are good yet and I would not have the power or authority to change the schedule of a high school to accommodate specialized programs.
“In other situations, you may find yourself having to collect data after some intervention or change”(page 11)
I had a student that was having a difficult day and I was asked, “What do you want him to do?” I replied, “I want him to use the skills I know he has to walk to the bus independently.” In turn, the suggestion was, “Have you done a task analysis?” This was a deflating response for me. It was yet another assessment, another restriction, another way to prove they just can’t do it.
About 6 months ago I took a motorcycle class. It was a brand-new skill and I was impressed with the scaffolding that was built into the class. Everyone began by sitting on the bikes and tip-toeing them across the parking lot. Skills we introduced step by step, even if you hadn’t mastered the previous skill. This is where I learned that I don’t have to master something before I build on another skill. I spent 2 days learning and building, yet every time I went to start the bike I had to pause and give myself time to remember each of the steps of starting up a bike. By the end of class, I could shift up, down, quick stop, turn, figure 8, and yet I was still slow on starting the bike up. I often feel that students in special education are expected to master a skill before they are allowed to build. I question if the constant data collection on a student’s ability is ultimately holding them back from building skills.
“As you compile the information and reflect on the results you are naturally led to deeper questions.’ (page 11)
I do love this idea that the more you know the more you wonder why the deeper you dive into finding answers and possible solutions.
“An action research disposition admits that we cannot know all.”(page 13)
Awesome, because the information and understanding are always changing. It would be ridiculous to ‘know all”.
“To be clear, in action research, we do not research out of curiosity; we conduct research because we need and want to make a change.” (page 13)
Isn’t curiosity what leads us to think about things that we really want to change, thus action research does start with curiosity. I can understand that we don’t do action research out of curiosity, like a science experiment but I do think it starts with curiosity.
“Reflexivity refers to ourself-awareness in the sense that when we conduct an action research project, we are more concerned with seeing our truth as it relates to our place in the world.”(page 14)
“When we acknowledge that our participation in action research is subjective by nature, we can work to know our social world more effectively.”(page 14)
I am grateful that it is acknowledged that this research is subjective by nature. We tend to want to see what we are trying to prove and may miss what the actual outcome is based on our subjective nature.
“With action research, you make a change and observe the impact on your entire group of interest.” (page 16)
I have concerns about making changes and observing the impacts on the entire group, as each individual in a group is unique to themselves and what may affect one person may not have an impact on another.
“Action research is quick and dynamic.”(page 16)
In terms of research done for large-scale, long-term data, I agree that action research is quick, but change takes time. Also, what comes from that change may create new questions or problems.
“You are still interested in asking meaningful questions and gathering high-quality data. And so, like with traditional research you need to define variables well, identify and describe a target population with precision, and design a methodology and collect data to ensure results are valid.” (page 16)
This statement seems to contradict the statement, “Action research is quick and dynamic.”
Kurt Lewin “viewed action research as a collaborative relationship between participation and research, where both find benefit and improvement.” (page 22)
My question about this statement is what if the changes you made actually had a negative impact on your group? The original idea that was supposed to be positive actually is negative. What comes to mind is the new information that is coming out about ABA therapy and the negative impacts it has had on individuals long term. The data from the research shows a positive outcome but now people who were the subjects of that therapy are speaking up about how it had a negative impact on them.
”The Action Research Cycle (ARC) begins with the identification of a problem, which leads to creating a research action plan. That plan, which includes a research question and data collection plan, might be exploratory or confirmatory.” (page 27)
“Exploratory action research is appropriate with projects when the action researcher is not sure about the variables involved.”(page 27)
I feel like I am constantly doing exploratory research as I am often not sure what the variables are. My students are in a self-contained high school classroom. Only 1 of my students has inclusion minutes. I am constantly trying to figure out what methods or approaches to instruction and behavior modification work well. Are frequent snack breaks adding to too many transitions or do they improve student self-regulation? Is allowing self-monitoring regulation breaks leading to work avoidance or does it improve students’ safety and regulation? I consistently question if the practices I have in place help or hinder student engagement.
“Getting smarter about a problem is almost always a good first step.”(page 28)
Being willing to acknowledge there is a problem and believing that the problem has a solution is my first step. Then I can get smarter about it. My class this year had 5 teachers in 5 years and 2 support staff that have stayed for all 5 years. They had strong opinions about what a particular student was capable of, which was very little. Sometimes the problem is with what people believe is possible.
“Action research is grounded in social change and has the potential to impact issues of social justice. Good action stems from attending to its strengths, but also its weaknesses.”(page 30)
Social change is a mountain worth climbing, but mountains are big and exhausting. In the Beaverton school district, Anti-bias Anti-racist conversations are consistently happening and there is social change happening. However, this conversation rarely includes students in special education. This leads to the question, of how much social change can a society handle at one time. If we climb too many mountains at once will we regress in progress on all social change?
“Thus, action research can be a form of social justice through advocacy by explicitly linking issues of practice to wider social implications of those practices.”(page 32)
“…research becomes a form of advocacy that promotes social good and limits social harm.”(page 34)
I believe there is a mistrust in research and the output that comes from it. We are asked to believe research and to advocate for change based on the research but sometimes the research is wrong and what we end up advocating for is not a change for the better.
“By definition, action research is a process of critically examining your workplace toward the betterment of those you serve.”(page 35)
My biggest takeaway from these readings was that action research is a more personal type of research for the one writing the paper. This means that the researcher needs to be aware of any implicit bias that might crop up and taint the results of the study.
The idea of Action Research is new to me. I think back to my undergraduate classes (many many years ago) when I took research classes, lab classes and such. This book paints a very different picture as to what I have previously thought of as research. This is a welcomed change for me. I like that Action Research is defined in the book as a “younger, more dynamic, and more relevant to us in our daily practice. Action Research encompasses a philosophy of work and learning, while also providing us with critical know-how to better our lives and our work, and also better the lives of those we work with and for “ (pg. 2). I feel like I do action research all of the time in my special education life. Try something for a while and see how it works, adjust and move on. While I admit to doing this often and not very systematically, I can see where action research has a fitting home in the educational field. “We are all naturally researchers, perhaps without knowing it” (pg. 4). This books makes Action Research feel like something any of us can do. I am curious to see how this all plays out in my teacher inquiry project.
One of my biggest takeaways from todays reading was clarity in defining the type of research we will be doing. I initially though this would be more like traditional research, which from experience, would require an extended period of time to complete adequately. Action research does not have to be generalizable and is intended to benefit your immediate context/environment, such as your community, schools or classrooms. This eases my mind a little although it does narrow my topic choices.
I found figure 1.1 (10) to be a helpful visual of the ongoing process that is action research. Like Carroll mentioned, this research can be ongoing or cyclical. The ethical aspects of action research are very similar to traditional research. The question of ethics in research greatly summarized key points to keep in mind when engaging in research, “Respect, Beneficence and Justice” (33-34). The goal is for our research to benefit the participants in our study (and our school community at large). We must do so mindful of power dynamics and cultural differences, aware of potential bias, and actively minimizing potential harm.
I am interested to learn more about the logistics of this project.
This was very pleasing to read! Having been a college student for almost a total of 7 years, the term research is especially daunting. I was happy to read about this type of research of using my own experiences as the research.
I feel like this is what Special Education is really about, whether we realize it or not. We are constantly trying new methods, plans, interventions, etc. and seeing how they work. We take the results and add it to our ongoing collection of data and either tweak the plan, keep it the same, or get ride of it. I am excited to take this to my classroom!
With just reading our first chapters my overall anxiety over this project has lessened. Not only because I have a better idea of what is being asked of us, but more so because of the style in which we get to do it. Statistically speaking, my tentative topic would not have been the best, however, I now see many possibilities on how I can deepen my scope using action research.
One aspect I was most connected to was the idea that this project is more community based with factors of social improvement and immediate action. The idea that I can see my ideas manifest and adapt appropriately based on the here and now, is quite exciting. It is my hope that we get to discuss paths used before, in order to narrow done my focus. As I read our chapters, I think I changed my topic or the questions I had in mind about 5-7 times. >_<
Traditional research is old, stodgy, and constrained. Action research is hip, sexy, and focused on “doing”. Action research is developmental, in the sense that the results are used to improve processes and strengthen the skills of professionals. Action research differs from more traditional research as it is less “formal”, more dynamic, and focuses on a “sample of interest” in a single setting. Action research aims to improve teacher practice by applying research principles to solve problems that are happening in your classroom right now.
My main takeaway is that action research is a tool for teachers to use to improve their teaching practices, not to simply contribute to theory. Selecting a topic for my research project seemed daunting at first, as I wasn’t sure what kind of research I would be able to conduct with my population that would yield any useful information. Now that I understand action research to be a tool to improve teacher practice, I’m more prepared to look at the project as an opportunity to improve an area of education that is lacking for the students I work with. Namely, this problem is the lack of appropriate social/emotional skills education for the severely cognitively disabled.
What are your main takeaways from the readings?
This reading is very interesting to me because how more in depth it is going in to Action Research. I have taken a course where we completed an action research project, but this instantly goes way deeper. One of the first things that really caught my attention were the different types of Action Research. I presumed that Action Research was simply research that helped to cause change (action) in different ways. Which it is, but those different ways are where the different types come in. For instance Technical Action Research, where you adopt and apply a practice that has been used (hopefully successful) somewhere else and apply it into a new setting. I would imagine Technical Action Research would be good in many different settings depending on the practice that is going to be used. I however picture it being used in a service industry type setting.
I had a few main takeaways from the readings. First off, many of the points felt familiar as my senior undergrad work sample was an action research project as well. While the process may be the same, the context has completely changed. I find action research extremely relevant to teaching, especially in the sense that it looks to inform practice. The reading provides some excellent points to remember while I conduct this new research project. It is vital to routinely examine my biases so that I can begin to work towards a more equitable approach. Biases pop up everywhere, thus remaining vigilant and aware can help me reach my goals. Another takeaway I had from the reading is just how focused, actionable, and relevant action research is. Traditional research that is looking to inform theories simply doesn’t have the same impact as action research in educational settings.
The biggest takeaway from the readings is how we should approach our subject in our action research -“It is a way of thinking about being logical, but also empathetic.” (Duesbery & Twyman, page 41). I don’t have a specific topic on mind yet, but my students are at elementary school level; and many of them come from a traumatic family background. There are many layers of unseen causes for them not be able to learn at the pace as peers of their age. My intention of this action research project is to improve my teaching practice as well as my students’ learning at their own pace.
Another takeaway from the readings is that action research is cyclical. It is an ongoing problem solving process. And I am hoping that I will be able to narrow down the problem I want to solve, and report an expected result for my action research.
My initial thought after this week’s reading was: “well, this is what I already do in my job!” In teaching, and even more so in special education, we are constantly designing interventions, implementing them, taking data on the response, and making adjustments based on the outcome. A good IEP, with meaningful goals and accommodations, should naturally fit into the realm of action research.
Another thought that came to mind was the Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) and Behavior Support Plan (BSP) process. This is not surprising, as my life is currently consumed by writing two FBAs with BSPs. The FBA/BSP process parallels the action research model, as it is localized, seeks benefit for those involved, and follows the Action Research Cycle (ARC). While an FBA is an established method for behavior modification, it requires individualizing and experimentation. Looking at the FBA process through the ARC, I am currently working in the ‘Make an Action Plan’ portion of the cycle and getting ready to present my findings to the family before moving into the ‘Implement the Plan’ phase.
On the teaching side of our work, I think many of us in special education are confronted with limited resources and curriculum, forcing us to get creative in designing meaningful and effective learning experiences. When I began teaching last year, I had no curriculum for my social communication and reading/writing intervention course. It took a lot of time, trial and error, and research to create lessons that were impactful. While that was extremely taxing, I ended the school year with a much better understanding of how to serve my students and what I needed from the curriculum I would be selecting.
For my Blog I will reflect on the statements that intrigued me the most.
“Whatever position you hold, or whatever you work, think about something you really want to change, ask a good question, document it, and act.” (page 9)
There are many things I would like to change. It is the asking the good question, documenting it, and acting that seems like a mountain I am not sure I have to skill or willingness to climb. However, I do advocate for my students, but I am not one to rock the boat too much. As a self-contained special education teacher who has several students who have inclusion minutes but no support staff to make that inclusion accessible, I question if support staff should be assigned to special education or to general education classes. I also question if the 90-minute classes and even/odd day makes inclusion inaccessible for highly impacted students. These questions are good yet and I would not have the power or authority to change the schedule of a high school to accommodate specialized programs.
“In other situations, you may find yourself having to collect data after some intervention or change”(page 11)
I had a student that was having a difficult day and I was asked, “What do you want him to do?” I replied, “I want him to use the skills I know he has to walk to the bus independently.” In turn, the suggestion was, “Have you done a task analysis?” This was a deflating response for me. It was yet another assessment, another restriction, another way to prove they just can’t do it.
About 6 months ago I took a motorcycle class. It was a brand-new skill and I was impressed with the scaffolding that was built into the class. Everyone began by sitting on the bikes and tip-toeing them across the parking lot. Skills we introduced step by step, even if you hadn’t mastered the previous skill. This is where I learned that I don’t have to master something before I build on another skill. I spent 2 days learning and building, yet every time I went to start the bike I had to pause and give myself time to remember each of the steps of starting up a bike. By the end of class, I could shift up, down, quick stop, turn, figure 8, and yet I was still slow on starting the bike up. I often feel that students in special education are expected to master a skill before they are allowed to build. I question if the constant data collection on a student’s ability is ultimately holding them back from building skills.
“As you compile the information and reflect on the results you are naturally led to deeper questions.’ (page 11)
I do love this idea that the more you know the more you wonder why the deeper you dive into finding answers and possible solutions.
“An action research disposition admits that we cannot know all.”(page 13)
Awesome, because the information and understanding are always changing. It would be ridiculous to ‘know all”.
“To be clear, in action research, we do not research out of curiosity; we conduct research because we need and want to make a change.” (page 13)
Isn’t curiosity what leads us to think about things that we really want to change, thus action research does start with curiosity. I can understand that we don’t do action research out of curiosity, like a science experiment but I do think it starts with curiosity.
“Reflexivity refers to ourself-awareness in the sense that when we conduct an action research project, we are more concerned with seeing our truth as it relates to our place in the world.”(page 14)
“When we acknowledge that our participation in action research is subjective by nature, we can work to know our social world more effectively.”(page 14)
I am grateful that it is acknowledged that this research is subjective by nature. We tend to want to see what we are trying to prove and may miss what the actual outcome is based on our subjective nature.
“With action research, you make a change and observe the impact on your entire group of interest.” (page 16)
I have concerns about making changes and observing the impacts on the entire group, as each individual in a group is unique to themselves and what may affect one person may not have an impact on another.
“Action research is quick and dynamic.”(page 16)
In terms of research done for large-scale, long-term data, I agree that action research is quick, but change takes time. Also, what comes from that change may create new questions or problems.
“You are still interested in asking meaningful questions and gathering high-quality data. And so, like with traditional research you need to define variables well, identify and describe a target population with precision, and design a methodology and collect data to ensure results are valid.” (page 16)
This statement seems to contradict the statement, “Action research is quick and dynamic.”
Kurt Lewin “viewed action research as a collaborative relationship between participation and research, where both find benefit and improvement.” (page 22)
My question about this statement is what if the changes you made actually had a negative impact on your group? The original idea that was supposed to be positive actually is negative. What comes to mind is the new information that is coming out about ABA therapy and the negative impacts it has had on individuals long term. The data from the research shows a positive outcome but now people who were the subjects of that therapy are speaking up about how it had a negative impact on them.
”The Action Research Cycle (ARC) begins with the identification of a problem, which leads to creating a research action plan. That plan, which includes a research question and data collection plan, might be exploratory or confirmatory.” (page 27)
“Exploratory action research is appropriate with projects when the action researcher is not sure about the variables involved.”(page 27)
I feel like I am constantly doing exploratory research as I am often not sure what the variables are. My students are in a self-contained high school classroom. Only 1 of my students has inclusion minutes. I am constantly trying to figure out what methods or approaches to instruction and behavior modification work well. Are frequent snack breaks adding to too many transitions or do they improve student self-regulation? Is allowing self-monitoring regulation breaks leading to work avoidance or does it improve students’ safety and regulation? I consistently question if the practices I have in place help or hinder student engagement.
“Getting smarter about a problem is almost always a good first step.”(page 28)
Being willing to acknowledge there is a problem and believing that the problem has a solution is my first step. Then I can get smarter about it. My class this year had 5 teachers in 5 years and 2 support staff that have stayed for all 5 years. They had strong opinions about what a particular student was capable of, which was very little. Sometimes the problem is with what people believe is possible.
“Action research is grounded in social change and has the potential to impact issues of social justice. Good action stems from attending to its strengths, but also its weaknesses.”(page 30)
Social change is a mountain worth climbing, but mountains are big and exhausting. In the Beaverton school district, Anti-bias Anti-racist conversations are consistently happening and there is social change happening. However, this conversation rarely includes students in special education. This leads to the question, of how much social change can a society handle at one time. If we climb too many mountains at once will we regress in progress on all social change?
“Thus, action research can be a form of social justice through advocacy by explicitly linking issues of practice to wider social implications of those practices.”(page 32)
“…research becomes a form of advocacy that promotes social good and limits social harm.”(page 34)
I believe there is a mistrust in research and the output that comes from it. We are asked to believe research and to advocate for change based on the research but sometimes the research is wrong and what we end up advocating for is not a change for the better.
“By definition, action research is a process of critically examining your workplace toward the betterment of those you serve.”(page 35)
Betterment is a subjective idea.
My biggest takeaway from these readings was that action research is a more personal type of research for the one writing the paper. This means that the researcher needs to be aware of any implicit bias that might crop up and taint the results of the study.
The idea of Action Research is new to me. I think back to my undergraduate classes (many many years ago) when I took research classes, lab classes and such. This book paints a very different picture as to what I have previously thought of as research. This is a welcomed change for me. I like that Action Research is defined in the book as a “younger, more dynamic, and more relevant to us in our daily practice. Action Research encompasses a philosophy of work and learning, while also providing us with critical know-how to better our lives and our work, and also better the lives of those we work with and for “ (pg. 2). I feel like I do action research all of the time in my special education life. Try something for a while and see how it works, adjust and move on. While I admit to doing this often and not very systematically, I can see where action research has a fitting home in the educational field. “We are all naturally researchers, perhaps without knowing it” (pg. 4). This books makes Action Research feel like something any of us can do. I am curious to see how this all plays out in my teacher inquiry project.
One of my biggest takeaways from todays reading was clarity in defining the type of research we will be doing. I initially though this would be more like traditional research, which from experience, would require an extended period of time to complete adequately. Action research does not have to be generalizable and is intended to benefit your immediate context/environment, such as your community, schools or classrooms. This eases my mind a little although it does narrow my topic choices.
I found figure 1.1 (10) to be a helpful visual of the ongoing process that is action research. Like Carroll mentioned, this research can be ongoing or cyclical. The ethical aspects of action research are very similar to traditional research. The question of ethics in research greatly summarized key points to keep in mind when engaging in research, “Respect, Beneficence and Justice” (33-34). The goal is for our research to benefit the participants in our study (and our school community at large). We must do so mindful of power dynamics and cultural differences, aware of potential bias, and actively minimizing potential harm.
I am interested to learn more about the logistics of this project.
This was very pleasing to read! Having been a college student for almost a total of 7 years, the term research is especially daunting. I was happy to read about this type of research of using my own experiences as the research.
I feel like this is what Special Education is really about, whether we realize it or not. We are constantly trying new methods, plans, interventions, etc. and seeing how they work. We take the results and add it to our ongoing collection of data and either tweak the plan, keep it the same, or get ride of it. I am excited to take this to my classroom!
With just reading our first chapters my overall anxiety over this project has lessened. Not only because I have a better idea of what is being asked of us, but more so because of the style in which we get to do it. Statistically speaking, my tentative topic would not have been the best, however, I now see many possibilities on how I can deepen my scope using action research.
One aspect I was most connected to was the idea that this project is more community based with factors of social improvement and immediate action. The idea that I can see my ideas manifest and adapt appropriately based on the here and now, is quite exciting. It is my hope that we get to discuss paths used before, in order to narrow done my focus. As I read our chapters, I think I changed my topic or the questions I had in mind about 5-7 times. >_<
Traditional research is old, stodgy, and constrained. Action research is hip, sexy, and focused on “doing”. Action research is developmental, in the sense that the results are used to improve processes and strengthen the skills of professionals. Action research differs from more traditional research as it is less “formal”, more dynamic, and focuses on a “sample of interest” in a single setting. Action research aims to improve teacher practice by applying research principles to solve problems that are happening in your classroom right now.
My main takeaway is that action research is a tool for teachers to use to improve their teaching practices, not to simply contribute to theory. Selecting a topic for my research project seemed daunting at first, as I wasn’t sure what kind of research I would be able to conduct with my population that would yield any useful information. Now that I understand action research to be a tool to improve teacher practice, I’m more prepared to look at the project as an opportunity to improve an area of education that is lacking for the students I work with. Namely, this problem is the lack of appropriate social/emotional skills education for the severely cognitively disabled.