Discussion

As a pre-service educator, I witnessed firsthand how students struggle with organizing

and retaining complex historical information. This challenge, which I personally encountered
throughout my academic journey until discovering graphic organizers in graduate school,
inspired my research focus. My intervention specifically examined the effects of using graphic
organizers to increase achievement in 9th grade history. While I was not able to conclusively say
that the graphic organizers positively impacted students, I did find some evidence that the
organizers did help students link certain concepts.

Analysis of Data Collection

I implemented three primary data collection methods throughout this study: student work
samples, reflective journal prompts, and exit tickets. To supplement these, I maintained detailed
anecdotal notes during classroom observations, focusing specifically on how students engaged
with the graphic organizers and their ability to make connections between historical events. My
analysis process involved systematic coding of both student work and my reflective journals. For
student work samples, I developed a thematic coding system to identify patterns across
assignments. I specifically looked for: Common errors appearing across multiple students' work,
Shared misunderstandings about historical connections, Recurring themes in how students
approached the organizers In my reflective journals, I implemented a specific coding structure to
track student progress: "Confusion" - when students repeatedly expressed uncertainty about
directions or content "Comprehensive Knowledge" - when students demonstrated broad
understanding of topics "Deep Analysis" - for instances of particularly thoughtful student
responses. Honestly, going through coding I would mark any repeat mistake as “confusion”
whether it was through uncertainty or lack of content knowledge. Untangling the reasoning
behind student errors was not an action I attempted to undertake. In similar fashion, for
Comprehensive Knowledge, I would make this annotation when students had multiple answers
correct or at least in the right direction on longer form answers. If students made a unique, to me,
insight I would put Deep Analysis.
This methodical approach to data collection and analysis provided a framework for
understanding both individual student progress and broader patterns in classroom engagement
with the graphic organizers. To try and triangulate my data, I compared data from student work
(pop quizzes) with exit tickets, to my written notes (journals) from debriefs with my MT. The
result of this triangulation was that I entered a Bermuda Triangle of research. In one example my
pop quiz data point showed students answering the multiple-choice questions directly addressing
the organizer correctly in high-numbers, yet there were also other questions that were answered
correctly in large number, while the overall student score was poor. This would seem to imply
that the organizers were effective but my talks with my MT led me to believe that the students
were not on track, which would imply the organizers were not helping enough. The Exit tickets
seemed to indicate that students were satisfied with the organizers but given that the students had
to turn in the sticky notes answering the exit ticket, they may have simply written something
positive just to get their phones back as soon as possible. These conflicting signals have led me
to conclude that there is not solid evidence that the organizers are truly having an impact on
student achievement.

Overview of Findings
While analyzing the quantitative data proved challenging due to sample size limitations,
the qualitative findings revealed some insights about implementation effectiveness. Students did
appear to demonstrate increased engagement with the content when using the graphic organizers,
though this engagement may have varied based on classroom factors. In fact, I had difficulty
knowing whether the students were feeling more assured based on the organizers or simply how
class had been that day. To expand upon that sentiment, we (MT and myself) gave a formative
pop quiz on the material that was taught the two lessons before, this quiz showed relatively high
scores on the concept that was diagramed on the graphic organizer. Other questions also had high
numbers of correct answers, these questions were not the subject of the organizer. On a day-to-
day basis sometimes, the class was in more of a groove, flow-state, whatever you may call it, and
sometimes there were behavioral management issues. While I learned a lot about behavioral
management during the internship untangling the issues as to which were ameliorated by novel
interventions (e.g. the graphic organizers), and which were due to more “routine” classroom
management strategies. I think that my findings mean that while I have received mixed signals as
to the effectiveness of the organizers, I have not received any complaints or major negatives in
the use of graphic organizers. I take this to mean that I should fall back on the more scientifically
robust studies conducted by professional researchers and academics, which have shown a benefit
in the use of graphic organizers.

My two students were hard to monitor as one had some bouts of absenteeism and in-
school suspension during the intervention which made data collection difficult. The other student
was a high preforming student before the intervention and after the intervention also maintained
high standards, I base this on test results alone as when the other focus student had missed a few
classes of the intervention my focus drifted. My findings conform to what I expected before the
intervention, in that I thought it would be hard to isolate the effect of the graphic organizers as an
independent variable. I did find the coding of some of my students' work interesting. Interesting
in that it was a new method of analyzing data that was foreign to me and even though I believe
that my application was in a sloppy haphazard method, I feel that looking for commonalties in
student answers is a great way to take the pulse of the class. I say a sloppy haphazard method
because some of the answers in classes such as Comprehensive Knowledge which was based on
multiple correct answers in a theme was entirely defined by my and it would not surprise me if
the lack of a rubric for coding the data led to some arbitrary decisions as to what would be
classified as Comprehensive Knowledge or Confusion or similar was more arbitrary than
scientific research would call for. I did not note a great deal of contradictions between my
experience and the literature review, the literature review indicated that the cognitive load of
students could be reduced using organizers (Colliot & Jamet 2018). This seems to me to have
occurred though proving it through quantitative or qualitative data was difficult. Part of the
difference could have been determined by behavioral management with classes that were more
unruly having a lower cognitive load available to process data. This would imply that organizers
should be more effective in a class with behavioral issues. Further research could shed additional
light on the validity of the earlier studies. I honestly think that if one was to conduct more
scientifically valid research, they would be able to validate the earlier research proving that
organizers reduce cognitive load. The action research process was interesting to complete and
conducting a tier 1 intervention will be an effective skill to have in the future. Learning different
ways to one the fly analyze data to better effect student learning is an excellent form of
professional development that will help me in future employment (in schools or out of schools).
As a professional, I take this to mean that if I want to make major changes to the way I am
teaching I need to collect data in a systematic way so that I can see if I am able to triangulate the
data, otherwise I should fall back on peer-reviewed research that should form the foundations of
my teaching pedagogy. While I don’t think my data generalizes across all scenarios, it can still
be useful to focus on the process of gathering and analyzing the data. In the future I might try to
run one of these interventions a year focusing on getting better at triangulating data.

Reflection
The research process revealed that successful implementation of graphic organizers depends
heavily on classroom management strategies. Student feedback consistently indicated that the
organizers helped make complex historical relationships more accessible, supporting the
theoretical framework of cognitive load theory discussed in the literature review (Colliot &
Jamet, 2018). My observations showed that students particularly benefited from the visual
representation of cause and-effect relationships in historical events. This aligns with dual coding
theory, as students could process information through both verbal and visual channels. (Clark &
Paivio 1991) Students did seem more confused or unable to complete their assignments when
behavioral management slipped in the classroom. For example, when my notes and reflections
included many notes about settling the class down or behavioral management in general, there
seemed to be lower quality work in general and graphic organizers may not have mattered as
much as indicated on the exit tickets. This is mainly a feel type observation, but it is backed up
by my formal conversations with my MT where he emphasizes that without proper behavorial
management that learning will be negatively affected. MT stated that he thought in some classes
I taught that students may have not been fully engaged compared to classes where I merely co-
taught. As the organizers were mainly, not all, introduced when I was teaching this made
determining the effectiveness of the intervention more difficult.

Limitations

Listing all the limitations of this project would expand the paper beyond its current scope, I have
listed so limitations that were noteworthy to me in this section.
The restricted sample size limited quantitative analysis possibilities, That the behavioral
management of the class may have influenced the results of the student work and that their
answers on their exit ticker may have been influenced by their friendliness with the teacher as
opposed to a truly objective view of the organizers. Isolating the graphic organizer as a variable
proved difficult, and I would hesitate to make any conclusions either way regarding the research
due to the limitations.

Another limitation was that I had to modify the collection of my data based on the pacing of our
class, Grant Lion starts a week later than other school districts and my Mentor Teacher decided
to only let me grade student work from later in the semester, so I did not have access to student
work before the intervention (MT did allow access during the intervention) this made it difficult
to do a comparative analysis from student work from before the intervention, to student work
from after the intervention. A greater corpus of work may have generated different results, as
well as showing a greater diversity of response from larger of assignments available.

Action Plan

Moving forward, I plan to:

Focus on my pedagogy, by refining my transitions, incorporating best practices such as passing

out handouts when students are occupied answering previous questions. I also plan on organizing
the room before class starts as often as possible since I have learned that the way the class space
is physically structured matters a great deal in teaching lessons, leaving making copies until the
last minute, is also a task that can trip up one’s classroom management as feeling rushed before
ones class can lead to a teacher becoming off-balance and less the predicable rock that students
can rely one.
Develop more objective assessment tools. Explore varying complexity levels in graphic
organizers based on student needs. Examples of this include pre-filling out organizers to give
students the equivalent of a sentence frame. An additional way to scaffold the organizer would
be the give explicit directions to select students on how to use the organizer and making the link
between concepts as clear as possible. I can also implement the use of graphic organizers in
summative testing, which should help students with studying. My action research has enhanced
my understanding of how graphic organizers can support student learning in history classrooms
while highlighting the importance of thoughtful implementation strategies.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this action research project has highlighted crucial areas for professional growth in
my teaching practice. Moving forward, I will prioritize mastering fundamental classroom
management through an improved timing of materials distribution. One given solution that will
not disrupt student focus, handouts will be distributed while students are engaged in other tasks.
This approach maintains classroom flow and student concentration. The project has also
highlighted the critical importance of preparing the physical learning environment before each
class period. Room arrangement significantly impacts lesson delivery and student engagement,
so taking time to organize the space thoughtfully will become a priority. To support these goals, I
will move away from last-minute preparation of materials, as rushing before class can destabilize
a teacher's composure and undermine the consistent, reliable presence students need. The
findings of this research have also shaped my instructional strategy moving forward. I will
develop more rigorous and objective assessment tools while eventually creating differentiated
versions of graphic organizers to meet diverse student needs. This includes providing partially
completed organizers that function like sentence frames for students who need additional
support. For some students, I will provide explicit, step-by-step instructions on using the
organizers and making conceptual connections. Furthermore, I plan to incorporate graphic
organizers into summative assessments (Venn Diagram), which will not only reinforce their use
as a learning tool but also support students' focus. While the initial results of implementing
graphic organizers were mixed, simply asking the questions and answering them approaches a
point should better serve all students' learning needs and provide more conclusive data about
their effectiveness in the World History classroom.