Action Research

Why do we do Action Research?

Why do we do Action Research?

1. For the students

2. For yourself

3. For the school

For the students – it’s wellbeing and engagement
(and academic success)

“It is impossible for a student to feel safe,

supported an affirmed in a classroom
where work is consistently too hard or too
easy…adapting instruction to attend to
readiness has a positive impact on
students’ sense that the teacher understands
and cares about them and wants them
to succeed”​
Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose
Sousa & Tomlinson (2011, p92)​
For yourself – it’s about loving to learn
and being a more effective teacher

Being the most effective teacher you

can, and making a difference in
students’ lives, is engaging,
motivating, and satisfying.

Conducting research in your own

classroom is empowering.
For the school – it’s about working together
towards SIP goals
What is Action Research?
Action Research – What is Action
Research?

Why is it important to question rather than assume?

What difference do teachers make?

What do you think are the top 5 MOST EFFECTIVE things teachers
can do to improve learning?
Rank Strategy
1 Metacognition
2 Dialogic Learning
3 Feedback
4 Mastery Learning
5 Collaborative Learning
What difference do teachers make?

Teaching and Learning Toolkit

| EEF (educationendowmentfo
undation.org.uk)
What is Action Research?
What is Action Research?

Drawing on Chapter 11: Conducting Teacher Action Research

Reading to page 241.

A Professional Learning model –
what difference do teachers make?

Why do we engage in improvement?

What is Action Research?

Is Action Research collaborative?

What is Action Research?

Does Action Research always need to focus on

student learning?
What is Action Research?

Does Action Research always need data to measure impact?

Quality Professional Learning

• Relevant content focus (focused on student learning)

• Active learning (not passively sitting through lectures)
• Coherent (should align with core goals and priorities)
• Duration (20+ hours of contact time and ongoing)
• Collective participation (communities of teachers)

From Desimone (2011)

A Primer on Effective Professional Development (learningf
orward.org)
What is Action Research?

An approach where teachers can investigate their impact on

student improvement:

- Is focused on Your Professional Action.

- Is focused on possible improvements
- Is focused on the student and their learning
- Is collaborative, and uses data to know impact
How do you come up with an Action
Research inquiry question?
How can you find an inquiry question?

Option 1: Creative writing Option 2: Team reflection – sit with a Option 3: Scanning & Focus – think
prompt - “Imagine walking out group and record answers to the questions about your classes. What’s going on
of the best session of teaching below. for learners? When you observe,
ever. What happened with the 1. What are the priorities we should we what’s going on with their learning?
students? What were you doing? working collaboratively on? What do Ask students ‘do you know what it
What was the impact?” students need to know/do/be? means to be a successful
2. Which priority is the most important to reader/writer/numerate/learner’? Do
From this writing, identify what you and why? Rank them. you know what to do next to improve
students were doing and what 3. If you could improve on this priority, your learning?
your actions were. Identify an what would the results look like, sound What one action might have the
area of improved like, feel like? biggest impact?
performance/action for you and 4. What’s gotten in the way of achieving
shape it into an inquiry question. this in the past? From these observational reflections,
create an inquiry question that
From this reflection, create an inquiry focuses on one action that could have
question looking at one action for this an impact.
priority.
The importance of the right question

Drawing on Chapter 11: Conducting Teacher Action Research

Writing an inquiry question

Example Action Research questions from “The Action Research Guidebook”

Which factors influenced the success of group work and how did this influence academic performance?

Independent variable Dependent variable Dependent variable

What was the nature of the formative feedback and how did it contribute to meaningful growth in … for
students?

independent variable Dependent variable

More examples of
Action Research
Questions from
Chapter 11:
Conducting
Teacher Action
Research
Examples of real Action Research Questions

Imagine if…
How can teachers emulate the progression based approach of a videogame
in order to increase student resilience and engagement?

Aligning with priorities

What comprehension strategies of non-fictional texts are most effective for
our year 10-12 cohort?

Observing and scanning…

What strategies can I use to ensure student draft submission following a
draft non-submission in Stage 2 English?
How do we Action Research?
How do we do Action Research?
Model 1: Research Inquiry

Staff meet 2-3 times per term for 1-2 hours in their PLC to continue their professional conversations
related to action research and to continue to progress through action research steps/process.

1. Selecting a focus
2. Clarifying theories
3. Identifying research questions
4. Collecting data
5. Taking informed action
6. Analysing data
7. Reporting results

From the Action Research Guidebook by Richard Sagor (2005)

How do we do Action Research?
Model 2: Research Inquiry

1. Selecting a focus Are you here?

2. Clarifying theories Or here?

3. Identifying research questions Or maybe here?

4. Collecting data
5. Analysing data
6. Reporting results
7. Taking informed action
How do we do Action Research?
Model 3: Cycles of Inquiry

From The Spiral Playbook, Linda Kaser and Judy Halbert (2017)
How do we do Action Research?
Model 4: Teacher Sprints (Breakspear)
How do we do Action Research?
Useful Templates
How do we do Action Research?
Useful Templates
How do we do
Action
Research?
Useful
Templates
Success Criteria

1. I am in a group (with colleagues) and have an

awesome inquiry question.
2. We have a copy of the chosen template with
our names in the title.
3. We have ideas for our baseline data
collection.
How do we Action Research: Next steps?
Where are we at now?

20mins Group Discussion/Sharing

In relation to your inquiry question, how do

we know where we are at now?

What baseline data do you already have to

say where students are at now?
Some other places to go to find summary research

• Guidance reports | EEF (educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk)

• Teaching and Learning Toolkit | EEF (educationendowmentfoundat
ion.org.uk)
– also look here for feedback, collaboration, peer learning
• Teaching materials and methods (education.vic.gov.au) –
curriculum specific, includes literacy toolkit
• Improve your teaching (education.vic.gov.au) – pedagogy in
general, including high impact teaching strategies
• DfE Literacy and Numeracy guidebooks – needs edi login
Designing the ACTION

30-40 mins Group Working

Design an ‘intervention’ or ‘change’ or ‘strategy’

for your classes, related to the inquiry question.

What resources do you need? What will you

measure?
ACTION

10mins Group Discussion

What have you done?

i.e. what small ACTION did
you take in class towards an
improvement?

Record in your template

RESULT

20mins Group Discussion

What difference did it make?

i.e. what impact on students did the
ACTION have?
Think about observations, student
feedback/comments, grades,
perceptions
Record in your template
 What data do we
already have?
What does it say?
What data might we
need?
Do we need to collect
more/different data?
Action Research Presentations (30 mins)

Suggested slide headings:

1. The initial problem/challenge of practice
2. (opt) Data that informed this problem
3. Research behind your Action Research
4. Your Action (what you did)
5. Your results (data)
6. Take aways/reflections/next steps

Leave time for discussion/feedback (10-15 mins)

Further Reading

Kaser, L., and Halbert, J. (2017). The spiral playbook. c21canada.org

Pine, G.J., (2008). Teacher action research: Building knowledge democracies. Sage.
https://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/27031_11.pdf

Sagor, R. (2005). The Action Research Guidebook. A Four-Step Process for Educators
and School Teams. Corwin Press, Thousand Oaks: USA.

Timperley, H., Kaser, L., and Halbert, J. (2014, April). Centre for Strategic Education,
Seminar Series Paper No. 234. A framework for transforming learning in schools:
Innovation and the spiral of inquiry.