Action Research - A tool for Professional Developement
What is action research?
It is a process in which teachers investigate teaching and learning so as to improve their own and their students' learning.
Why should teachers do action research?
• To help them notice what they and their students really do, rather than what they think they do.
• To get feedback as to the success or failure of what they are doing.
• To help them tailor teaching and learning to their learners and their settings.
• So that they are able to justify the teaching and learning choices they make.
• To increase their knowledge of learning and teaching and become authorities on teaching.
• To become less dependent on decisions made by people who are far away from their learning and teaching sites, people like textbook writers and school administrators.
• To ensure that they don't become bored with teaching.
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What are the steps in the action research process?
• Plan
o Identify the problem area.
o Narrow it down so that it is manageable.
o Investigate the problem. When does it happen? Who does it affect? Where does it happen?
o Think about what might be causing the problem. Talk to other teachers and/or read to get more ideas about this.
o Think about a solution and how to implement it.
o Think about what evidence you will collect to decide whether your action is successful or not. How will you collect it? How will you analyse it?
• Teach / Act
o Implement your solution.
• Observe
o Gather evidence which you will analyse to decide whether your solution was successful or not.
• Reflect
o Analyse the evidence you gathered. Has the problem been solved? If not, what step will you try next? If yes, what problem will you try to solve now?
Tips for teachers
If you have never done action research before, start small. Ensure that the problem you try to solve is manageable. And don't be afraid of making mistakes. As all teachers know, we learn through our mistakes.
