Action Research Discoveries

I am pleased to discover that action research is different from traditional educational research.  According to Dana (2009), “Administrative inquiry refers to the process of a principal engaging, in systematic, intentional study of his/her own administrative practice and taking action for change based on what he/she learns as a result of the inquiry” (p. 2).  I plan to use action research to improve my instructional practices and to discover new innovate ways to implement technology into my lessons.

Administrators use action research to develop inquiry to gain better understanding of a problem or question.  Action research is a type of professional development guided by interest and needs seen by the administrator.  Most importantly, the administrator is the researcher.  As a result, h/she analyzes data, reads literature and shares information with others in order to make changes beneficial to the school. It’s exciting to know that administrators and educators can take ownership of their professional development.

Inquiry and reflection go hand in hand; I feel that I am a reflective person by nature.  Reflection leads to new areas of inquiry.  Engagement in inquiry requires an administrator to think intuitively about problems and then seek information such as data and literature to investigate problems and solutions.  As information is presented to teachers and colleagues, reflection becomes collaborative.  

Benefits of conducting action research include school improvement, collaboration and ownership of continual professional development. According to Dana (2009), “principals become role models for the teachers and students in their building” (p. 12).  Through action research, administrators are modeling behavior.  They become learners and leaders.

Dana, N. F.  (2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher.  Thousand Oaks, CA:  Corwin Press.