Vijay Keshaorao Paralkar, MS PhD Student Department of Educational Leadership Miami University Oxford, Ohio October 13, 2017 A Role of the Monthly Journal Club Activity in Promoting Collaborative Research Practice

- A group of participants who meet regularly to read and critique research articles together - JCs helps raise research awareness, improve professional reading habits and critiquing skills, and facilitate collaborative research practice among faculty and students. A Journal Club (JC) Background Vadaparampil, S. T., Simmons, V. N., Lee, J. H., Malo, T., Klasko, L., Rodriguez, M.,... & Meade, C. D. (2014). Journal Clubs: An Educational Approach to Advance Understanding Among Community Partners and Academic Researchers About CBPR and Cancer Health Disparities. Journal of Cancer Education, 29(1),

Journal Clubs (JCs) activities are well developed in fields such as English, literature studies, and the natural sciences. In educational leadership programs in particular, there is concern that many graduate students are working practitioners and therefore their engagement in research is limited, especially considering that these professionals are often commuters and part-time students. Bowers, A. J., & Murakami-Ramalho, E. (2010). The research journal club: Pedagogy of research in the preparation of students in educational leadership. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 5(10), Silverberg, R. P., & Kottkamp, R. B. (2006). Language matters. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 1(1).

Purpose of this Study To explore the barriers, expectations, and possible impact of the monthly JC activity as a method for collaborative learning in the EDL department at Miami University Research Questions - What are the barriers to organize the monthly Journal Club (JC) activity? - What practice(s) can help to overcome these barriers? - To what extent do such practice(s) facilitate organizing monthly journal club and thereby promoting collaborative research practices? - How can such practice(s) be encouraged and sustained?

Methodology, Data, and Analysis -Qualitative, Participatory Action Research Study -Sample – 7 (Seven) graduate students and faculty members in the EDL department -Survey Data, Observation notes, and Analytic Memos -Constant Comparison Analysis Method Glaser, B. G. (1965). The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis. Social problems, 12(4), Saldana, J. (2014). The coding manual for qualitative researchers. Los Angeles: Sage.

Findings Barriers -“Time” or “Scheduling” is a potential barrier - Varied and broader research interests of a variety of participants -Identifying strong leadership / ownership options for effective planning, organizing, and facilitating JCs

Practices to overcome barriers -Carving common time out that may be feasible for everyone could be prioritized -It may not really be demanding since it’s just an hour of time each month. Also, everyone may not have to spend more than 3-4 hours per month to read that article. For a presenter, it may not exceed more than 7-10 hrs to search; read; and present an article maybe once a year. (Recorded survey response, ) -Including several different types of journals and broader research topics in reading articles for JCs -Rotating leadership / ownership

-Promoting collaborative research -JC activities would strongly provide networking opportunities and help promote collaborative research by different means “We will know each other’s common research interests, which might provide opportunities for collaboration,” “Dialogue would allow people to build trust and learn from others’ expertise,” “Knowing one another’s interests, skills, and personalities will foster the potential for collaborative research,” “Many good things happen (e.g. new ideas, improved relationships) through sharing, dialogue, and analysis of research. Likely also would learn more about my colleagues and their interests, which might lead to identification of collaborative opportunities,” “The networking opportunity to be together and spend face-to- face time in discussion give us a chance to build the necessary relationships that make collaborative research possible and successful.” (Recorded survey responses, 7/2/17)

Sustainability -The success of the first few meetings, in terms of motivating participants and meeting the diverse needs and goals are crucial that will help sustain participation in the group -Reminders in the newsletters -Use of the technological tools and incentives and support from the department and university would also contribute in sustaining JC activity

Journal Clubs (JCs) activities are well developed in fields such as English, literature studies, and the natural sciences. In educational leadership programs in particular, there is concern that many graduate students are working practitioners and therefore their engagement in research is limited, especially considering that these professionals are often commuters and part-time students. Bowers, A. J., & Murakami-Ramalho, E. (2010). The research journal club: Pedagogy of research in the preparation of students in educational leadership. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 5(10), Silverberg, R. P., & Kottkamp, R. B. (2006). Language matters. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 1(1).

Now What? - Further study by actually organizing Journal Clubs in the EDL Department and to explore future possibilities of establishing and sustaining JCs as an inclusive learning activity.