The provocatively Curious educator Action research for inquiry and learning’s sake

Action research (ar) defined Borgia & Schuler,1996 Garner, 1996 Sagor, R.,2000 Action research is an approach to professional development and improved student learning in which teachers systematically reflect on their work and make changes in their practice. A systematic, reflective, collaborative process that examines a situation for the purpose of planning, implementing, and evaluating change. A disciplined process of inquiry conducted by and for those taking the action. The primary reason for engaging in action research is to assist the “actor” in improving and/or refining his or her actions

Benefits of action research Teaching is Learning/Mindset Everyday practice focuses on your classroom concerns Model learning for your children Collaborative inquiry basic assumption: you are the best person to identify problems and to find the solutions in your classroom

Reflection on why? How? & What? Purpose of education How does learning occur What pedagogy supports our beliefs ?

Theories of learning and instructional design behaviorism cognitivism constructivism Assumption about learning: occurs upon changes in observable behavior Environmental factors are the greatest influences to learning Goal of instruction to illicit the desired response when presented with a stimulus Assumption about learning a mental activity that entails internal coding, structuring Learning is concerned with what learnings know and how they come to acquire it Goal of instruction to connect new information with existing knowledge in some meaningful way. Assumption about learning create meaning from their own experiences Learners build personal interpretations of the world based on individual experience and interactions Goal of instruction to elaborate on and interpret information.

Belief/theory/practice connections Purpose Theory Pedagogy currency

the practice of inquiry inquiry works best in a classroom in which ideas are placed at the center. Scardamalia, (2002). IDEAS Notice Wonder Explore Share

How do ideas serve inquiry? AR & IBL Learners test and challenge their ideas and the ideas of others Learners know that ideas are not static and can be improved upon Without this attitude/ethos Change becomes problematic

THINKING ABOUT problems

IDENTIFYING problems What educational problem would I want to solve that impacts the condition of Bermudian society? As it relates to student success at my school, what currently is the most ineffective practice/policy that I would change at the whole school level? How do I design lessons for my young students, that reflect the real world work of professionals, without consistently offering direct instruction of the most basic known facts ?

Approaches To develop a question based on the topic Assessing The known Approaches To develop a question based on the topic Literature Review Professional Conversations: Known variables Observed Behaviors: Known variables

Problem Forming considerations AC and IBL Is the problem Important to you? is information available ? When designing problems for ibl consider Too little information Too much information

Problem formation prompts (Caro-Bruce, 2000) I would like to improve… I am perplexed by… I am really curious about… Something I think would really make a difference is… Something I would like to change is… What happens to student learning in my classroom when I… How can I implement…? How can I improve…?

Teachers as natural inquirers what are some questions you ask during stages of teaching? the lesson design Teaching content assessment

Forming the provoking question: teachers as inquirers What do you want to know, fix, solve, compare, evaluate, understand? How would the answer benefit your teaching practice student learning

Big questions about IBL How can I encourage higher order thinking through the use of Inquiry Based Learning? How can I use action research assist my goal(s)? What big questions do I have about ibl?

forming question prompts (Adapted from Caro-Bruce, 2000) What happens to the quality of student _______________ when I implement___________? How does the use of _____________ affect student ________________? What happens to student (insert Bloom’s Taxonomy) when I incorporate _____________? How can I use (insert strategy/technique) to improve ____________ when (insert activity or situation)? What happens to student performance when I ________________?

Carry Out Action Plan! This can lead to… New questions New understandings Deeper comprehension of a practice or innovation

Data collecting Challenge 1: Collect and analyze data while taking action Challenge 2: Triangulate, triangulate, triangulate: three or more pieces of data/three points of view Interviews Lesson Plans Observations

Triangulation matters

implement Action Decisions for Improvement Analyze Data You will hit a saturation point Emerging Themes via Categorizing Summarizing and Interpret to implement Action Decisions for Improvement

Inquiry cycle Action research cycle Messing Around (Noticing, Wondering) Defining Questions (Planning, Collaborating) Finding Out (Investigating, Theorizing) Sharing Learning (Discussing, Drawing Conclusions) Reflecting on Learning (Noticing Wondering)

Peer review publishing Share your findings With colleagues And/or Peer review publishing

references Borgia, E. T. & Schuler, D. (1996). ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education. Urbana, IL. Caro-Bruce, C. (2000). Action research facilitator's handbook. Oxford, OH: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Cohen, L., Manion, L. and Morrison, K. (2000) Research Methods in Education 5th Edition. London: RoutledgeFalmer). Garner, Betty. (1996, May). Using Action Research: Challenges and Opportunities for the Beginner. Paper presented at the Greater St. Louis Sixth Action Research Collaborative Conference, St. Louis, MO. Hidden curriculum (2014, August 26). In S. Abbott (Ed.), The glossary of education reform. Retrieved from http://edglossary.org/hidden-curriculum Kuklthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K., & Caspari, A.K. (2007). Guided inquiry: Learning in the 21st century. Westport, CT & London: Libraries Unlimited Sagor, R. (2000). Guiding school improvement with action research. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Scardamalia, M. (2002). Collective cognitive responsibility for the advancement of knowledge. In B. Smith (Ed.), Liberal education in a knowledge society (pp. 67–98). Chicago, IL: Open Court.

questions