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MirandaNet Fellowship Article

Membership List | Publications | Research | Specialist Area List | Braided Learning Ejournal

Action Research

Christina Preston

Year of posting: 2014

Article

Action Research

In order to be treated as professionals teachers, like lawyers and doctors need to be publishing their own research which is peer reviewed.  A body of evidence provides a source of reference when teachers are contributing to policy documents. Teachers’ involvement in policy and change management might be at the school level, in a cluster, regionally, nationally or internationally. This MirandaNet resource is designed to ensure that teachers’ professional knowledge is shared and built upon.

This contribution to the blogosphere provides comments on articles and current research on digital technologies for practising teachers, education researchers and teacher educators who are grouped together as ‘educators’. This is why the service is called the educators’ research exchange.

Many MirandaNetters will find this useful as they are involved in many kinds of action research in their classrooms – sometimes leading to a certificate, diploma, masters or doctorate qualification. Fellows prepare a 2,000 word article or paper for each other in the Braided Learning ejournals (www.mirandanet.ac.uk/research). This piece is often a a milestone on this pathway towards publication in the academic sphere. But the problem is that academic articles and assignment usually languish without an audience in the tutor’s filing cabinet because there are so few other opportunities for practitioners to publish meaningful articles.

Another problem for educators as action researchers is that they have difficulty locating current research in digital technologies because the publication time lag in journals is so slow. So this MirandaNet collaborative space is an extension of our case studies listings and ejournals. Here MirandaNet members, associates and friends can share useful current research and studies in draft as well as commenting on drafts. We can also publish draft theses and assignments about digital technologies in teaching and learning so that they do not only languish unread in your tutors’ filing cupboard (Please check with your tutor that your piece can be published for our members). These freedoms pertain as long as we keep this research exchange in our membership area under password protection. As a result members cannot only publish work where they have copyright permissions, but drafts of their own work before it is published or examined for comment. Academics can also post here drafts of published journal papers as long as they are earlier versions that are not at publication standard.

This resource exchange is also designed to add new dimensions to Braided Learning theory and practice, that you can read more about on the page headed Braided Learning. This concept concentrates on the potential of professional collaboration in developing new ideas about teaching and learning. Our remotely authored digital concept maps in our unconferences, are just one example of educators’ capacity to share and learn (www.mirandanet.ac.uk/mirandamods). This sharing approach is also at the heart of the MirandaNet iCatalyst programme that can be accredited at certificate, masters and doctorate level (www.mirandanet.ac.uk/profdev).

Action research for teachers ­
Measuring the impact of ICT

The purpose of these guidelines is to provide a basic framework for reflection on classroom practice, most especially to enable study of the impact of ICT on teaching and learning. The guidelines are intended to support teachers at the planning stages of action research in the classroom. Using a structured format can enable research outcomes and findings to be shared, and can provide a research basis for subsequent planned change.

What do I need to consider to undertake action research?

Action research follows a cyclical process, and only the first cycle can be planned in advance. Thereafter, the next action research cycles depend on the evaluation phase at the end of previous cycles. Action research is often collaborative, involving planning with a colleague or colleagues. Action researchers may have a `critical friend’ or research facilitator working with them. Below is a suggested structure to help you plan and organise your research. Keep a research journal It is a good idea to keep a research journal, in which you can accumulate information about the progress of your work. Your journal should contain contextual information, field notes, ideas, dates, and any seemingly minor details which you feel are best recorded. They may well turn out to be important, and it is often hard to recall these things after time has elapsed.

Plan your research

Before you undertake your research, consider the following structure for planning the various stages of your research. Sample planning sheets can be found in the appendix to this information sheet.

Title
Title of the research project.

Outline
Outline of the study in 100 words.

Timeline
Clarify the start and completion dates for the study and specify milestones in the research. Meeting times and dates can also be recorded. The timeline may well be altered as the research progresses, with the archived timelines acting as part of your research journal data.

Contacts list
Ensure that contact details of everyone involved in the study are accessible to all. Each person on the contact list, including administrators, should have a paper copy of this document, and one person should have responsibility for updating it regularly. A `Who has Responsibility’ section can help to ensure that everyone is aware of their own role and those of other colleagues.

Research and learning
Specify how the research links into the curriculum and record some of the pre- conditions of the study. This stage of the planning records information about the `value added’ expected of the ICT employed in the research. Include a brief description of the nature of the activity to be undertaken by teachers and learners, its intended outcomes and any anticipated difficulties.

Field notes record sheet
Standardise the recording of contextual events as the study progresses. Completed sheets can become part of the research journal and provide a basis for discussion at meetings.

Establish the purpose of the research

Key questions to ask are:

Formulate questions for your proposed research

It is a good idea to summarise your proposed research as a question or a short set of questions. Your research question or questions should be well focused, for example to reflect a particular issue which has arisen as part of teaching and learning in your classroom. You might wish to research the effects of change using new hardware, software, or classroom management. Whatever the topic, formulate it as one or more questions requiring answers. Further information on undertaking research can be found on the BERA (British Educational Research Association) web site at:  http://www.bera.ac.uk/ .

Specify the background to the project

Provide an understanding of the cultural context of the study school(s) and partner organisations. Include any conditions which you consider may affect the outcomes of change. Background information can cover:

Ethics

* Have you obtained consent to undertake research? Record the response of your discussion of the research with the headteacher, senior management, governors, other colleagues and pupils.

* Can you ensure that confidentiality is protected, if required? How?

Some ethical rules for school-based research:

  1. Ensure that the research you propose is viable, that adequate research design has been established, and that appropriate data-collection techniques are chosen.
  2. Explain as clearly as possible the aims, objectives, and methods of the research to everyone involved.
  3. If using confidential documents, ensure that anonymity is maintained by eliminating any kind of material or information that could lead others to identify the subject or subjects. Pupils’ identities should not be revealed in web material published as a result of the research.
  4. Ensure that you have permission from all involved before publication of any or part of the research.
  5. You should be aware of the possible uses of the research findings.
  6. Research should not ultimately disadvantage any group of pupils.
  7. Data should be stored securely and destroyed within 18 months of the end of the study.
  8. If there is joint or collaborative research, all researchers must adhere to the same set of ethical principles. (Adapted from Hitchcock, G and Hughes, D 1989.  Research and the Teacher . London: Routledge. p 201) Setting up the research: some decisions

Before undertaking research, decide on the method of data collection, and why.

* What data will you collect?

* Who will you collect data from?

* In what form will data be collected?

* How will recording of data take place? Consider the suitability (or otherwise) of a range of research methods.

For example:

* qualitative data – case study – interview – questionnaire – documentary evidence – observation journal

* quantitative data – What will be measured? – How will data be collected? * analysis – How will data be analysed? – At what points will analysis be undertaken?

Running the study

This checklist can help to ensure that the study is well organised before you pilot or run the research. Have you:

Reporting your findings

The structure, content, word length and style of presentation of your findings will depend on your intended audience. For example, papers for journals or articles for magazines will be presented in a different format from book chapters or a research report. It is important to look carefully at existing publications of the kind you are trying to write, to gauge such features as the style, length, and format for your writing. The following structure outlines the presentation of a research study and its findings. The abstract may well be the last section to be written. Material for sections 2 to 6 and 10 to 12 can be collected throughout the study. For information on good practice in educational research writing see: http://www.bera.ac.uk/writing.html

General structure for a research report

  1. Abstract
  2. Background / introduction / context for the research
  3. Review of relevant literature
  4. Research methods
  5. Findings
  6. Analysis
  7. Discussion
  8. Conclusions
  9. Summary and new directions
  10. References
  11. Glossary
  12. Appendix

Finding the relevant literature

(There were some useful links in this section, but time has moved on and none of them work now!)

Other sources of information

Becta Becta Research Area ­ http://www.becta.org.uk/research ­ contains information on Becta’s research activities, links to further resources and details on joining the ICT Research Network. Teacher Resource Exchange ­ http://contribute.bit10.net/ ­ teachers can submit their ideas for ICT use, and develop ideas to become full resources for use in classrooms. Teachers Online Project ­  http://top.ngfl.gov.uk/ ­ a discussion forum, where teachers can exchange views and join in collaborative projects. There is a monthly newsletter on ICT in education. Virtual Teacher Centre (VTC) ­ http://vtc.ngfl.gov.uk/ ­ links to ICT in practice across the curriculum, as well as news and updates for teachers. This sheet can be accessed in full text on the Internet in a choice of formats:

MirandaNet Members can go to the Log on/off area to edit their own articles.

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