TSL 3133 Action Research I

TOPIC 4

ACTION RESEARCH
CONCEPT and MODELS

SYNOPSIS
Topic 4 discusses the types of action research available to
practitioners and explains their theoretical underpinnings,
characteristics, importance and issues/challenges with the action
research approach in the educational literature. Next the six
models and types of action research that are commonly used by
practitioners will be explored and distinctions will be made during
the module.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this topic, you will be able to:

define the types of action research available to practitioners

distinguish the purpose, application and value of action research in

educational practice

identify the various approaches that are located in the action research
paradigm

Evaluate the purpose, strength and weakness of action research

FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

ACTION
RESEARCH

DEFINITIONS

CHARACHTERISTICS

IMPORTANCE

ISSUES/
CHALLENGES

TYPES

TSL 3133 Action Research I

Preview Quotes (10 min)
Read the following action research quotes and discuss what you think they mean
with a partner:
Action research is a form of investigation designed for use by
teachers to attempt to solve problems and improve professional
practices in their own classrooms. It involves systematic
observations and data collection which can be then used by the
practitioner-researcher in reflection, decision-making and the
development of more effective classroom strategies. - Parsons
and Brown (2002)
Action Research is a fancy way of saying let's study what's
happening at our school and decide how to make it a better place.
- Emily Calhoun (1994)
Action research is a natural part of teaching. Teachers are
continually observing students, collecting data and changing
practices to improve student learning and the classroom and
school environment. Action research provides a framework that
guides the energies of teachers toward a better understanding of
why, when, and how students become better learners. - A.
Christine Miller (2007)
Exercise 1
Work with a partner, read about ONE TYPE of action research and present that type
to another group in class. Then, take notes and make questions while the other
group explains the purpose, strength and difference of the action research approach.
Action

Purpose of the

Difference from other

Questions

Research

approach

types of action

I want to ask

approach
Elliots
approach

Kemmis
approach

research

TSL 3133 Action Research I

McNiffs
approach

Whiteheads
approach

Lewins
approach

Definitions and Concepts

Action research is a practical approach to professional inquiry in any social situation
(classrooms, schools, clubs, hospitals). The examples in this component relate to
education and are therefore of particular relevance to teachers or lecturers engaged
in their daily contact with children or students. But professional practice need not be
teaching: it may be management or administration in a school or college, or it may
be in an unrelated area, such as medicine or the social services. The context for
professional inquiry might change, but the principles and processes involved in
action research are the same, regardless of the nature of the practice (WatersAdams 2006).
Indeed, action research did not arise in education (see Lewin 1948), but was applied
to the development of teaching as its potential was identified. Of particular influence
was the work of Lawrence Stenhouse, who famously advocated that curriculum
research and development ought to belong to the teacher (Stenhouse, 1975 p. 142).
He was most adamant that it is not enough that teachers work should be studied:
they need to study it themselves (p.143).
As its name suggests, action research concerns actors those people carrying out
their professional actions from day to day - and its purpose is to understand and to

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improve those actions. It is about trying to understand professional action from the
inside; as a result, it is research that is carried out by practitioners on their own
practice, not (as in other forms of research), done by someone on somebody elses
practice. Action research in education is grounded in the working lives of teachers,
as they experience them. Carr and Kemmis (1986) describe action research as
being about:

the improvement of practice;

the improvement of the understanding of practice;

the improvement of the situation in which the practice takes place.

Action research can thus be used to:

understand ones own practice;

understand how to make ones practice better;

understand how to accommodate outside change in ones practice;

understand how to change the outside in order to make ones practice better.

These six features identify the major assumptions of an action research project:
1. Aims to cause improvement and change to the teaching, social
relationships, social justice of the professional environment (Carr
& Kemmis 1986; Schoen 2007; Stringer 2007).
2. Conducted by practitioners to investigate real world practice,
rather than by specialist on their behalf (Reason & Bradbury
2006; Stringer 2007; Tomal 2003).
3. It is described as insider research as it is the person who
diagnoses a problem, and systematically searches for a solution
through a spiral of research cycles that consist of problem
analysis, strategic planning, action, reflection and critical
observation (Craig 2009; Coghlan & Brannick 2009; Mertler
2006; Kemmis & McTaggart 1988; Sagor 2005).
4. It is fundamentally collaborative, social, participatory and
democratic as the research team on the scene investigates the
problem together and each research partner has an equal say in

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the project generation and outcome (Kemmis & McTaggart
1988; Sagor 2005; Reason & Bradbury 2006; Schoen 2007;
Stringer 2007).
5. The research findings are context based and as a result are not
generalisable. However, findings are widely published for critical
peer viewing (McNiff & Whitehead 2006; Stringer 2007).
6. Action research is a kind of generative transformational process
where claims to improved learning and practice generate further
learning to improve practice (McNiff & Whitehead 2006; Reason
& Bradbury 2006).
Characteristics of Action Research
1. Selecting an area or focus
Identifying an area of interest
Focus on students
Look at both immediate and cumulative effects

2. Collecting data
Collect existing archival data
Use additional multiple data sources
Collect data regularly
Promote collective ownership of data
Monitor data collection

3. Organizing data
Count instances, events, and artifacts
Display data in tables and charts
Arrange data by classroom, grade level, and school
Organize for analysis

4. Analyzing and interpreting data

Analyze and question the data as a professional collective
Decide what can be celebrated and what needs attention
Determine priority area(s) for action

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4.5 Studying the professional literature

Identify professional literature that relates to or matches the interest
Gather research reports, research syntheses, articles, videotapes, etc.
Analyze and interpret these materials for understanding and action
Determine the most promising actions

5. Taking action
Combine data analysis with that from professional literature
Select best options for action
Craft short- and long-term action plans
Implement some actions immediately
Assess implementation of selected actions
Rinse and Repeat (start cycle two all over again)

Importance of action research in teacher professional development?1

Action research is first person research designed to empower teachers to selfeducate, test personal theories and expand teaching knowledge in the classroom
(Craig 2009; Reason & Bradbury 2006; Sagor 2005; Schoen 2007; Pattison 1999).
Action research relies on individuals to engage in rational discourse, authentic
insight, free commitment to wise decision making (Grundy & Kemmis 1981). By
doing action research English teachers are given a powerful means to build, test and
revise personal theories about pedagogy in the classroom (Craig 2009; Coghlan &
Brannick 2009; Schoen 2007; Tomal 2003). Through action experimentation
teachers grow professionally by enhancing critical reflection, decision making,
discernment all of which strengthen their ability to self-evaluate and improve
teaching practice (Craig 2009; Coghlan & Brannick 2009; Mertler 2006; Tomal 2003).

Action research generates new understanding from a grassroots perspective, firmly

tested and built through action practice of its participants. In other words, educational
theory is built from teaching practice based upon what actually works in the
classroom (McNiff & Whitehead 2006; Schoen 2007).
1

Hawkins & Toh 2011.

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Issues & Challenges in Action research
Action research has become one of the most common means of professional
development in education and its widespread use has made it part of todays
teaching nomenclature. Many have jumped on the action research bandwagon as a
means to demonstrate evidence of professional development (Stringer 2007).
Stringer (2007: iii) points out that the:
Try it and see if it works approach to action research, a misapplication
of plan, act, reflect, evaluate process is not only simplistic, but has little
chance of providing desired outcomes. Quick fix, spray on solutions
that try to identify the silver bullet teaching technique are unlikely to
succeed.
Naturally, teachers reflect on lessons to become more successful in the next episode
of teaching and thus may misconceive that they already know and are doing action
research (Sagor 2005; Stringer 2007). The internet contributes to misunderstanding
and demonstrates myriad ways and types of action research available to those who
wish to investigate their classrooms. However, McNiff and Whitehead (2006: 33)
warn: educational researchers must justify claims to knowledge by the production of
authenticated and validated evidence and then make claims public in order to
subject them to critical evaluation.

What Action Research Is Not (Adapted from Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988).

Action research is not simply problem solving. It is systematic and

collaborative. It involves problem posing, the search for the questions beneath
the questions that we typically ask about our practices.

Action research is not done 'to" other people. Action research is research by
practitioners on their 'own' work, and it is done with the help of other
practitioners.

Action research is not hierarchical, but rather is democratic. It is people

working together in relationships of equal ownership and influence regarding
the action research project.

Action research is not a way to implement predetermined answers to

questions. Action research explores, discovers, and works to create
contextually specific solutions to organizational and educational problems.

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Action research questions
1. Why am I collecting this data?
How is the data related to the study question? What will the data tell us about
students learning and teaching strategies?

2. What exactly am I collecting?

What kind of data will give me the best information about students learning and
teaching strategies? How can I gather data on the same question in different ways,
from different sources, and at different times (triangulation).

3. Where am I going to collect it?

What kind of a sample is needed? Do I need to identify the student for long-term
tracking?

4. When am I going to collect it and for how long?

How much data is needed? How periodic should the collection be?

5. Who is going to collect it?

Is data being collected by myself or will others be involved?

6. How will data be collected, analyzed and findings shared?

Has a time line been established? Where and how will the data be stored?
Has the criterion for analyzing the data (rubrics, implementation logs) been
established before the data is collected? What approach will be used for recording,
displaying, and sharing findings?

Summary of various types and modes of action research

The essentials of action research design are considered by Elliott (in Hopkins, 1993)
as per the following characteristic cycle:

Initially an exploratory stance is adopted, where an understanding of a

problem is developed and plans are made for some form of interventionary
strategy. (The Reconnaissance & General Plan)

Then the intervention is carried out . (The Action in Action Research)

TSL 3133 Action Research I

During and around the time of the intervention, pertinent observations are
collected in various forms. (Monitoring the implementation by Observation. )

The new interventional strategies are carried out, and the cyclic process
repeats, continuing until a sufficient understanding of (or implement able
solution for) the problem is achieved (Reflection and Revision).

The protocol is iterative or cyclical in nature and is intended to foster deeper

understanding of a given situation, starting with conceptualizing and particularizing
the problem and moving through several interventions and evaluations. A
representation of an AR protocol by Kemmis is provided in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Action Research Protocol after Kemmis (cited in Hopkins, 1985)

Figure 1 clearly displays the iterative nature of AR along with the major steps of
planning, action, observation and reflection before revising the plan . This may be
thought of as similar in nature to the numerical computing technique known as
successive approximation - the idea is to close in upon a final goal or outcome by
repeated iterations.

Later protocols reflect changes in the goal as determined via experience during the
reflections of earlier iterations of AR. For instance, Figure 2 reflects the evolution of
the general idea or main topic of interest throughout the process.

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Figure 2: Action Research after Elliott (cited in Hopkins, 1985)

Elliott's model emphasizes constant evolution and redefinition of the original goal
through a series of reconnaissances recurring every cycle. The reconnaissance
necessarily includes some degree of analysis. This design permits much greater
flexibility, and seeks to "...recapture some of the 'messiness' which the Kemmis
version tends to gloss [over] " (Hopkins, 1985). Ebbutt further illustrates the evolution
of the overall plan through a spiral analogy, as described in Figure 3.

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Figure 3: Action Research Protocol after Ebbutt (cited in Hopkins, 1985)

The Role of Communication
Another distinguishing characteristic of Action Research is the degree of
empowerment given to all participants. Involvement is of a knowing nature, with no
hidden controls or preemption of direction by the researcher. All participants
negotiate meaning from the data and contribute to the selection of interventionary
strategies, including the university researchers, the teachers and the students.

The Role of Reflection

Another distinguishing characteristic of action research is the degree of
empowerment given to all participants. Involvement is of a knowing nature, with no
hidden controls or preemption of direction by the researcher. All participants
including the university researchers, the teachers and the students negotiate
meaning from the data and contribute to the selection of interventionary strategies.
Elliott (in Kemmis & McTaggart, 1990b) considers the need for communication
between all participants to be of paramount importance:
Since action research looks at a problem from the point of view of those involved it
can only be validated in unconstrained dialogue with them. ...Since action research
involves unconstrained dialogue between "researcher" (whether he be an outsider or

TSL 3133 Action Research I

teacher/researcher) and the participants, there must be free information flow
between them. (p. 122)

Perhaps the key component involved in action research is the notion of praxis.
Action research is intended to be the reflective counterpart of practical diagnosis
(Elliott, 1978). Schon (1983) describes the use of reflection to generate models from
a body of previous knowledge. These models are used to re-frame a problem; then
experiments are performed to bring about outcomes which are subjected to further
analysis. This model (called reflection-in-action) frames means and ends
interdependently and recognizes that there is little or no separation of research from
practice, little or no separation of knowing and doing. Schon's model of reflection-inaction compliments the iterative and investigative natures of action research.

Jean McNiffs Action Research for Professional Development

Action research is a term which refers to a practical way of looking at your own work
to check that it is as you would like it to be. Because action research is done by you,
the practitioner, it is often referred to as practitioner based research; and because it
involves you thinking about and reflecting on your work, it can also be called a form
of self-reflective practice.
The idea of self-reflection is central. In traditional forms of research empirical
research researchers do research on other people. In action research, researchers
do research on themselves. Empirical researchers enquire into other peoples lives.
Action researchers enquire into their own. Action research is an enquiry conducted
by the self into the self. You, a practitioner, think about your own life and work, and
this involves you asking yourself why you do the things that you do, and why you are
the way that you are. When you produce your research report, it shows how you
have carried out a systematic investigation into your own behaviour, and the reasons
for that behaviour. The report shows the process you have gone through in order to
achieve a better understanding of yourself, so that you can continue developing
yourself and your work.
Action research is open ended. It does not begin with a fixed hypothesis. It begins
with an idea that you develop. The research process is the developmental process of
following through the idea, seeing how it goes, and continually checking whether it is

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in line with what you wish to happen. Seen in this way, action research is a form of
self-evaluation. It is used widely in professional contexts such as appraisal,
mentoring and self-assessment.
A useful way to think about action research is that it is a strategy to help you live in a
way that you feel is a good way. It helps you live out the things you believe in, and it
enables you to give good reasons every step of the way.
Who does action research? You do. I do. Potentially, we all do.
Think about any event when you had no idea how to do something, yet you found
out through tackling it in a systematic way. For example, how many tries did it take
before you stopped falling off your bike and actually rode it? You probably did not
stop after each fall and rationalise why you were falling off. The chances are you just
tried out new strategies until you were successful.
This is the basic action principle underpinning action research. It involves identifying
a problematic issue, imagining a possible solution, trying it out, evaluating it (did it
work?), and changing practice in the light of the evaluation. This is what many
people do in numerous life situations.
The process described so far is a basic problem solving process. To turn it into an
action research process you would need to say why you wanted to investigate an
issue (this can be anything, such as riding your bike, or developing good
communication practices throughout your organisation), and gather data to show the
process. You would then turn the data into evidence in terms of whether you felt you
were living in the direction of what you hoped to achieve in the first place. You would
express your hopes not as abstract objectives, but as goals that are in line with your
values.
Most of us do a kind of informal action research in many aspects of our lives, though
we probably dont call what we do action research. Informal action research is
undertaken in many workplace contexts as part of on-the-job professional learning.
When we put a discipline or structure on our everyday learning from experience, and
make it clear to other people how we know what we are doing, we can say that we
are doing action research. Many workplaces now encourage practitioners to

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undertake formal action enquiries as part of their professional learning, often leading
to accreditation.
Action research began in the USA during the 1940s through the work of Kurt Lewin,
a social scientist. It actually began in other places as well, but Lewins work is
generally taken as the starting point. It was popular in the USA for a time, but then
went into decline because of cultural, political and economic changes.
It emerged in the 1970s in Britain through several influences. One major influence
was the work of Lawrence Stenhouse who directed the Humanities Curriculum
Project. He believed that the curriculum ought to be organised in schools so that it
was meaningful and relevant to students experience, and they should be
encouraged to take on the responsibility of their own learning. He also promoted the
idea of teacher as researcher.
Action research was developed mainly by academics in higher education, who saw it
as a useful way of working in professional education, particularly teacher education.
They began studying and clarifying the steps involved, and also the principles
underpinning action research, such as the need for democratic practices, care and
respect for the individual, and the need for disciplined enquiry. Action research is
today prominent not only in teacher professional education but also in management
education and organisation studies, social and health care work, and other
professional contexts.
Over the years, various models and different interpretations of action research have
developed. Some people prioritise technical aspects, believing that it is important to
get the method right. Other people are also interested in the values that inform action
research, such as a belief that people should be in control of their work and the way
they conduct that work, and how the research can lead to a living out of those
values. Most people recognise the educational base of action research. These
different perspectives generate lively debates. There is no one correct way; you
must decide what is right for you, and develop your own views. To do that, however,
you need to do some action research; the meaning it has for you emerges as you
do the research and explain what you are doing and why you are doing it.

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Action research and professional learning
Action research is used in many professional learning contexts, both formally and
informally. Action enquiries begin with the question, How do I improve my work?
This perspective is quite different from traditional views of professional education,
which often take the form of training. In traditional forms, the usual procedure is that
an acknowledged expert offers advice to professionals (who are then usually
positioned as trainees). More enlightened forms of professional learning
programmes work on the assumption that professionals already have a good deal of
professional knowledge, and are highly capable of learning for themselves. What
they need in their professional learning is an appropriate form of support to help
them celebrate what they already know, and also generate new knowledge. New
knowledge can most effectively be generated through dialogue with others who are
equally interested in the process of learning. The dialogue is always a dialogue of
equals. No one tells another what to do in action enquiries; we all share and value
one anothers learning.
The question How do I improve my work? contains a social intent. The intention is
that one person improves their work for their own benefit and the benefit of others. If
you can improve what you are doing (at least improve your understanding of what
you are doing), there is a good chance you will influence the situation you are
working in. Your increased awareness and your readiness to be self critical will
probably have an influence on the people you are working with. You are aiming to
influence them for the better. There is nothing sinister in the idea of influence, and
everything to celebrate; most ideas that people have were influenced by someone
else, somewhere else in time and space. This is the way that knowledge evolves, a
process of learning from others and reworking existing knowledge in new ways.
The methodology of action research means that you have to evaluate what you are
doing. You need to check constantly that what you are doing really is working. Are
you really influencing your situation or are you fooling yourself? This awareness of
the need for self evaluation shows your willingness to accept responsibility for your
own thinking and action. Accountability is part of good professional practice. You are
always aware that you have to give good service, to attend to the needs of others in
the way that is best for them, and to show that you have responsible attitudes and

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behaviour. In doing action research you are giving an account of yourself. You are
showing that you are a responsible person and can justify what you are doing with
good reason. Action research helps you to formalise your learning and give a clear
and justified account of your work, not on a one-off basis, but as a continuing regular
feature of your practice.
McNiff: How do I do action research?
The basic steps of an action research process constitute an action plan:

We review our current practice,

identify an aspect that we want to investigate,

imagine a way forward,

try it out, and

take stock of what happens.

We modify what we are doing in the light of what we have found, and continue
working in this new way (try another option if the new way of working is not
right)

monitor what we do,

review and evaluate the modified action,

and so on

Jack Whitehead (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Du5Ch-obhPA)

A living educational theory is an individuals explanation of their educational
influence in their own learning, In the learning of others and in the learning of the
social formations in which we live and work.

Jack Whiteheads Action reflection cycle

I experience a concern or problem when some of my values are not being lived as
fully as I think they could be I imagine possible ways of improving my practice and
choose one to act on an action plan. I act and gather data to enable me to Make a
judgment On the effectiveness Of my actions in relation to living my values as fully
as I can. I evaluate my actions in terms of their effectiveness and my present
understandings of my context with its opportunities and constraints.

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I modify my concerns, plans and actions in the light of my evaluations.
What distinguishes this process as research from a process of professional learning
is where the individual produces an explanation of their educational influence in
learning and submits this to a validation group for enhancing the validity of the
explanation through the mutual rational controls of critical discussion. evaluating
The validity of explanation requires standards of judgment in testing the validity of a
living educational theory the standards are themselves living (Laidlaw,1996). You
could use such an action reflection cycle in your enquiry into improving your practice
with the questions:

what is my concern?

Why am I concerned?

What am I going to do About it?

What data will I gather to help me to judge My effectiveness?

How does the data help me to clarify the meanings of my embodied values as
these emerge in practice?

What values--based explanatory principles do I use to explain my educational

influence?

How do I use my values--based standards Of judgment

In evaluating the validity of my claims

To be improving my practice?

How will I strengthen the validity of my values--based explanation Of my

Educational influences in learning?

Kurt Lewin approach to action research

Lewin described action research as proceeding in a spiral of steps, each of which is
composed of planning, action and evaluation of the result of the action. In practice
the process begins with a general idea that some kind of improvement or change is
desirable. The group decides to work together on a thematic concern, they decide
on a general plan of action and do a preliminary reconnaissance.

Breaking the general plan down into achievable steps the action researchers still on
the first action step, a change in strategy which aims not only at improvement, but at
a greater understanding about what is will be possible to achieve later as well.

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Before taking this first step, the action research group becomes more circumspect
and devises a way of monitoring the effects of the first action step, the circumstances
in which it occurs and what the strategy begins to look like in practice.

Group

action and the action of individual members of the group is subjected to critical
reflection.

The cyclic nature of the Lewinian approach recognises the need for action plans to
be flexible and responsive. It recognises that, given the complexity of social
situations, in practiced is never possible to anticipate everything that needs to be
done. Lewins deliberate overlapping of action and reflection was designed to allow
changes in plans for action as the people involved learned from their own
experience. Put simply action research is the way groups of people can organize the
conditions under which they can learn from their own experience and make this
experience accessible to others.

References:
Gabel, D. (1995). NARST President's Speech. Presented at the annual meeting of
the National Association for Research in Science Teaching, San Francisco, CA.
Hopkins, D. (1985). A teacher's guide to classroom research. Philadelphia: Open
University Press.
Kemmis, S., & McTaggart, R. (Eds.). (1990b). The action research reader. Victoria:
Deakin University.
Schon, D. A. (1983). The reflective practitioner : How professionals think in action.
New York: Basic Books.
Dan MacIsaac, 1996 (http://www.physics.nau.edu/~danmac)