Action Research Project

Sara Warren
Shippensburg University
December 2014

Introduction
Background: I am a 25 year old Caucasian female with a B.S. in biology. I
graduated Shippensburg University in May 2012 with my degree in Biology
and immediately started a seasonal job with the department of Agriculture.
After a year of 2 seasonal jobs with the department of Agriculture I decided
to explore other options and looked into different programs to get my
teaching certification with Biology. Shippensburg University had a new
program starting and after thought decided I really wanted to teach. After
starting the teaching program I decided to substitute teach while in the
program. Substituting also helped with initial ideas for the action research
project.
Action research is a social situation that is studied to improve the quality
of the action with in it and to facilitate practical judgment in situations.
Action research happens when teachers research in their own practice to
improve and better understand it. (Altrichter 4-7) The MAT program at
Shippensburg University consists of 5 individuals most with little to no
teaching experience. It was important for us to meet as a group to discuss
the ideas of action research and the possibilities when choosing an area or
subject. At the beginning we did not know if our project should be individual
or a collaborative effort. After a lot of discussion we decided to have one
main topic with individual topics stemming from it. Each of us came up with
a question we would individually like to answer. Everyone in the group will be

teaching a science subject in the secondary school level. More specifically we

all live in pretty much the same area and will be observing and collecting
data from the schools around.
The proposed action research will take place in a high school and or
middle setting. School1, a pseudonym for where I am doing my initial
observations for my action research project, is a high school in Pennsylvania.
School1 is located in south central PA west of Harrisburg. School1 is a rural
public school located in a small town surrounded by farms. The teacher
student ratio is 12.84 and there were 895 students enrolled in the 2012-2013
school year. 97.65% of the student populations were white/non Hispanic.
23.35% of students are considered economically disadvantaged in the school
based on October Student Snapshot enrollment. The dropout rate for BSHS is
0.03%. (PA School Performance).
According to greatschools.org the pssa test scores compared with the
state average for grade 11 in 2012 were: Math-58% compared to 60%,
Reading-63% compared to 68%, Science-33% compared to 42%, Writing 88%
compared to 83%.This project will focus on observation of disruptive
students and the most effective way to eliminate disruptions during class
time.
Students will be the main focus without interaction with the parents. This
project may not be limited to one school. I think that more than one school
may be beneficial for this particular action research to compare the

differences and strategies. However, most of the observation for this action
research project will focus on School1.
Included in my action research I would like to observe and include
teachers as well. The teachers included will have had a lot of experience
under their belt and comfortable with sharing advice and stories. After
observing this analyzing data this action research will be put to practice
when student teaching. The idea goal is to practice this action research in
School1 where most of the data and interpretation was already collected.
Statement and Origin of Research Question
My initial thought on a topic was disruptive behavior. Other peoples views
can help confirm and stimulate us to collect additional information. There is
information published from other professionals on many topics and it is
important to remember that it does not carry more weight for the
interpretation of your situation. (Altrichter 63)After observing a class and
discussing possible action research projects I decided to focus my research
on strategies to include learning support students in a science classroom. My
coop teacher has a 9 & 10 grade biology class with one student in particular
who disrupts the class on a regular occasion. This student has ADHD and is
very disruptive requiring specific seating arrangements as well as cues from
the teacher to stay on task. The teacher I was observing also has a biology
class made up of entirely learning support students. Every teacher will
experience a class with learning support students in it. The standards in a

science subject require all types of learners to be included in science

education. Learning support students can benefit from the problem-solving
processes along with knowledge and discipline found in a science curriculum.
(Alexakos)
I would like to focus my research more specifically on learning support
students with behavior disorders such as ADD or ADHD. Science can be a
very hands on learning experience appealing to both visual and auditory
senses. Different science experiments can portray different science concepts
while keeping the attention of those with a behavioral disorder such as ADD
or ADHD. (Alexakos) I hope to accomplish better strategies to include these
students in a science classroom.
This project will be very important for a pre-service teacher. There are
many teachers who have been teaching for years and are still coming up
with ways to include learning support students in their classrooms. When a
teacher shows interest in a students needs in a classroom the students are
more likely to ask for help. (Alexakos) Teachers who are organized with a low
stress environment can encourage students to achieve success and
competence in the subject. (Alexakos) Students will likely have an IEP.
(Individual Education Plan) IEPs will help allow the teacher to understand
what strategies work specifically for that student. Sometimes students may
need to take the test in another room or have notes already printed with fill
in the blank style note taking.

This idea originated from my first observation with a teacher from

School1. She was very organized and had all students with a Learning
Disability noted on her seating chart. This allowed her to visually see which
students may need more support than others. I narrowed down my original
idea of encouraging disruptive students in the science classroom. Most,
possibly all, disruptive continuing disruptive students have some type of
behavioral disorder such as ADD or ADHD. As a substitute I am usually given
a class list of students who have an IEP or any disabilities. In most
classrooms I can usually pick out the students who have a behavior disorder
just by looking at a seating chart. In every classroom there is one person who
is sitting alone separated from the rest of the class. It is important for a
teacher to include all students and expect participation from all students. It
is likely that students with a LD will be less likely to volunteer to answer or
even pay attention during class discussions. A lot of the time these students
are less accepted by their peers and may act out for the attention in a
different way. (Inclusive) It is important for the teacher not to isolate anyone
and help all students feel included. Some teachers ask for personal inventory
cards to so they can include students interests into lessons to establish
personal connections. This is a great way to draw all students into
discussions and make the class more enjoyable establishing a sense of
community as well as making science more relevant. (Alexakos)

Methods

I would like to develop strategies for including learning support students in a

science classroom. More specifically I am focusing on students who have a
behavior disorder such as ADD or ADHD. I plan to collect my data using my
first observation protocol as well as adjust questions on an ongoing basis.
(See appendix a)
The first class with noticeable disruptions cause by a student with a
behavior disorder I observed was at School1. The students were in grades 9&
10.The class was general biology a 50 min year long class.
Most of the students had been on a field trip the day before and one
student brought in a squeeze goo toy he had bought on the field trip to class.
Mrs. Magee made the boy put the toy on the front table before class started
to prevent disruptions or distractions. The class had food journals due that
day and was to be handed in at the beginning of class. There was a student
who didnt know it was due and started crying. Mrs. Magee took her in the
back room and told her she could turn it in tomorrow and its not a big deal
for the mix up and let her go to the bathroom to get herself together. The
students were also completing a nutrient review worksheet and finishing
flashcards for studying. They made a graphic organizer for the topic and Mrs.
Magee told me that graphic organizers are great for those who are visual
learners. She then told me that the food journals are a great way for
connections to real life activities. After the students were done with the
worksheet she went over it on the smart board and pulled names from sticks
to pick students to answer the questions. One boy was off task and working
on his food journal from the night before. He turned it in and the teacher did
not accept it because it was very sloppy. Other students offered to help him
but the boy refused and complained that he spent a lot of time on it. A
resource period followed the class and the students were allowed to work
with partners or in groups studying and reviewing with flashcards. At this
time Mrs. Magee with to the boy and convinced him to redo his food journal.
The boy agreed and said he would turn it in tomorrow. During resource
period I overheard a group talking about taking the CNA exam the next day. I
thought that was nice that Big Spring offered that to students. Mrs. Magee
told me that the Keystone Exam is given after students finish her class. She
helped make the exam and has an idea of the questions on it. She said they
are hard and she has to make sure the students are prepared.

The biology teacher at School1 teaches four different sections. She

teaches anatomy as a block class only lasting a semester that is made up of
mostly students in grade 12. She also teaches another section of anatomy as
a yearlong half of a block section again made up of mostly students in grade
12. She teaches two different sections of general biology. The first section of
general biology is a learning support biology class that is a block semester
long along. This class is co-taught with another teacher and is made up of
students in grades 9 and 10. The last section of biology she teaches is a
short year long upper level biology class made up of students in grade 9 and
10. Students take the Keystone exam following her general biology classes.
After observing the teacher at School1 I interviewed her over the phone to
briefly discuss disruptive behavior in the classroom so I would get a better
understanding of my proposal. We talked a little about the disruptions that
went on during the day when I was observing. There was one boy in
particular that seems to cause most of the disruptions in her Biology class. I
asked her what behavior she finds most disruptive and she said
Inattentiveness. The boy in general bio has ADHD and cant sit still. I have
called home, written him up, he has had ISS. I watch him constantly and the
class is pretty good at ignoring him. Its not like I can kick him out of school, I
have to deal with it. We then talked about how the disruptive behavior is not
daily and only about 10 minutes total a week is spent on him. The nurse is
involved and the parents are trying to get him on medication to help with his
ADHD. I asked how the class is affected be his behavior and she said that

sometimes they can get distracted and get off task but most of the time they
really try to ignore him. The teacher said that you really have to be proactive
in these situations and find what works for that particular child. She has him
sit in the front of the room because when he was in the back he more
disruptive. After the interview I feel like my observations would include not
only the students actions but the different ways to eliminate disruptions or
include the student in the science classroom most effectively. I plan on
interviewing different teachers to better understand their outlook on the
situation. Learning support teachers in particular would be good to
understand current strategies that work best for students with a behavior
disorder. After reading an article about a specific action research project I
have more ideas to obtain information and data to analyze. In the article
data included three written data sources: fall and spring action research
updates, her action research proposal, and her action research final report.
Discussion notes, taped recordings, interviews, field notes on observations of
classroom teaching and formal teaching evaluations were also used in this
study.
As a new teacher I feel knowing how to include learning support students
with a behavior disorder in a science classroom is very important. Some
difficulties I may have are not finding strategies that help a student pay
attention in class. I may have more difficulties if there is more than one
student in the class with ADD or ADHD. More than one student can cause
distractions and it may be hard to keep focus for all of them. One student

may respond better to a situation than another. It is important to observe

more than one student in these circumstances and decide possibilities as a
whole. As well as observations it will be important to put into action
strategies learned through other teachers as well as literature.

Time Schedule
Observe initial coop
teacher and keep
observation journal
during the first few
weeks of observations-note the teachers
responses and use the
observation portocol for
every class that is
observed

Explore other schools

and grade levels with
the same focus and
interview every teacher
whose class you are
observing

Come up with a
plan or changes
you could do to
help improve
results

Discuss ideas with other

long term teachers and
coorelate their answers
to behavior of the
students

Analyze your pre

teaching data and come
up with the best plan to
utilize the information
that has already been
given

Putting your
ideas into
action while
student
teaching

Reflect on your initial

student teaching
observations and
imporve your way of
gathering and analyzing
information

Go over all of your

observations and data
collected and take time
analyzing the differences
you made from
beginning to end.

Initial
observations
and clarifying
topic of interest

The Findings
I completed my student teaching at School2. I started student teaching
at the beginning of the school year so I was getting to know the students at
the same time as my cooperating teacher. After the first week of school I
knew which class period I wanted to narrow my action research down to. I

located the school list of students who had ADD or ADHD and 5 students in
my period 7 class were on that list.
Observation: My first observations in the class were with student1. I chose to
use my observation protocol from Appendix A for my first observation. My
goal of this observation was to simply observe the behaviors of one student
for an entire class period. The teacher (my coop) was able to gain control of
the classroom however she had many interruptions at the beginning. It
appeared that half of the students were paying attention and the other half
were completely distracted by each other or their surroundings. Students
were made clear of their expectations at the beginning of the class period.
The teacher had many disruptions throughout the class period but chose not
to single any of them out. I chose to observe student1 who was off task
during the period. The class lesson was a review for the upcoming test the
next day. During the review student1 was calling out this is dumb and got
it! As I continued to observe student1 I noticed that he had stopped
participating and crumbled up his review paper. He started erasing the desk
with a pencil. He then found a piece of tape and started to play with it and
proceeded to stick it on the student next to him. The student next to him was
easily distracted and stuck the tape back on student1. Student1 then
grabbed that students review paper and started drawing on it. The two
students started to play tic tac toe together. The other student eventually
takes his review paper back and focuses on the teacher. Student1 then turns
around and starts messing with another students shoe laces. That student is

then distracted and starts throwing little pieces of paper at him. Finally the
review game is over and the teacher goes to see what is going on with the
two students and realizes that student1 crumbled up his review paper and
has a quiet talk with him after class.
Reflection: After this observation I tried to think about why this student was
so distracted and what could be done to improve his participation. I think
that to get the call outs under control you need to enforce your expectations
of no talking when the teacher is talking. As for the crumbling up of the
paper my reflection is that the student thought that he did not need that
paper. A solution to that could be that the review papers have to be turned in
with the tests for a grade. If the paper had to be turned in it is less likely that
the student would have crumbled it up. Also the student would likely try to
pay attention to the teacher as well. As for distracting the other students I
think that seating arrangements can be a solution to that as well. Putting
students who are easily distracted next to a student who is very distracting
can cause problems.
Action: The next day after the test I made a seating chart and placed
student1 close to the teachers desk surrounded by students who seemed to
The
berecommended
doing veryseating
well. accommodations according to Harmony Science Academy are:
Seating
Seat the student with ADD/ADHD away from windows and away from the door.
Put the student with ADD/ADHD right in front of your desk unless that would be a
distraction for the student.
Seats in rows, with focus on the teacher, usually work better than having students seated
around tables or facing one another in other arrangements. (hsana.org)

With these accommodations in mind I made seating charts for every

class while student teaching. My coop suggested changing seats after every
test to give some variety and better understand where students should be
seating in the classroom with their test scores in mind.
After my initial seating arrangements were made my most distracted class
seemed to be the most focused.
I decided to do another observation on student1 about a week and a
half after the new seating arrangements had been made. I only observed the
student for half of the class while my cooperating teacher started the lesson
for the day. Student1 came in and did the I wonder warm up and then
started drawing in his notebook. When the teacher started the lesson
Student1 continued to draw but was not distracting anyone else. He seemed
to be listening to the teacher and was participating in the discussion.
Reflection: I think that moving the seats around prevented Student1 from
distracting others and helped him focus during class. He was drawing during
the class however, he still seemed to be involved with the discussion.

Starting a lesson
Signal the start of a lesson with an aural cue, such as an egg timer, a cowbell or a horn.
(You can use subsequent cues to show much time remains in a lesson.)
List the activities of the lesson on the board.
In opening the lesson, tell students what theyre going to learn and what your expectations
are. Tell students exactly what materials theyll need.
Establish eye contact with any student who has ADD/ADHD (hsana.org)

While student teaching the expectations established by my coop

teacher is that when students enter the classroom they are to sit down and
work on their warm up question for the day. When we go over the answer
that means it is time to start class and absolutely no talking. I wrote the
activities of the lesson on the board every day when I was student teaching.
At the beginning of class I also told the students what was due, what we are
doing now and what we are doing after that etc, and what is going on/due
later in the week. I noticed that even writing it on the board and saying it out
loud to the class that certain students did not retain the information. My
class had a terrible time with turning in homework on time.

I chose to use one of the accommodations recommended by Harmon

Science Academy to establish eye contact with any student who has
ADD/ADHD. This was very useful and helped me make sure that those
students with ADD/ADHD were indeed paying attention at all times. As soon
as I started making eye contact with those certain students the ones who
were off task would immediately focus. Occasionally I would just say their
name if they were not looking at all and make eye contact with them. I felt
like this was one of the easiest thing to use during any lesson.
I interviewed a middle school special education teacher for tactics on
including ADD or ADHD students in the science classroom. She said You can
help them in the classroom by doing a variety of things; short brain breaks (a
funny, two minute video, two minute chats, a quick game, etc), check for

understanding frequently, fidget items, gum/candy to suck on, class work

that involves moving around the room or working with partners. The tactics
that works best in my classroom is checking for understanding frequently
and brain breaks.
I decided to take the advice of this learning support teacher and give
brain breaks while teaching. The first brain break I had the class stand up
and stretch for a minute and then sit back down. I noticed that the break had
caused the class to be more energetic and by the time their attention was
gained again it was well over 5 minutes. I think this style of brain break
may be best for longer class periods or smaller groups. The next type of
brain break I decided to try was a short video clip. I tried to make the video
clips relevant to what I was teaching that day. This seemed to work well as it
captured everyones attention.
Labs are a huge part of any science class and it is very important for
students to listen and understand all directions for safety purposes as well as
engagement purposes. Before each lab the safety rules were explained and
reminded. Every lab in the classroom was organized in a way so students
would know what to do (laminated directions), when to do it (guided by the
teacher) and how to do it with a demonstration from the teacher. Not one
time did I have one of my ADD/ADHD students off task during a lab.
Learning science should be an active process. Students need to learn to
integrate many different ideas, draw relationships, and use them to explore

and understand new phenomena. This process helps not only non-labeled
students but also students with language disorders and ADD. (Inclusive
Classrooms)
Another student in my 7th period class who had ADHD seemed to be
struggling with understanding the material we were going over in class. He
was not usually off task during class and seemed to be paying attention most
of the time. He was given the task of learning and taking care of the class
worm farm (along with a few other students). After this job was given to him
he seemed to be very confident in class and seemed to show more of an
interest. I decided to interview him after I noticed this seemingly new
interest in science arise.
Interview student2 with ADHD:
What did you think of science before this class? I liked science before this
class. I have a whole book of science experiments that I do when I have
time.
What do you think of science now? I think science is a lot harder now than
it used to be. There is more stuff to do and a lot of writing. I miss having a
science book because that makes me more organized. I like looking at the
pictures in the books too.
You were chosen to help with the class worm farm. How do you feel about
your involvement with the worms? I think it is going good. I have only ever
been around worms when I fish. I feel responsible for them. I really liked

reading about them and answering the teachers questions about them. It
made me feel like I knew something.
What is your favorite part of this class? I like the videos. I like nature and I
like watching videos about it. There is a difference when you are reading
about it and when you actually see it in a video.
What do you dislike about this class? I dislike when you assign partners for a
project. I like to choose who I work with. I also dont like when I get a low
score on a test.
What is your biggest challenge with the tests we have had so far? I just
need to pay attention in class. I also need to make sure I have all of my notes
to study from since we dont have a textbook to look at. I am really bad with
losing papers.
What do you think of the I Wonder questions at the beginning of every
class? Its cool because we learn something every day. Its also easier to
take notes in my I Wonder book.

After this interview I was curious to see how including the textbook would
help with a student like Student2. Luckily the next unit included a textbook.
Students had to read and create graphic organizers using the text book. They
also had to take notes on the vocabulary for the unit. After this unit I had an
informal conversation with Student2 about his thoughts with using the
textbook for this unit and if it helped him with his test. He told me that it did
help him understand the information better but he still didnt do that well on

the test. He did say he did better than he has done on the tests so far this
year though and says he likes reading the information instead of listening to
it.

My last week student teaching I tried to utilize all of the tactics to include
students with ADD /ADHD in the science classroom. The students were in
assigned seats, I provided brain breaks by using short video clips, I filled
my chalk board with daily/weekly agendas, I made frequent eye contact with
certain students throughout the class period, I included text in lessons for
students to read along with their notes. The last week, only one student had
not turned in their weekly homework from period 7 which was a huge
improvement. I collected all daily papers whether graded or not and handed
them back the next day. The students in period 7 all had completed their
daily work and all were engaged.

Implications
I focused my research on strategies to include students with behavior
disorders such as ADD or ADHD. Science is very hands on and can be a great
learning experience appealing to both visual and auditory senses. A sense of
belonging, relevance of tasks, hands-on experiences, curiosity, humor,and
fun all contribute to classroom interest (Bergin,1999).(Inclusive Classrooms)

During my short experience I learned a lot about students with behavior

disorders such as ADD/ADHD. I learned that each child is different and there
is not one magical strategy that can be used for every student. I also learned
that sometimes a strategy that you use may work one time and not another
time. There are many factors that can disrupt student engagement in any
classroom let alone a science classroom.

I was very surprised at the overall behavior with students during labs. Going
into this I assumed that labs would be the most disruptive and chances for
students to be off task. During my experience I found the complete opposite
happen. Students, particularly those I was focused on with ADD/ADHD were
very engaged during labs. They were usually not off task and seemed to
enjoy the hands on nature of science labs. I am curious if I had another group
of students maybe high school age with behavior disorders, if they would act
the same way during a lab.

I also learned that just because a student has ADD/ADHD does not mean
they are easily distracted or disruptive during class. My research was
narrowed down to a class that had 5 students with ADD/ADHD. In that class
only 2 students out of the 5 seemed to be struggling in some way whether it
was inability to stay focused or understanding the information.
I learned a few easy strategies to take with me as a new teacher in a
science classroom. The most effective strategy in my opinion is seating

arrangements. Students should have assigned seats if there seem to be ANY

distractions in a class. I was amazed at how the behavior in a class can
transform with seating changes. Another strategy I will take with me is to
make eye contact. It is a very easy strategy that can be done daily. If the
student knows you are watching them then there is little room for them to be
off task or distracting to others. I am naturally a very nosy person and like to
keep after everyone and know what they are doing. This was a great strategy
when working with students who have ADD/ADHD it was constant reminder
to them as to what they were expected to be doing. I also would remind
them about homework or upcoming tests whenever I saw them whether it
was in the hallway or during study hall. I like the idea of brain breaks but I
learned quickly that sometimes the breaks can lead to distractions. I am
curious again if there is a difference in older students vs middle school aged
students. I think that when planning a lesson there should be material for
students who learn best by reading, watching or hearing. In the High Impact
Strategies training I had to complete we learned that the most effective way
for students to understand text is by reading it alone, then reading it and
discussing it with a partner and then hearing it.
Overall, this experience was amazing and informational. I now know of
strategies that will include students with ADD/ADHD in the science
classroom. I plan on always adjusting to students and classes. If I were to do
this again I would like to be in a high school setting with more detailed lab
work required. I am curious in the difference of inclusion when the material

becomes very complex. I would hypothesize that different strategies would

be needed including students in a more complex science class subject.

http://hsana.org/education/ADD-ADHD%20in%20the%20Classroom.pdf

References
Mitchener, C. P. & Jackson, W. M.(2011) Learning from Action Research About
Science

Teacher Preparation J Sci Teacher Educ (2012) 23:4564

Altichter, H. Feldman, P.P. & Somekh, B. (2008) Teachers Investigate their

Work: An introduction to action research across the professions
National Center for Education Statistics Retrieved November 2013 from
http://nces.ed.gov
Pennsylvania School Performance Profile (2013) Retrieved November 2013
from http://www.pde.state.pa.us
Alexakos, K. (2001). Inclusive classrooms. The Science Teacher, 40-43.

Appendix A
Observation Protocol
Teacher:
School District:
Grade:
Observer:
Subject:
Class Length:
Goals of Observation:
Observation:
(Rate each question with a 0-4, 0 being never observed throughout the class
period, and 4 being very descriptive. There is also space for comments
available below the questions.)
1. Teacher is able to gain control of classroom without interuptions:___
2. Students stay focused when the teacher is speaking:___
3. Students were made clear of the expectations of them during the class
period:___
4. Teacher has no disruptions throughout lesson:____
5. Teacher has to single out one or more students because of disruption:___
Comments/ Concerns:
Student Engagement:
Observations of students off task:

What are they talking about?

Are they disrupting other students?
How long are they disruptive?
Teachers Response:
Does the teacher talk to the student? Explain
How long was the student being disruptive before teacher intervened?
Tactics to motivate student
Comments/Concerns:
Student Understanding: (Rate each question with a 0-4, 0 being never
observed throughout the class period, and 4 being very descriptive. There is
also space for comments available below the questions.)
Student asks questions about material___
Students on task when group work is assigned___
Observations:
Students comments to teacher throughout lesson:
Comments/Concerns:
Student Assessment:
Are there a few students who seem to not understand the material based on
the class as a whole? Explain.
What were other students reactions towards disruptive student?
Post-Observation Notes:
What types of disruption occurred the most throughout the day?
Did the disruptive students seem to understand the material?
Was there an event of disruption that distracted students for a significant
amount of time?

Any concerns for Teacher?