ACTION RESEARCH

Kristine Desamero - Pabico.

SST - III , MAEd., Ll.B.

DEFINITION
it is a disciplined process of inquiry
conducted by and for those taking the
action (Inst, for the Study of Inquiry in Education)
a name given to a particular way of
researching your own learning (McNiff, 2002)
Learning by doing, Participatory
Research, Collaborative inquiry,
Emancipatory research, Action Learning

WHAT IS ACTION RESEARCH

"A comparative research on the
condition and effects of
various forms of social
actions and researches
leading to social actions.."
"that uses a spiral of steps,
each of which is composed of
a circle of planning, action,
and fact finding about the
result of the action"
-Lewin (1946)

KURT LEWIN (1890-1947)

a way of
generating
information

ACTION
RESEARCH

conducted by
persons,
students,
teachers,
etc.

CHANGE
&
SOLUTIONS

respective
fields,
schools,
communities

CHARACTERISTICS OF ACTION RESEARCH

a field intensive
process
Collaborative &
Interactive

Solve real - life

problems

ACTION
RESEARCH

Requires
dissemination
of solutions
Flexible

Generates
data and
makes
interpretation

ACTION RESEARCH PROCESS

(https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/proflearn/research/actres.htm
actreslg.gif)

PLANNING
what is a good action research question?
what problems do i need to solve now?
Manageable?
Significant?
Contextual?
Clearly Stated?
Reflective?

ACTING
PLANNING
Are you ready to try it?
Data gathering concerns:
is it one you can do?
is time an issue?
Get Data from:
Surveys
Checklists
Portfolios
Discussions

OBSERVING
PLANNING
Analysis of Data
Reporting and Sharing

"Sometimes what you expect to find is not

what your data shows.."

REFLECTING
PLANNING

EVALUATE

PLAN ACTION
AGAIN!

IMPLEMENT

REVISIT

LEWIN'S SPIRAL MODEL

PROBLEMS
because it is carried out by individuals with
a vested interest in the research its validity
has been questioned
it is seen by some researchers as
anecdotal, subjective and biased
the traditional positivists see it as
unscientific

EXAMPLE OF ACTION RESEARCH

REFLECT

PLAN

ACT

A tutor feels that one of their classes is not engaging

in their sessions as effectively as they could
Consult with learners: the consultation revealed that
the students prefer less chalk talk and more learnercentered activities
Act on their views: lesson plans were adjusted to
provide more learner-centered activities

OBSERVE Learner's views will be collected from: learner's

feedback, tutor's observation, etc.

REFLECT

reflect on its success, if ok - solved! if not, plan again!

"Action Research is about

improving practice rather than
providing knowledge.." - Elliot,
1991

thank you!!