Action Research

A Bengali Teacher of English wanted to increase the amount of English she was using in the classroom. As first step she tried to find out how much Bengali she used in the class and the purpose for which she was using. To find this out she recorded four classes , observed and listened to them and found that she was using 50% English in the class. She also found that the purposes for which she used the same to be classroom management, explanation of content and giving feedback. She then drew up a plan to reduce the amount of Bengali used by her. She familiarised with English expressions that could be used on cards and put them before her. This reminded her of the plan. Each day a different card was in focus. She then continued recording her lessons and after a few weeks she listened to her tape and found that the use of Bengali had reduced considerably

Action Research is on the spot research aimed at the solution of an immediate classroom problem. ( Mouly)

According to Kurt Lewin, “Action Research is applying scientific thinking to real life problems(classroom for teachers) and represents a great improvement over teacher’s subjective judgements and their limited personal experiences

There are two main features of Action Research1.Action research is conducted by a Participant 2.It involves immediate application

CRITERIA

FEATURES OF ACTION RESEARCH

OBJECTIVES

Find solution to problems in specific context

TRAINING

Limited Training Needed

SELECTION OF PROBLEMS

Participating, Teaching identifies the problem

HYPOTHESIS

Specific statement of the Problem serves as Hypothesis

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Not essential

SAMPLE

Students in the class form the sample

RESEARCH DESIGN

Procedures are planned and evolved

ANALYSIS OF DATA

Simple

CONCLUSION

Applicability of the solution to the problem specified

APPLICATION OF RESULTS

Findings are used in the classroom situation by participating teacher to improve their own practice

• The purpose of Action Research is to make teachers reflect on their own teaching, which is an essential part of the teacher’s Professional Development (Schon 1987, Calderhead 1989)

Helps to move from practice to theory

Helps in evaluating one’s own Teaching

Gives owner ship

Empowers teachers

Helps in solving problems

Reflection

Planning

Observation

Action

Pin-Pointing the Problem Diagnosing the causes of Problems Formulation of Action Hypothesis

Designing the Action Plan Implementation of the Action Plan Evaluation of the Action Plan

Identification of the Plan

Pin-Pointing the Problem • Narrowing down the area and looking at the problem as specific questions • Ex• Low Achievement in Math • Spelling Problem • Absence of Reading Habits • Problems in Writing

Formulation of Action Hypothesis Hypothesis are intelligent and logical “guesses” about possible differences, relationships, causes and solutions • Logical • Testable • Clear • Direct in terms of outcome • Testable in short time

Factors governing the Formulation of a Good Hypothesis

• The problem is clear • The goal to be achieved is specific • There is readiness to look at problems from different perspectives • The social context is closely examined

The Tools for Data Collection

• Teaching Journals • Lesson Reports • Questionnaires • Audio-Video Recording • Class Observation

DATA ANALYSIS Quantitative- % calculated QualitativeDescription of events

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

Rationale/Background Objectives The Questions/Problem Statement Plan of Action Time Steps Sample Participants Tools Used Types of Analysis Interpretation Conclusion and Implications Books Referred ( Bibliography/Work Citations)

CHANNELS AND AVENUES • KVS AWARD FOR INNOVATION AND EXPERIMENTATION IN TEACHING-

• Teachers with two years of service may apply • All tech aided Awards such as KVSIntel, Microsoft ITLA NCERT ICT Awards have a framework of Action research

Collaborative Action Research

NCERT Awards for School Innovation for whole school Innovation / Action Research