1. Action Research
Not traditional educational research often research tests theory not practical
Teacher research in classrooms and/or schools/districts for the purpose of:
Improving teaching
Investigate areas of concer
Testing educational theory
Evaluating and implementing an educational plan
Meet the challenges within classrooms and schools
Action research is used to describe an approach to classroom research

2. A few reasons to do action research…
Help you build a reflective practice based on proven ideas or techniques
Allow you to try new ideas and reliably assess their effectiveness
It will help you build confidence in your managerial or instructional decisions
It will contribute to the professional culture of teaching at your school
It can create meaningful and lasting change in order to improve student achievement

3. Levels of Action Research
Individual for classroom
Group of teachers for department
Teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders to affect change in larger school community

4. Action Research History
Kurt Lewin(1946) credit with development of concept of action research
Evolved and influenced by Kemmis(1983), Ebbutt (1985), Elliott (1991), Hopkins (1985) and others…

5. Conducting Action Research Steps
Identify the question, issue or problem
Conduct a literature review
Define a solution
Apply the solution and collect the data
Analyze your findings
Report your findings
Take ACTION

6. How to Get Started.. Identify the Question, Issue or Problem
Decide on a FOCUS
Find your professional self…some guiding questions may be…
What are your broad interests in teaching?
What are your specific interests?
What questions are manageable?
What are you passionate about?
Is there a problem or question that you would like an answer to or as a future teacher, administrator, policy maker, researcher and how will an answer to your question or idea help you do a better job?

7. Literature Review