EDLD 5301 Reflection

As I reflect on the last five weeks of this program, I am enthusiastic about the knowledge and experience I have gained as an action researcher. Most importantly, I have learned what action research truly means in relation to our field of education. As a former English major, my idea of research was incredibly different from the kind of research examined in this course. To be honest, I much prefer action research to tradition research. As educational professionals, it is necessary that we adopt an inquiring mind in order to truly become lifelong learners. Action research is one of the many ways that we can cultivate this inquiring mind. In Leading with Passion and Knowledge, administrator inquiry is defined as "the process of a principal engaging in systematic, intentional study of his/her own administrative practice and taking action for change based on what he/she learns as a result of the inquiry" (Dana, 2009). The educational leader begins with a question regarding an issue in his/her school, collect and analyze data about the issue, read relevant literature, and finally formulate a plan for change. The great benefit of action research is that it serves as job-embedded professional development; learning occurs synonymously with action. Likewise, it ensures that the research is done by someone who is actually invested in the school's success, rather than some outsider who isn't aware of the specific needs of the individual school district. Instead of having to sit and listen to some "sage on the stage" tell a school leader what he/she needs to do, the administrator interactively participates in inquiry with the teachers and students in the school district to make valuable and relevant decisions. In essence, action research leads to real change. Our lives as educators are and have ever been dedicated to creating successful students who become lifelong learners. The best way to produce this kind of individual is to model what lifelong learning truly looks like, and action research does that. It puts the school leader in the role of "head learner" (Dana, 2009).

During this year, I accepted a new position as the Region 5 Social Studies/DMAC Program Coordinator. As I began my course for my Master’s degree in Educational Administration, I was incredibly worried that my new position would not fit well with a program designed for future principals. Luckily, I was very wrong. In fact, I believe my position has given me a great opportunity to see a multitude of different schools apply the exact ideas I am learning through my courses. Throughout each week of this course, I would have certain questions pertaining to action research, and amazingly, these questions would be answered within the next week. The readings, lectures, interviews, and web conferences were incredibly valuable to my future as an action researcher. Through the discussions of Dr. Arterbury and Dr. Jenkins, I gained valuable insights about the action research project. They instructed me to determine the purpose and significance of my action research project. In doing this, I was able to decide what action I wanted to take and who would benefit from that action. They also clearly outlined the steps I needed to follow in conducting my action research plan, which I found to be the most helpful discussion they had. They encouraged me to do the following: examine the work, analyze data, develop a deeper understanding, engage in self-reflection, explore programmatic patterns, determine direction, take action for school improvement, and sustain improvement. I especially enjoyed the interviews with Johnny Briseno, Dr. Timothy Chargois, and Dr. Kirk Lewis. These interviews served as great guides for action research, but they also showed the power of interviews as a data collection strategy. I hadn’t thought of using interviews for that stage of my action research plan.

Week 3 of this course was probably the most stressful, but also the most enlightening for me. Of the important knowledge I gained in this course, the most valuable piece of information I learned involved the different methods of data collection. Until I read chapter three in Leading with Passion and Knowledge, I felt very lost and confused about the direction of my action research. I knew what I wanted to study, but I didn’t know how to gather the data I needed. Because I would not be able to utilize quantitative measures in my action research project, I needed to learn about other ways to collect important research information other than literature. Now, I know that I will conduct surveys and interviews of teachers/administrators, provide documents and artifacts shared with our Facebook group, take digital pictures and video of teacher interaction, conduct classroom observations and take field notes, and constantly reflect on learning through journals and blogs. Each of these methods will serve as a driving force as I lead our region into a more collaborative culture.

The final and most valuable aspect of this course has been the interaction and collaboration I have been able to achieve through our course Facebook group and blog activities. Through each of these avenues, I have learned a great deal from my peers who are taking this journey alongside me. In fact, it was the knowledge I gained through participating in these activities that led me to my action research project. I have been able to see the true value of collaboration and communication. Therefore, I will examine the following question: How can our region develop a collaborative culture characterized by social studies teachers from different grade levels and school districts communicating, understanding and sharing expectations for all of our students? In what ways can I facilitate this process?