Action Research Designs

Chapter 18
Action Research Designs
John W. Creswell Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458
Quantitative and Qualitative Research, third edition All rights reserved.
By the end of this chapter,
you should be able to:
Define the purposes and uses of action research
Describe types of action research designs
Identify key characteristics of action research
Describe the steps in conducting an action
research study
List criteria for evaluating an action research
study
Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

John W. Creswell Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458
All rights reserved.
18.2
Educational Research:
What Is Action Research?
Action research is systematic inquiry done by

teachers (or other individuals in an educational
setting) to gather information about, and
subsequently improve, the ways their particular
educational setting operates, how they teach,
and how well their students learn (Mills, 2000).

18.3
When Do You Use Action Research?
When you have an educational problem to solve

When educators want to reflect on their own
practices
When you want to address schoolwide problems
When teachers want to improve their practices
When educators want to participate in a
research project

18.4
How Action Research Developed
Teacher and school inquiries
(teacher-initiated
2000s
research studies)
1990s School-based
Professional inquiry by
site councils
teachers (self-study)
(school
1980s committees)
1970s In-service days (teacher

staff-development activities)
Movement Toward Action Research

18.5
Why Action Research Is Important
Encourages change in the schools

Fosters a democratic (involvement of many
individuals) approach to education
Empowers individuals through collaboration on
projects
Positions teachers and other educators as
learners who seek to narrow the gap between
practice and their vision of education
Encourages educators to reflect on their practices
Promotes a process of testing new ideas (Mills,
2000)
18.6
Types of Action Research Designs
Action Research
Practical Participatory
Studying local practices Studying social issues

Involving individual or team- that constrain individual lives
based inquiry Emphasizing equal
Focusing on teacher development and collaboration
student learning Focusing on life-enhancing
Implementing a plan of action changes
Leading to the teacher-as-researcher Resulting in the emancipated
researcher
18.7
Practical Action Research:
Mills (2000) Dialectic Research Spiral
Identify an
Area of Focus
Develop an
Collect Data
Action Plan
Analyze and
Interpret Data
18.8
Features of
Participatory Action Research
Deliberate exploration of a relationship between
the individual and others
Participatory: People conduct studies on
themselves
Practical and collaborative
Emancipatory (challenges procedures)
Helps individuals free themselves from
constraints found in media, language, work
procedures, and power relationships
Reflexive or dialectical: Focused on bringing
about change in practices
18.9
Stringers (1999) Action Research
Interacting Spiral
Think
Look
Act

18.
Educational Research: 10
Key Characteristics of Action Research
A practical focus: Researchers study practical

issues that will have immediate benefits to
teachers, schools, and communities.
The educator-researchers own practices:
Self-reflective research by the educator-
researchers turns the lens on their own
educational classroom, school, or practices.
Collaboration between stakeholders

18.
Collaboration
Students
Community
Teachers Stakeholders
Collaborative
Team
Parents
Staff
Administrators
18.
Dynamic process
The process spirals back and forth among reflection,
data collection, and action
Does not follow a linear pattern
Does not follow a causal sequence from problem to
action
A plan of action
The action researcher develops a plan of action
Formal or informalinvolve a few individuals or an
entire community
May be presenting data to stakeholders, establishing
a pilot program, or exploring new practices

18.
(contd)
Sharing research
Groups of stakeholders
Local schools, educational personnel
Local or state individuals
Not specifically interested in publication, but in
sharing with individuals or groups who can
promote change

18.
Steps in Conducting Action Research
1. Determine if action research is the best design

to use
2. Identify the problem to study
3. Locate resources to help address the problem
4. Identify the information you will need

18.
The Problem Is Only
One Phase in Which to Enter
Evaluating
Identifying Collecting Taking
Existing
Problem Data Action
Data
Point of Point of Point of Point of

Entry Entry Entry Entry
18.
Taxonomy of Action Research Data
Collection Techniques
Action Research
Data Collection Techniques
(The Three Es)
Examining
Experiencing Enquiring Using and making
Through observation When the researcher records
and fieldnotes asks Archival documents
Participant observation Informal interview Journals
(Active participant) Structured formal Maps
interview Audio and
Privileged, active Questionnaires videotapes
observer Attitude scales Artifacts
Passive observer Standardized tests Fieldnotes
18.
Steps in Conducting Action Research
(contd)
5. Implement the data collection

6. Analyze the data
7. Develop a plan for action
8. Implement the plan and reflect

18.
Evaluating Action Research
Does the project clearly address a problem or
issue in practice that needs to be solved?
Did the action researcher collect sufficient data
to address the problem?
Did the action researcher collaborate with
others during the study? Was there respect for
all collaborators?
Did the plan of action advanced by the
researcher build logically from the data?
Is there evidence that the plan of action
contributed to the researchers reflection as a
professional?
18.
Evaluating Action Research (contd)
Has the research enhanced the lives of the
participants by empowering them, changing
them, or providing them with new
understanding?
Did the action research actually lead to
change, or did a solution to a problem make
the difference?
Was the action research reported to
audiences who might use the information?

18.

Action Research Designs

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Chapter 18

Action Research Designs

John W. Creswell Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Action research is systematic inquiry done by

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

When you have an educational problem to solve

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

1970s In-service days (teacher

Movement Toward Action Research

Encourages change in the schools

Studying local practices Studying social issues

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

A practical focus: Researchers study practical

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

1. Determine if action research is the best design

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Point of Point of Point of Point of

5. Implement the data collection

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

Copyright 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc.

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