Action ResearchQualitative Inquiry in

Practice

AACTE ANNUAL MEETING 2007New York

Dr. Dorothy Valcarcel Craig dvcraig@mtsu.eduMs. Kathyrn Boudreau Patten kpatten@mtsu.edu

MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY

Action Research is…

• Practical – data leads to practical improvements• Participative – coworkers working together• Empowering – all participants can affect change• Interpretive – social reality is determined

collaboratively• Tentative – inquires do not result in “right”

answers• Critical – participants search together for practical

improvements

The Basics

• The Study of All Aspects of Life

• Examination from the Inside

• The Situation and All it Entails

• Descriptive Picture of Reality

• Results in informed decisions for improving practice

Two Kinds of Research

Traditional Both Action•What others are doing•Seek explanation and a truth•Objective•Strive for knowledge•Removed from site

Data Collection

InquiryProblem Solving

•What one is personally doing•Seek continuous change•Reflective•Strive for development and planned change•Personally involved

Why Inquiry-Based Action Research?

• Accountability• Well Informed,

Highly Qualified Educators

• Reflective Practice• Improving Practice:

– Teaching– Learning– Student success

Action Research – Practitioner Research

• Disciplined inquiry• Conducted

specifically to improve practice

• Focused on:– Changes within the

classroom setting– Solutions and

improvements

Inquiry-Based Research Requires the Practitioner to:

• Take part in prolonged engagement within the practitioner-based environment

• Recognize “researcher as instrument” as well as other more traditional instruments

• Collect and analyze multiple forms of data

• Utilize and describe situations in order to improve practice

Main Features

• Natural settings• Multiple forms of

data• Rich in description• Process over product• Inductive analysis• Meaning • Solutions• Dissemination of

findings to improve practice

Improvement vs

Explanation

Development vs

Knowledge

Perspectives vs

Experimentation

Localvs

Universal

Action Researchers seek a shared understanding

Traditional Researchers seek to explain how social relations function

Action Researchers wish to foster development and self-renewal

Traditional Researchers seek to build a body of knowledge about social relations

Action Researchers strive to reach beyond their own limited points by collecting multiple forms of dataTraditional Researchers strive to move outside realities by collecting controlled data

Action Researchers work by themselves or engage colleagues in self-studiesTraditional Researchers engage other researchers worldwide in studies to build universal knowledge

The Role of the Researcher

changes as…

the study evolves, the problem is further

defined, the situation becomes

clear,the patterns emerge,

the action plan is developed…

Proactive vs Reactive

• Try a new practice• Incorporate hopes

and concerns• Collect data• Check what the data

may mean• Reflect on

alternative behaviors• Try another new

practice

• Collect data to diagnose

• Analyze the data for themes and ideas

• Distribute data to others and announce possible changes

• Try a new practice• Check for reactions• Collect data for

diagnostic purposes

Continuous Improvement

PROBLEM SOLVING

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

ACTION RESEARCH

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE

• Identify the problem– What do you want to find out?

• Subjects– Who will be involved?

• Fieldwork– How will you gain access?

• Structure– What is the best structure to

engage and observe?• Historical case study• Experimental• Observational case study• Narrative inquiry• Multiple sites• Multi-case

• Data– What types of data will

enable understanding?

Designing a Study

Multiple Forms and Sources of Data

Primary SourcesNaturally Occurring Events

Secondary Sources Artifacts

•Audio Tapes and Transcripts•Videotapes and Transcripts•Researcher Field Notes and Journals•Participant Field Notes•Photos•Responses to Open-Ended Interviews•Responses to Seminar Discussions•Naturally Occurring Conversations and Interactions Between Participants

Standardized test scoresRecords and databases filesPersonal Documents (family records)Cued Responses to InterviewsSurvey ResponsesProjects and ProductsCued Response JournalsElectronic Responses to Focus QuestionsNotesMemosArtifacts (Graphics, Diagrams, etc.)

• Make decisions that:– Narrow the study– Determine the path

taken

• Develop ongoing, revised analytic questions,

• Plan data-collection sessions based on previous sets of data,

• Record “observer comments,”

• Try new ideas and themes,

• Begin exploring metaphors, analogies, and concepts

• Utilize multiple forms of visual devices

The Demand for Ongoing Data Analysis Forces the

Researcher to…

• Organize data using whatever system is most efficient

• Develop a unique coding system

• Examine data in order to uncover any recurring:– Words– Phrases– Patterns of behavior– Patterns indicating a

subject’s thinking processes

– Blatant clues

• Record recurring:– regularities – Irregularities

• Develop topics, phrases, and categories

• Take apart and break down data

• Reassemble data• Analyze the

“emerging theory”

The Demand for Summative Data Analysis Forces the

Researcher to…

Why is Action Research Effective?

• Practitioners are likely to engage in reflective dialog regarding teaching and learning

• Critique is ongoing• Collaboration,

consulting and conferencing are natural within the learning community

Effective Practitioners and Action Research…

Practitioners usually want to improve conditions

Can rely on “insider” information

Are able to use expertise to improve practice

Tips for Beginners

• Field Journals• Ongoing Literature

Reviews• Data Collection• Documentations via

Technology• Interview Techniques• Survey Instruments• Consider Analysis • Consider Patterning• Identify multiple forms

of data within the environment

Getting Started

Problem Identification

Subjects Rationale

Research Questions & Data Sets

Problem:

Question Data Set Data Set Data Set

Question 2 Data Set Data Set Data Set

Question 3 Data Set Data Set Data Set