SLO #3
Student Learning Objective: Research Skills
Purpose
Candidates will develop as professional educators who demonstrate research skills by
designing and conducting research ethically and effectively and presenting their findings at a
professional level in oral and written forms.
Assignment Selected
To demonstrate attainment of research skills I have selected the action research project as
proposed in S ED 600 Research in Secondary Science Education (Spring 2007, Dr. Rivas) and
completed in S ED 697 Directed Comprehensive Studies in Science Education (Spring 2008, Dr.
Rivas).
Rationale for Assignment Selection
Through the action research project, I completed research in my own classroom and had
to deal with the difficult issues and questions it presents. I had to look into what others had done
in my areas of research and incorporate their successes and findings as best as I could into my
own action research. I had to evaluate my classes and decide how best to construct my own
study. With this came the ethical decisions of how I would design the research. Due to these
ethical issues I designed my study in a way that made it very difficult to attain results of
significant value, but I was teaching my students in a way that I assumed from past experiences,
would work better for my students’ knowledge and understanding of the material. I also learned
the importance of gaining informed consent from the parents of my students before beginning the
study.
After the study period, I had to put into practice what I had learned about processing the
data. I had to effectively deal with qualitative data by coding my surveys and interview
SLO #3
questionnaires, I also had to quantitatively analyze the test scores. Analysis of the test scores also
required a t-test to determine if there was any statistical significance to the changes in scores that
were seen in my study. I also had to determine how my findings could be presented in a manner
that was effective and understandable to a reader. In class, we all discussed the particular uses for
various types of graphs and considered how to present our findings in a way that made sense.
Lastly, I had to communicate my research and findings in both a written and oral form.
The writing of the actual action research project was an endeavor that encompassed the entire
semester and we were provided with the opportunity to peer review the work of our colleagues
which was very helpful. We were provided with many opportunities to speak about our research
and the process. The first opportunity was with Dr. Foley during the Fall 2007 semester as we
were starting the data collection phase of our study. In addition, Dr. Rivas provided the
opportunity for us to present several of our chapters to the class. This process will continue as we
are given the opportunity to present our work to the next cohort and at conferences and
workshops. Many candidates, including myself, have been asked to present their research to the
faculty at their campuses.
Reflections
It is this process which has created the most growth for me as an educator. Through the
action research project, I have gained a great appreciation for other research that has been done
on education and educational theory and practices. I have a much improved understanding of
what good research may be and can now analyze other research with a much more critical eye.
The implementation, writing, and application of the action research project are one of the most
challenging, but also most rewarding experiences of my own education.