Action research is not so much
something that we do in addition to our
teaching as something that we
integrate into it.
In many ways it is a state of mind- it is a
skepticism about assumptions and a
willingness to put everything to the test.
It is something which should take very little
time and which does not necessarily need
to be made public. It is a way of ensuring
that we continue to learn even as we teach.
It helps stave off staleness and routine.
Martin Parrott (1996:3)
According to Elliott the fundamental characteristics
of action research are:
It analyses the human actions and social situations
that students and teachers experience
It uses an exploratory approach
It aims to explain what happens in the
classroom in relation to specific teaching
contents
It interprets different classroom events from
the point of view of those who take part;
that is, it involves teachers and students:
their beliefs, values, intentions, decisions,
...
It uses direct simple language, in contrast to
the technical specialised language used by
conventional research, to explain the
classroom situations that are analysed.
Kemmis and Mc Taggart :
It is carried out by classroom teachers rather
than by outside researchers
It is collaborative
It is aimed at changing things
A distinctive feature of action research is
that those affected by planned changes
have the primary responsibility for deciding
on courses of critically informed actions
which seem likely to lead to improvement,
and for evaluating the results of strategies
tried out in practice. Action research is a
group activity.
Cohen and Manion offered an 8 stage model:
1) The identification, evaluation and formulation
of the problem.
2)Preliminary discussion and negotiations
amongst interested parties- teachers, advisers,
researchers, sponsors- culminating in a draft
proposal.
3) Review of research literature and comparable
studies.
4) Restatement of the problem, or formulation of
a hypothesis; explicit discussion of the
assumptions underlying the project.
5) Selection of research procedures, allocation of
resources, choice of materials, methods, etc.
6) Choice of evaluation procedures- bearing in mind
that evaluation will be continuous
7) The implementation of the project itself, including
data collection and analysis, monitoring and
feedback.
8) The interpretation of the data; inferences to be
drawn; overall project evaluation.
Martin Parrott outlines an extremely simple action research project :

PHASE 1: Develop a plan of action to: a)improve what is already
happening or
b) identify and examine a “puzzle” or problem a
rea in your teaching
PHASE 2: Act to implement the plan.
PHASE 3: Observe the effects of action in the context in which it occurs.
PHASE 4: Reflect on these effects
Why do action research?
A way of learning about our learners
Reflecting upon and analysing our teaching
A way of monitoring and evaluating
innovation
Criticisms of Action Research:
●
●
Reliability- refers to the consistency of results
obtained from research- how consistent is the
collection of data within a piece of research?
Reliability also refers to replicability- can the
same piece of research be carried out with
another group of learners and provide similar
results?
Validity seeks to establish to what extent the
research really investigates what the researcher
wants it to- are the research tools used
consistent with what the te researcher is trying to
research?
However it has been pointed out that the
very nature of action research precludes
such concern over issues such as external
validity.
In many cases practitioners are less concerned with
generating generalisable knowledge than with
solving pressing problems associated with their own
particular workplace. While such action research
activities therefore fulfil a professional development
function, I still believe that if they address questions
of interest of other practitioners, if they generate
data, they contain analysis and interpretation, then
they qualify as research. (Nunan 1992: 18-19)
Another criticism of action reseach lies in the fact
that it is unable to provide “facts” or universal
truths about language teaching, as its scope is
limited.
The aim of action research is not to arrive at
universal truths but only to learn more
about ourselves (at the moment), our
teaching (at the moment), our learners (at
the moment) and their learning (at the
moment).
(Parrott 1996:6)
Conclusion
Action research conforms to a naturalistic paradigm of
enquiry, and it is considered to be an important tool
for practising teachers to help them become involved
in thinking about their own teaching, thus ensuring
continued professional development and enhancing
competence.