EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Week 2 Assignment: Background – Real Life Research Action Examples
Overview
Last week students had an opportunity to examine the differences in action research and
traditional research. Students began to answer questions like:

Why do action research?

How will action research benefit leaders and stakeholders in educational settings?

Why is reflection an important skill for leaders?

Why are blogs beneficial in sharing what we are learning about action research?
This week’s lecture, interviews, readings and assignments focus on examples of action
research in educational settings. These examples will help you begin to identify your topic for
your action research project and provide you with a clear purpose describing why this action
research project is important in your professional development.
Here are the Learning and Performance Outcomes for Week Two:
Learning Outcomes
1) Identify possible action research topics from the intern plan developed in EDLD 5311
and skills needed to successfully lead the research project.
2) Be familiar with areas frequently identified by school leaders needing further research
(e.g., school and curriculum development, school culture/campus improvement, school
performance in reducing achievement gaps, etc.).
Performance Outcomes:
1) Describe some examples of action research from reviewing interviews with current
school leaders.
2) Review your internship plan and meet with the site supervisor to brainstorm potential
needed and/or desired research topics.
3) Using Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher, identify
at least nine areas that are common targets or themes of school-based action research.
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Rubric
Use the following Rubric to guide your work on the Week 2 Assignment.
Tasks
Action Research –
Lessons from Scholar
Practitioners
Accomplished
Proficient
Needs Improvement
The evidence suggests
that this work is a “Habit of
Mind.” The educator is
ready to mentor others in
this area.
The evidence suggests
that performance on this
work matches that of a
strong educator.
The evidence does not yet
make the case for the
educator being proficient at
this task.
Student selects two of the
interviewed scholars and
clearly answers questions
thoroughly, and for each
selected scholar, the
student identifies at least
one topic for action
research; suggestions for
conducting action
research; and writes a
meaningful reflection on
lessons learned from the
interviews.
Student selects two of the
interviewed scholars and
attempts to answer
questions, but does not
thoroughly address all
three areas addressed in
the activity.
Student only comments on
one interviewed scholar
and does not thoroughly
respond to all areas
addressed in the activity.
(1 Point)
(2 Points)
(3 Points)
Common action research
topics in educational
settings
Student clearly identifies
eight or nine of the text
topics and provides an
example of action research
for each of those 8 or 9
areas, along with
explaining the benefit(s) of
conducting action research
in each of the identified
topics. Student basically
receives a full point for
each topic identified and
providing thorough
responses to each topic.
(8 – 9 Points)
Selecting an Action
Research Topic
Student identifies six or
seven of the text topics
and provides an example
of action research for each
of those 6 or 7 areas,
along with explaining the
benefit(s) of conducting
action research in each of
the identified topics.
Student basically receives
a full point for each topic
identified and providing
responses to each topic.
(6 – 7 Points)
Student follows directions
and provides thorough
responses to the following:
Student responds to only
two of the following
acitivities:
 Identify at least three
 Identify at least three
topics for possible
topics for possible action
Student identifies five or
fewer of the text topics and
provides an example of
action research for each of
those 8 or 9 areas, along
with explaining the
benefit(s) of conducting
action research in each of
the identified topics.
Student basically receives
a full point for each topic
identified and providing
thorough responses to
each topic.
(1 – 5 Points)
Student responds to one
of the following:
 Identify at least three
topics for possible action
research
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
action research
research
 Describe the conference  Describe the conference
with the site
supervisor(s) regarding
topics of interest for
action research
 Describe the topic or
problem agreed upon
for the action research
project.
Assignment Mechanics
with the site
supervisor(s) regarding
topics of interest for
action research
 Describe the topic or
problem agreed upon for
the action research
project.
(3 Points)
(2 Points)
Responses are relevant to
course content; no errors
in grammar, spelling, or
punctuation. Students
demonstrate proper APA
style.
Responses are relevant to
course content; few errors
in grammar, spelling, or
punctuation.
(3 Points)
(2 Points)
ET 8031
 Describe the
conference with the site
supervisor(s) regarding
topics of interest for
action research
 Describe the topic or
problem agreed upon for
the action research
project.
(1 Point)
Responses do not reflect
knowledge of course
content, lack clarity and
depth, and/or include
multiple errors in grammar,
spelling, and punctuation.
(1 Point)
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Week Two Assignment, Part 1 – Action Research Lessons from Scholar Practitioners
Go to Week Two Lectures and watch the interviews with three school leaders who discuss
action research projects and suggestions for conducting action research. The three school
leaders completed their doctorates at Lamar University, and their dissertations are available in
the Lamar library and in the resource section of this course. The three leaders are:

Dr. Johnny Briseno, Principal, Rancho Isabella Elementary, Angleton ISD

Dr. Timothy Chargois, Director of Research, Planning and Development in Beaumont
ISD

Dr. Kirk Lewis, Superintendent, Pasadena ISD
After watching and listening to these three scholar practitioners, select two of them and answer
the following based on the comments from the two interviews you analyzed:
1. Identify the scholars you selected
For each scholar, answer the following:
2. Identify at least one area or topic for action research discussed by each scholar.
3. Describe at least one suggestion or purpose described by each scholar for conducting
action research.
4. Reflect on what you learned from watching and listening to each of these scholars.
Remember if you wish to follow-up on the topics these scholars selected for their action
research, please see their respective dissertations located in the Resource Section of this
course, as well as available with other Educational Leadership dissertations at the Lamar
University library site.
Also, in the Week One Lecture, we discussed an outstanding web resource on action research,
Electronic Textbook - A Blast from the Past: Your Literature Review
E
http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~mid/edr720/class/literature/blast/reading2-1-1.html.
Dr. Mary Dereshiwsky, who served as a consultant and action research scholar, to this course,
shared her web site, and this particular link provides you with insightful information regarding
conducting a literature review, also discussed in the Dana text, Data Collection Strategy 9:
Literature, pp. 93 – 94. This website provides you with guidance in researching what has been
written or published on a particular research topic of interest. The professors strongly suggest
that you examine this website, also referenced in the Resource Section of the Course.
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Workspace
Complete your work on Part 1 of this assignment below. The box will expand as you type.
In the first scholar’s interview, Dr. Johnny Briseno, principal of Rancho Isabella
Elementary school in Angleton ISD, talks about what he does when one of his teachers
comes to him with a problem. He talks about the example of 4th grade students failing
their TAKS test. Briseno says he identifies the problem first with quantitative data then
encourages his teachers to look deeper at the qualitative data that can identify what
other reasons an individual child may be failing such as problems at home. Briseno has
teachers working together during staff development to help one another identify what
works for them and what to expect for certain groups of students. He says that once a
teacher has found an idea that works sharing that information is vitally important for the
group. They can help each other by sharing their findings. Briseno suggests that if a
teacher has a problem, they should not stress over the problem but take a little time to
do some research to see what solutions have been found by others. They should read
articles or look up data on the internet to find a solution that has solved that same
problem. He says, ” there is no need to reinvent the wheel.”
In the second scholar’s interview, Dr.Timothy Chargois, Director of Research, Planning
and Development for Beaumont ISD, talks about a research project in his district that is
being done by The Michael and Susan Dale Foundation which is teaching teachers how
to be data driven. Chargois says that teachers need to use software to look at data to
make predictions and be able to change today and impact student achievement
tomorrow. He says his district is moving towards being a performance management
group, looking at data to change what they do systemically. Chargois suggests that
research should always keep student and staff identity secured and personal
information concealed. If students are involved then you should have parental consent
for that child. In the interview Dr. Chargois also suggest that new up and coming
teachers should not only be trained in pedagogy and content but also in the science of
doing local research. Teachers need to know how to use data to improve and be
accountable for students advancing and increasing their performance.
From the interviews with these three scholars, I see the importance of using data to
change the way teachers deliver instruction. It is vital to see where growth is coming
from to be able to translate that practice to others. Data broadly drives the school as a
whole and narrowly drives individual objectives for particular students. Using research
from other schools or districts can be used to translate the problems and solutions in
similar situations.
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Week Two Assignment, Part 2 – Common Action Research Topics in School Settings
Read chapter two, The Passions That Drive Your Journey, from the Dana text, pp. 29 – 68, and
focus on the following nine areas that the author describes as major wonderings of many school
leaders:
1. Staff development
2. Curriculum development
3. Individual teacher(s)
4. Individual student(s)
5. School culture/community
6. Leadership
7. Management
8. School performance
9. Social justice or equity issues
For each of the identified areas, do the following:

Provide at least one example of action research in each of the nine areas

Describe why this might be an important area for action research in schools
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Workspace
Complete your work on Part 2 of this assignment below. The box will expand as you type.
1. Staff Development – Would allowing time for and encouraging teachers to build
personal connections with teachers in other subject build a broader base for professional
development?
This action research example comes from a need for teachers in my school to get to
know each other to be able to work together, share information, encourage each other
and have a more positive experience in the work place. The first year my school opened
we engaged in cross-curricular planning meetings each week. I had never even met
many of the teachers who taught outside of my subject area before. From this
experience I became aware of different teaching practices, was able to consult with
teachers who had the same students that I taught, and I developed a since of wholeness
about my school. After the first year we unfortunately dropped this practice and I no
longer know many of the teachers in my building. This has caused a lack of
communication and a loss of the sense of wholeness at my school.
2. Curriculum Development - How can the new state standards for 7th grade science be
organized to create a better flow of the material?
While teaching the new TEKS this year I felt like many topics were repeated over and
over again. The rational for this was that we needed to integrate what they are learning
with other topics but it was not thought out and became redundant to the point that
the students were saying, “we’ve learned this already.” I know the students would
benefit from a curriculum that flowed better and integrated topics without repeating
the same material over and over.
3. Individual Teachers – How could pairing teachers with different strengths to mentor
each other benefit both teachers?
All teachers have strengths and weaknesses. Doing a survey could identify what
strengths a teacher feels she has and would like to share. She could also identify her
own weaknesses. A more veteran teacher may be pair with a new teacher just out of
school who has been trained in computer technology. Both teachers would gain
knowledge while helping each other.
4. Individual Students – How can a peer tutoring program increase student performance in
a middle school setting?
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
In the middle school years kids become very aware of their social surrounding. Most
students do not want to call attention to the fact that they may struggle with a content
area. Having students who excel in a content area help a student who is struggling may
ease the tension of a student having to ask a teacher for extra help. Students may feel
more comfortable hearing information from a peer and be more receptive.
5. School Community/Culture – How can a character education program develop a positive
school culture?
In our schools today it is more important than ever to teach good character and model
high standards on moral issues. Students need to be concerned with the well being of
others around them at school and in the world.
6. Leadership – How can a technology leadership team encourage teachers to develop new
technology skills to use in their classrooms?
This would benefit teachers by encouraging them to develop new skills to use
technology in their classrooms and it will benefit the student learning by using more
technology to keep the students engaged in learning.
7. Management – How can student better know when their bus has arrived to make
afternoon dismissal run more smoothly?
This action research can determine better ways to organize and create a better flow of
afternoon dismissal. Students can get on their bus quicker and in a more organized way.
Fewer kids would miss their busses and teachers who have bus duty will get to leave
earlier.
8. School Performance – How can implementing a before school homework help program
increase student achievement at my school?
Instead of students waiting outside once they arrive at school they can go to the library
and work on homework where teachers will be available to tutor. Students will benefit
from making good use of their spare time at school in the mornings.
9. Social Justice – Can a teen leadership board made up of representative of different
cultural backgrounds work together to create unity in a middle school?
This study would benefit the school as a whole in solving social issues between different
cultural groups. It would also help students become more aware of different cultures
and become more accepting of other before reaching the high school years.
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Week Two Assignment, Part 3 – Selecting Action Research Topics
Review your intern plan and identify at least three topics that might appeal to you and your site
supervisor(s) as possible action research projects. Indicate if you have reviewed these topics
with your site supervisor(s). Students may have reviewed the potential action research projects
in the initial conference reviewing the intern plan with the site supervisor(s) in EDLD 5311. If you
have not discussed your top three topics with your site supervisor(s), schedule an interview and
discuss the possibilities of doing your action research project on a mutually agreed upon topic. If
you cannot meet face to face with your site supervisor at this time, select 3 topics or
questions you are considering for your action research project and email or
communicate those to your site supervisor and ask for some feedback. Remember in
Week 4 of this course, we ask that you meet with your site supervisor(s) and try to reach
consensus on an action research topic(s) or question(s). So instead of having two
interviews, you can do the Week Two brainstorming via email or other communication
that is effective for you and your site supervisor and then complete the decision-making
process on the action research project in Week Four.
If you have selected a topic of interest not in your intern plan, be sure to add it to your revised
intern plan, and visit with your site supervisor(s) to make sure this is a topic that can be
researched and supported.
In completing this assignment, do the following:

Identify at least three topics for possible action research

Describe the conference with the site supervisor(s) regarding topics of interest for
action research

Describe the topic or problem agreed upon for the action research project
EDLD 5301 Research
Kristin Bryan
ET 8031
Workspace
Complete your work on Part 3 of this assignment below. The box will expand as you type.
Three possible topics for action research could be:
1. How much cheating goes on while using online assessments and will the implementation of a
secure browser reduce cheating?
2. Would giving teachers the option of what after school training classes they would like to attend
improve the use of technology in my school?
3. Can a teen leadership board made up of student representatives of different cultural
backgrounds work together to create unity in a middle school?
I met with my site mentors, Stephanie Langner and Justin Martindale on Wednesday, April
20 to discuss the topics that I had selected as my possible action research. Both felt like all
three topics could provide our school with data that could be used to improve our school
and ultimately student performance. Mr. Martindale revealed to me the information that
was used to make the decision to implement Respondus as a secure browser and told me
that the data I wanted to collect was not collected on the pilot school that has already used
Respondus. He thought it was a good idea to look at what issues we faced at our campus. I
told him that I wanted to survey the students anonymously to get an idea of how many
students did cheat on online assessment and how they were cheating. I also discussed with
Justin his proposal for professional development of technology. We thought it would be
more advantageous to allow teacher to choose which areas they felt they personally
needed help with. We all felt like this would allow the teacher to take ownership of her new
technology skills and she would be more likely to implement them into her lessons. Mrs.
Langner really liked the idea of a teen leadership board and felt like this really might have
some benefits for unifying the school but had concerns about the timing of the project
being that it was so close to the end of school. This would have to be something that we
could start at the beginning of the school year in August or September. After discussing all
three options we decided that topic #2 would be the most do-able for me. This projects
would allow us to see the benefits of teachers having a say in what they felt like they
needed and wanted to learn. I would survey the teachers first to see what they wanted
and/or needed to learn, I would assist in the technology classes, I would observe how the
teachers implemented the new skill in their classroom, then I would do a follow up survey
to see if the teacher felt more confident in her professional development.
Blog Reflection – Please remember to post at least one reflection or comment regarding
lessons learned from Week Two on your blog.