Action resarch update

My action research project is in two different phases.  I am currently compiling the data that I have access to and am continuing to gathering some data that is not yet available.  I am waiting for end of year assessments to come in to be able to gather and analyze this data as I look for trends within our school or specific grade levels. Much of the data that I am collected is being discussed during our campus meetings.  I am a member of many of our campus leadership teams.  During our monthly or semi-monthly meetings were are very data driven as we discuss current assessments and the direction that we must move in to get students that are performing low to move forward and gain information as well as acquire new skills.  Other data that is not discussed at these meetings is available for view through our campus drop box account.  We have so much data on our campus that it is impossible to discuss all of it during our meetings together.  Drop box provides us a forum to add assessments to in order to view on an as needed basis. I have utilized this technology as I gather information to move forward with my action research project.  Also, I have begun to have conversations with teachers about trends that they are seeing in their classroom.  The reading recovery teacher on my campus has great documentation and lots of data to look at in regards to struggling students past and current reading levels.  She also has good parent communication and is able to give me very specific details of interventions that parents are assisting with at home.  Our reading recovery teacher provides training for parents (if they are willing to accept it) so that families can be involved with the reading recovery process.  She notes this to very positive in the success of her students.  I am utilizing her knowledge to get ideas of the best way to gather pertinent data from teachers, parents and students.

Action Research Project

Action Research Project

The purpose of this action research is to improve the reading skill of struggling readers at my school. One of the fundamental pieces that I see is that struggling readers start Kindergarten with little to no letter and sound knowledge and must spend the rest of their elementary school years attempting to close the gap and gain grade level skills.   In order for students to be successful in all content areas they must be able to read at or above grade level expectations.  In addition to reading students must also have proper comprehension skills and be able to critically analyze text. This requires a basic understanding of reading as well as knowledge and skills to problem solve when unknown words or terms are used while reading.    I have found that many of my students are lacking these skills in Kindergarten and as I have followed my students over the years, I see that these reading difficulties continue.   These students struggle with reading and this difficulty seems to spill over to all over content areas.   Strong reading skills are necessary to be successful in school.

Teachers are faced with the struggle of teaching students with varying levels of reading ability all at the same time.  One of the biggest challenges is helping those students of lower ability master grade level content knowledge when they continue to lack basic skills.  To do this, teachers must fill in where gaps exist in order for students to gain basic knowledge.  Teachers must work one on one with students to close the gap in reading or solicit the help of other teachers on campus to help with these students.  Finding a way to improve the basic skills of students will allow students to succeed in reading and all other content areas.

In this study, I am trying to discover how to improve the basic reading skills of students at my school.  To do this, I will look specifically for basic skills that are required by the district for a student to be considered on grade level.  I will also investigate what basic skills the students think they lack, or find difficult and how they have compensated for these perceived deficiencies. Lastly, I am interested in finding out what interventions have been given to the struggling students in attempt to get them to read on grade level.

In order to investigate these questions, I will be using our online district data resource. I will get help from my assistant principal to access previous year data.  I will also work with the current third grade teachers to gather data on students’ current reading level and grade level accountability rating.   I will also have conversations with previous years’ teachers and the intervention teachers and reading recovery teachers on my campus.   All data and conversations will be held securely and in confidence to preserve their integrity.

The central question of my action research proposal is, how do student that struggle with reading in Kindergarten perform in 3^rd grade on reading assessments. This question will be answered by collecting and analyzing beginning, middle and end of year reading data for the students while they were in kindergarten, first, second and third grade. I will also have the opportunity to interview students and teachers to discover what skills they lack, and what helps them learn these skills best.  To support the central question, I will use interviews with students to discover what they have done themselves to become better readers. Also through interviews, with both students and teachers, I hope to answer the question of how students feel about reading. I want to know if student success rates have an impact on their desire to read for pleasure.

I look forward to this research providing me with options for how to improve the basic reading skills of my students.  First, I hope to pinpoint exactly what skills the students struggle with and/or lack, and secondly I want investigate how the students learn best and what interventions have been most successful.  Through this research, I hope to find the best way to help my students become successful readers.

                                                           Reflections...
After reading about many other action research projects I have come to the conclusion that I have a lot of work ahead of me.  Action research drives instruction on successful campuses.  I must decide upon a good action research project, collect data and share data with others.  I am excited to get started on my project and I am hopeful that I will gather useful information that will improve the quality of education that my Kindergarten students will receive.

                                                           

                                                          What is Action Research?

            
         You may ask yourself what the difference is between a good teacher and a great teacher.  The answer is research.  Research is needed to collect data and set up the avenue for change. Action research  is a systematic approach to reviewing data, recognizing a problem, implementing a change based on research, and reflecting on the change that has been made. Action research is a process of problem solving led by educators to improve the way they address issues, solve problems strategies and practices.   Fichman refers to inquiry or action research as the process of an administrator getting involved in a systematic form by questioning, collecting, analyzing data, reading related materials and collaborating with others,(Fichman, Nancy Dana (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, pg 2-3.  Teachers are the best source to gather information on students and schools, “when teachers stop growing, so do their students” (Fichman, Nancy Dana (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, pg 32.

            Research is not meant to be done by only one individual. It takes a group of dedicated educators to make the research beneficial and successful. Action research is more relevant to the educational process because you can use the data and to make informed decisions about your school.  This is how teachers learn with and through others.  In other words, an action research plan can help "administrators gain a deeper insight into their practice and their leadership roles in school improvement efforts" (Fichman, 2009).  By being part of the research you take responsibility on the implementation, you interact with those who are affected and you assist with teachers who are involved.   Action research can benefit a school more quickly than an outside approach as unnecessary steps can be avoided and more focus can be directed to finding a custom solution to your  area of need.  Through action research, diagnosing the problem and implementing a solution will allow the administrator hands on approach to finding solutions  to situations within the school. It allows principals and teachers to be involved and take ownership in their research. Action research allows a deeper insight into our practice and leadership roles in school improvement efforts.

                                                              Why Use Action Research? 

               We use action research when we want to change a practice. If you are concerned that things that might not be going as you wish, or you may need to implement a new initiative but are unsure how to do it effectively, action research is the way to go. This is a method to collect and analyzes data to find possible solutions.  Action research allows for changes to be made so there can be improvement.  The goal of an action researcher is to focus in on his or her practice by analyzing existing practice and identifying areas for change. This process is founded on gathering evidence and making informed decisions rather than judgments of practices. One of the most important aspects of action research is that the process enhances teachers’ professional development through gathering information and analyzing it to look for positive outcomes.  In other words, action research involves a continuous cycle of planning, action, monitoring and reflection. From the perspective of action research, the best way to think about practice is the way you carry out your professional actions. This is what you do and why you think you should be doing things the way you do.

            We use action research to do many things on our campus.  We collect data on students RTI and discuss within our grade level teams and school as a whole the interventions that students’ are responding positively to. This data drives our classroom instruction as well as small group instruction within the classroom and in pull out programs.  Without this research the interventions could not be as successful because we would be doing the RTI interventions “blindly” and not knowing what had a more positive response from a particular student.

            Action research is used to collect data on student reading levels.  On our campus we are constantly collecting data and charting the data to see where areas of concerns are.  We chart data by student reading level, ethnicity, economic status and special populations.  The teachers review the data to see trends within our grade level and discuss ideas to make all students successful readers.  We use this data to consult with reading specialist on our campus for intervention ideas. Also, if we see that a particular teacher is overloaded with low readers we split those readers into smaller groups that may require the student to read with another teacher a few days of the week.

            Our entire campus uses action research to come up with a common area of concern each year.  We focus on this goal or area of need for the entire year and collect data within each grade level and each classroom to improve the problem of practice. Periodically throughout the year we meet to discuss the problem of practice and gains or regressions that have been made in the area. We look at student achievement, teacher input and various other instructional aspects to help improve our problem of practice.  This is action research used on our campus in an effective manner.

            I have seen first-hand the positive outcomes of action research.  Action research is a vital part of the success of our school.  I am very excited to be able to lead my own action research project and see what evidence is revealed.

                                                     Why Do Teachers Blog?

          Blogs are powerful communication tool in education.   Blogging provides a format for reading, writing, thinking and reflecting.  It empowers the teacher and student to participate in discussions both in and out of the classroom.  A big part of blogging is being reflective about the topic at hand. When a teacher is blogging he/she is sharing ideas and communicating with an audience.  This forum forces teachers to make sense of their thoughts and further elaborate on topics. Through modeling reflective practice, a blog can create a public community where powerful sharing and communicating can take place.