Before
beginning this course, EDLD 5301 Research, I had no idea what to expect.
I had heard horror stories of how it was going to be the toughest class
yet. I was nervous yet eager at the same time to begin this class. However, I have learned abundance in this
course. Prior to taking it, I had no idea what an action research entailed,
even though I was aware of the term. The books, lectures, blogs, and discussion
boards have been particularly helpful during the entire duration of the course
and in my current action research on the affect extracurricular activities have
on students’ grades, tardies, and referrals.
The two books we used, “Leading with
Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher” by Nancy Dana
Fichtman and “Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools: 8 Steps from
Analysis to Action” by Sandra Harris, Stacey Edmonson, and Julie Combs both
contain a wealth of information on anything that pertains to conducting action
research. However, Harris et al.'s book is the more real-world one as it
provides an actual outline for conducting action research. As the title
suggests, it names eight steps in a school improvement action research. Put
another way, it takes a more systematic method to reflection and clearly
outlines everything involved in action research. If I were to focus just one
thing, it would be the “CARE Model Planning Tool.” This tool provides a clear
and usable framework for planning for school improvement (Dana, 2009).
Another thing I have benefited from is
blogging. Reading and participating in discussions in my classmates' blogs has
allowed for an informal conversation where we did not have to worry about
citations and APA format which led to an exchange of ideas, suggestions and
recommendations. The discussion boards for this course also contributed to the
exchange of advantageous comments used to create our action research plan. It
also helped that the discussion prompts were more reflective and did not
involve the summary of the text, while helpful in gaining a deeper connection
with our resources, does not really contribute to our own action research. There
were three suggestions from my blog that I applied to my own action research.
In closing, I have found this course to
be helpful and relevant to my professional career, and one that will help me
develop into an outstanding administrator in the near future.
