Week 2 Reflections

After reviweing my peers research topics for this course and discussing matters with my principal I decided to completely change my action research topic. I switched from the overly broad topic of how parental involvement can be increased at my school through the study of habits of parents from other countries to the smaller and more manageble topic over homework. How can we re-vamp our homework policy in a way that will increase the completion rate of homework and the daily grades in our school? This topic is one that we have already began delving into at our school and one that my principal would like us to continue focusing on. Incomplete homework is a huge discipline problem at our campus. We feel that there must be better ways to handle the situation than simply filling out discipline referrals. If we increase homework completion it is thought that our students grades will improve as well as their mastering of concepts (especially in math and language arts). I am excited to begin the journey of finding data and discussing with my colleagues our newest action research plan for the year.

Educational Leaders Analysis

Educational leaders can use blogs in a plethora of ways. For instance, we can use it as a way to hook our students into writing. They could also use it as a way to communicate campus progression to their key stakeholders. It can also be used as a way for leaders to reflect and remember past situations for themselves as well as their colleagues.

Action Research

I suppose it would be easier to discuss what Action Research is not. Action Research is not spending hours upon hours in a library or in front of a computer researching facts about a person, place, or thing. It is not spending a ridiculous amount of time filling in primary and secondary note cards with quotes from books, journals, or internet sources about the said topic. Action Research is used to pin point what needs are not being met and then coming up with practical solutions to making sure that the needs are met. In order for a Action Research to actually be useful one must decide upon factors that determine the effectiveness of the solutions. As with most school information it should be data driven in order to produce the most effective results. Reflection is absolutely of the utmost importance in an Action Research plan. Time should be allotted each day (if possible) in order to reflect on the progression of things. Also, collaboration and input from fellow colleagues and those who are, for lack of better words, 'in the trenches' is highly valuable. Overall, Action Research is a way for people to take a problem by the horns and change the negatives to positives. Things may not completely change, but as they say anything is better than nothing.