Action Research Update!!

So far I have met with administrators to discuss the ipad initiative at length.  To get a feel for what the curriculum looks like with the ipads I have looked at the programs myself.  I have also developed a survey that will be sent out to teachers and to parents to determine the perceived effectiveness of the program on student enganement and achievement. The survey will also question the willingness of the teachers to participate in the program fully, even though it means learning new software, new language, and spending extra time preparing lessons so that they are comfortable with the apps and programs before they present the material to their students.  This survey will be handed out closer to the semeseter, when all of the newer teachers have had time to get used to the program.  Another step I have taken is to disaggregate all of the state and district assessment data from the last two years at our school.  I am particularly interested in following the same group of kids for 2 years to guage their scores before they began with the ipads and to measure growth across the time they have had the ipads.  So far it looks like the scores last year were higher for the same group of kids in math and science.  I am curious to see how the scores from this year will grow or change.  I am working with the counselor as well as administration to guage the overall effectiveness of the program.  There are a lot of variables to consider, and I hope that I am able to paint an accurate portrait of whether or not spending that extra money was worth it in the long run. 

For some reason my Action Planning Table showed up BLANK last week!  Let's try this again...

:) Have a good week, y'all!

Action Planning Template
Goal: Does the addition of iPads into the everyday routine of classroom instruction have a positive effect on student Math and Science test scores?
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Disaggregate data from 2011-2012 3rd graders including STAAR scores, classroom grades and district assessment.	Campus Principal, Assistant Principal, Counselor, Rachel Hayes	May 2013	2012 3rd grade Math STAAR scores, 2011-2012 District assessment scores in Math and Science	Document overall scores of 3rd graders in 2011-2012. Note deficits in specific objectives from each subject area.
Collect scores (District Assessment, STAAR, classroom grades) from 2012-2013	Campus Principal, Assistant Principal, Counselor, Rachel Hayes	August 2013	2013 4th grade Math STAAR scores, 2012-2013 district assessment scores in Math and Science.	Document overall scores of 4th graders in 2012-2013. Note deficits in specific objectives from each subject area.
Compare District assessment scores, STAAR scores and classroom grades from 3rd graders in 2011-2012 to data from same assessments from 4th graders in 2012-2013.	Counselor, Rachel Hayes	September 2013	Scores/data from both school years. Chart to provide side by side comparison of both years data.	Compare scores of both years, paying special attention to the areas of deficit from first year.  Were there improvements in those specific areas?
Draw a conclusion based on data compared and collected as to whether or not iPad integration was effective.	Campus Principal, Rachel Hayes	September 2013	Charted Math STAAR scores, District Assessment scores, and classroom grades from both years.	Conclude results of research to determine if iPads are an effective instructional tool that will assist in improving student performance.

I finished my action research plan this week... I like how it is coming together and what started as several ideas has become one completely workable research project.  I am now looking forward to gathering all of the data and realizing the effect of iPads on instruction.  It will be exciting to share my results once I am done!

Here is my plan so far:

Action Planning Template
Goal: Does the addition of iPads into the everyday routine of classroom instruction have a positive effect on student Math and Science test scores?
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Disaggregate data from 2011-2012 3rd graders including STAAR scores, classroom grades and district assessment.	Campus Principal, Assistant Principal, Counselor, Rachel Hayes	May 2013	2012 3rd grade Math STAAR scores, 2011-2012 District assessment scores in Math and Science	Document overall scores of 3rd graders in 2011-2012. Note deficits in specific objectives from each subject area.
Collect scores (District Assessment, STAAR, classroom grades) from 2012-2013	Campus Principal, Assistant Principal, Counselor, Rachel Hayes	August 2013	2013 4th grade Math STAAR scores, 2012-2013 district assessment scores in Math and Science.	Document overall scores of 4th graders in 2012-2013. Note deficits in specific objectives from each subject area.
Compare District assessment scores, STAAR scores and classroom grades from 3rd graders in 2011-2012 to data from same assessments from 4th graders in 2012-2013.	Counselor, Rachel Hayes	September 2013	Scores/data from both school years. Chart to provide side by side comparison of both years data.	Compare scores of both years, paying special attention to the areas of deficit from first year.  Were there improvements in those specific areas?
Draw a conclusion based on data compared and collected as to whether or not iPad integration was effective.	Campus Principal, Rachel Hayes	September 2013	Charted Math STAAR scores, District Assessment scores, and classroom grades from both years.	Conclude results of research to determine if iPads are an effective instructional tool that will assist in improving student performance.

1. SETTING THE FOUNDATION –

Set up meetings with principal, counselor and Assistant principal to discuss the issue of determining effectiveness of iPad use during daily math and science instruction.

2. ANALYZING DATA –

Use multiple sources of data such as STAAR math test results, District Assessment results in math and science, formative and summative assessments in math and science, and classroom grades in math and science.

3. DEVELOPING DEEPER UNDERSTANDING –

Conduct meetings with stakeholders to determine if the research is going as planned, and if there are any areas that need to be looked into on a deeper level. 

 

4. ENGAGE IN SELF-REFLECTION –

I will ask questions of myself,the program and my site supervisors during the time of research such as:

-Are there teachers who use the iPads more consistently than others?

-Are all of the teachers using the same apps for instruction?

-How independent are the students when using the programs?  Are they working in groups, or partners? Are all of the students having equal amounts of iPad time?

 

5. EXPLORING PROGRAMMATIC PATTERNS –

After meeting with my site supervisor, counselor and assistant principal and going through the self reflection phase, I will make a more clear and concise research plan and anticipate results.

 

6. DETERMINING DIRECTION –

I am clear about the direction of my research.  Because the iPads have been in place for this entire school year,  I will be able to effectively meet the timeline I have set for myself.  As the timeline progresses and I continue to meet with the stakeholders in the projects, I will reevaluate specific direction as needed.

7. TAKING ACTION FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT

After taking the above steps, I will develop a written plan to continue to guide my project. I will use Tool 7.1 to assist in the development of written plan.

8. SUSTAIN IMPROVEMENT

When I am able to determine the results of my research, I will use the data to push either for or against continued iPad usage on our campus.  If the results show that iPads are helping to improve scores and performance in math and science, I will work with teachers and principals on my campus to determine how the iPad usage can be beneficial for ELA/social studies as well.  How can our campus achieve the maximum benefits from iPads being available to all of our students, and what are the limitations of them in the different subject areas. 

Week 2 Action Research- What I learned

This week I've learned that Action Research can be done on pretty much any topic that is applicable to an administrator.  It is interesting to see the way research is an everyday part (or should be) of the life of a principal.  The 9 areas of passion were so easily applicable to my campus, as well as my previous campuses where I have taught.  I was moved to elementary school last year from middle school, and now that I have begun this administrative process, I am so grateful for the 2 years of elementary experience.  I am able to take these topics of passion and relate them to not only one setting, but to 3 different socio/economic backgrounds, different school cultures and different curriculums.  I think I mentioned this last time, but I see more and more how action research is something good teachers have done in their classrooms all along, just put into a more refined and specific process.  The areas of passion help the administrator to narrow the topic down even more so that it makes it easier to focus on a specific area he/she wishes to address.  From the videos... I enjoed seeing how research is viewed so similarly between districts with such different makeups.

I'm looking forward to finalizing my area of research and getting started on the data collection process!

Action Research Week 1

What I've learned about action research and how I may be able to use it:

Action Research is something that I think all good educators engage in unwittingly; thinking about a problem in a critical area of instruction/process, researching the problem, collaborating with others who are may be involved or have insight into the situation, and creating a contextual solution that in the end, enhances student performance and learning outcomes.  In all actuality, action research could be used in other contexts besides education, however, in the educational setting it is a process that that is reflective, evaluative, and helps build on prior experiences to grow and change as an educator or administrator.  I appreciate the term "administrative inquiry" used in the Dana text.  Making an inquiry into a topic is much more accurate than doing "research" in a library or based on those studies from outside organizations.  The people who know the most about the topic being researched are those who are there in the trenches everyday, carrying out those best practices and witnessing the results of changes first hand.  I imagine that it must be satisfying as an administrator to evaluate and reflect upon practices during a school year, collaboratively create programs to address problems and then watch them come to fruition through your own campus.

I'll be able to use this currently during my internship to assess the needs of my campus and improve on an area I feel is a critical need for my school.  One of the areas I've begun to look into is vertical alignment between subject levels, especially in 3rd through 5th grade.  It is very common for the grade level teams to stay independent and not communicate with each other about strategies they are teaching from year to year  in order to make things more cohesive for the students as they move from one grade to the next.

Blogs:

Educational leaders should be able to use blogs in many contexts.  They could use it as a forum for teachers to discuss and provide feedback on classroom and campus ideas.  Also as a reflective practice it could be used monthly or weekly to give recognition to the positive things that happened on campus during that time period or maybe pose ideas for improvement.  A blog could definitely be used for a campus wide action research plan as well.  Because sometimes there is such a time constraint, it could be used as a tool to communicate about the progress of an action research project, and again as a place for teachers to give constructive feedback about the project as well.