Action Research

ACTION RESEARCH

Overview

Action Research has its origin in the works of the social psychologist Kurt Lewin (1946). He developed the ideas of group decision and commitment to improvement at work situations (classroom and administrative). It is an act of analysing a situation leading to certain action for improvement and evaluating the result of the tried out action. Action research is focussed on immediate application. It places the emphasis on the problem here and now, in a school setting. Its findings are to be evaluated in terms of local applicability and improvement in school practices. The whole purpose of Action Research is to involve classroom teachers to attempt to solve their classroom problems. A Conceptual Analysis Action research is a form of self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in serial situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own social or educational practices, as well as their understanding of practices and the situations in which these practices are carried out. Groups of participants can be teachers, students, principals, parents and other community members. In education, action research has been employed in school based curriculum development, professional development, school improvement programmes and systems planning and policy development (for example, in relation to policy about classroom rules, school policies, about non-competitive assessment, and state policies about the conduct of school improvement programmes.) The idea of linking of terms “action” and “research” highlights the essential feature of the approach: trying out ideas in practice as a means of improvement and as a means of increasing knowledge about curriculum, teaching and learning. The result is improvement in what happens in the classroom and school. Action research provides a way of working which links theory and practice into one whole: ideas-in-action. Reflective practices seeks to make sense of processes, problems, issues, and constraints made available in strategic action. It takes account of the variety of perspectives, possible in the social situation and comprehends the issues and circumstances in which they arise. Refection leads to the reconstruction of the meaning of a situation and provides the basis for the revised plan. Reflection has evaluative aspect- it asks action researchers to weigh their experience – to judge whether effects and issues which arose were desirable, and suggest ways of proceeding.

Definition

According to Stephen Corey (1953) “Action Research must be taken up by those who may have to change the way they do think as a result of the study singly and in groups. They must use their imagination and creativity constructively to identify the practices that must be changed to meet the needs and demands of modern life, courageously try out those practices that give better promise and methodically and systematically gather evidence to test their worth.” Mouly is of the opinion that Action Research is an “on the spot research aimed at the solution of an immediate classroom problem.” Kurt Lewin says, “Action Research is applying scientific thinking to real life problems (classroom problems for teachers) and represents a great improvement over teacher’s subjective judgments and their limited personal experiences.” According to Hammersley, 1993 (p.237)... Action researches are small scale and narrowly focused researches undertaken by teachers in a given context. It has also been refered to as research into practice by practitioners, for practitioners.

Scope of Action Research

Action research is focused on immediate application, not on the development of a theory, not upon general application. It has placed its emphasis on a problem here and now in a local setting. Many Action Research projects are carried out in a classroom by a single teacher. As it becomes more extensive it becomes more similar to other types of educational research. The emphasis is Action Research, not on obtaining generalisable scientific knowledge about educational problems but on obtaining knowledge concerning a specific local problem.

The function of action research therefore, is to combine the research function with teacher growth in such qualities as objective thinking, skill in research processes, ability to work harmoniously with others and develop professional spirit. Quite often, many teachers will not have the time, resources, or technical background to engage in formal research activity but more teachers can be involved in action research activity and model studies may be undertaken for the purpose of trying to improve local classroom practices.

Key points

Characteristic features of Action Research 1.     It is situational 2.     It is a reflective inquiry 3.     It is based on scientific approach 4.     It is a scientific way of Solving Problems 5.     It is a small scale intervention 6.     It is a way to find remedies to overcome obstacles in learning 7.     It provides avenues for the teachers to be innovative 8.     It is a unified exercise to bridge the gap between theory and practice 9.     It is a way to develop self confidence in teachers 10.It is self-evaluative

Let us differentiate them…

The difference between the fundamental or basic research and action research can be summarized as given below against certain criteria.

Difference Between Basic Research and Action Research
Criteria	Basic Research	Action Research
Objectives	Develop and test educational theory and derive generalizations.	To find solutions to problems in a specific context.
Training	Intensive training is needed in Research Methodology.	Limited training is needed.
Selection of a problem	A wide range of methods are used to select a problem.	Participating teacher identify problems during the teaching-learning processes.
Hypothesis	Highly specific hypotheses are developed.	Specific statement of the problem serves as hypotheses.
Review of Literature	An exhaustive and thorough review of literature is required.	No such thorough review of literature is needed.
Sample	Considerably large sample size is required.	Students studying in the class of a teacher forms sample.
Experimental Design	Well thought experimental design is developed to maintain comparable conditions and reducing error and bias.	Procedures are planned only in general terms.
Analysis of Data	Complex analysis is often called for.	Simple analysis procedures are usually sufficient.
Conclusions	Conclusions may be in the form of generalizations and developing theories.	Findings are local specific.
Application of results	The generalizations have broad applicability	Findings are used immediately in the classroom situations by participating teachers to improve their own practices

Four issues in which action research is different

1.     It is not the usual thing teachers do when think about their teaching. Action research is more systematic and collaborative in collecting evidence on which to base rigorous group reflection.

2.     It is not simply problem solving. Action research involves problem –solving, not just problem solving. It motivated by a quest to improve and understand the word by changing it and learning how to improve it from the effects of changes made.

3.     It is not research done on other people. Action research is research by particular people on their own work, to help them improve what they do, including how they work with and for others. Action research treats people as autonomous, responsible agents who participate actively in making their own practices to be more effective. It does not treat people as objects for research , but encourages people to work together as knowing subjects and agents of change and improvement.

4.     It is not ‘ the scientific method’ applied to teaching. Action research is not just about hypotheses-testing or about using data to come to conclusions. Action research is not just about hypotheses-testing or about using data to come to conclusions. Action research is concerned with changing situations, not just interpreting them like in historical sciences. Action research is systematically evolving, a living process changing both the researcher and the situations in which he/she acts; neither the natural sciences nor the historical sciences have their double aim.

Reflection

Are there Steps in Action Research? 1.     Identification of the problem 2.     Pin-pointing the problem 3.     Diagnosing the causes of the problems 4.     Formulation of action hypothesis 5.     Designing the action plan 6.     Implementation of the action programme Implementation of the action program Do you agree with these steps as necessary for an action research? Think it over