Inquiry Develops in Week 2

As I seek to make inquiry a lifestyle, I am learning, first of all, to look for areas that would benefit from research. I believe this is a critical step in becoming an action researcher. The awareness is the initial phase in a process of looking at what is happening and determining whether it is effective or needs improvement. As I look at areas of action research, I am becoming more aware of myself, my job, my campus, and how we are, or are not, helping students to be successful learners.

Of the nine areas of passion cited as research possibilities (Dana, 2009), I am currently considering all but one. From Staff Development, Curriculum Development, Individual Students, School Culture/Community, Leadership, Management, School Performance, and Social Justice, I have narrowed the focus down to Individual Students, School Culture/Community, and Management. Though I discovered I have a passion about each of the areas cited, I believe that some of the biggest needs on my campus are found in these three areas. I will share more about the questions I am considering later.

You Too Can Blog

I would like to encourage educational leaders to use blogs as a means of journaling for self-reflection, sharing ideas with others, and modeling. According to Nancy Fichtman Dana, journals or weblogs help you to capture your own thinking over time, which “can lead to critical insights into your administrative practice, insights that may only occur when you revisit a thought or when you string a number of thoughts together that have come to you intermittently over a longer period of time.”

It makes me a little uneasy to share my thoughts with the World Wide Web, but if I can do so, you can, too. You may have ideas that others are just waiting to read!

Dana further states that utilizing blogs is also one way of modeling the love of writing for students. It does not take a great deal of time, but the benefits for students will be well-worth it.

Dana, Nancy Fichtman, (2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher. California: Corwin, A Sage Company. (88)

Beginning the Inquiry Process

Action research as a means of self-reflection and improvement is a new concept for me. As I learn about the various phases, from inquiry to reflection - including data collection and analysis, followed by continuous improvements - I am very interested in making it part of my own professional development.

As the coordinator for our Pre-K Early Start Grant, I look forward to utilizing action research and encouraging our teachers to do the same. We begin the second year of our grant in 2010, and the data collected from Beginning of Year (BOY) kindergarten assessments will help us to evaluate our effectiveness in 2009 and begin the inquiry based on that data. Further collection and analysis of data from those students’ pre-kindergarten year will help us to determine more specifically which areas to address for the current pre-kindergarten students.

Following BOY kindergarten assessments, pre-k teachers will also assess 2010 pre-k students and use data to plan small group instruction. During the fall semester teachers will continually use observations, student portfolios, and checklists to monitor progress and address needs. Small groups will be flexible in order to accommodate the learners. Middle of Year assessments will indicate progress and needs, at which time teachers will make further adjustments to their small groups and instruction. As we determine specific needs of students, teachers and I will search for improved methods to meet those needs.

The assessment/data steps have been in place during our first grant year; and in most classes, improvement in instruction has followed. The new step for most of us will be the reflection phase, where we intentionally look at results of the improved instruction to determine if additional improvements are necessary.

Finally, I will be utilizing action research to look at my own leadership. In the past year, I found myself trying to keep up with the demands of teaching students, facilitating meetings, meeting the needs of a new off-campus teacher, keeping track of records and materials, as well as being the sounding board for all of our team. In 2010, I plan to build on the experience of our first year by taking time to journal, evaluate, problem-solve and reflect on the efficiency of my work.