week 5 reflections

This class was very informative. When I started this class I was worried about
what it was going to be like because my definition of research was linked to the
old definition where someone else learned something that I read about and then
tried to fit into my situation. This class taught me that instead, research, "focuses
on the concerns of practitioners and engages practitioners in the design, data
collection, and interpretation of data around their question." (Dana, 2009, p.5) The
lectures were helpful in setting the stage for how to proceed with the research
plan. I really enjoyed the fact that the lectures stated what each step was
to doing the research. This made me more confident that I was completing the
assignment correctly. Also, the lectures spelled out expectations for
assignments. This was great because it helped me to identify what I needed to do
on my assignment.
The readings for this class were also helpful. The Dana book was helpful because
it started out by first identifying the definition of action research along with
identifying examples of action research that takes place. This was helpful in
helping to assuage any fears that I had about the project because it helped me
understand that I am already doing research in my current position, but that I was
going to learn to do it better and more effectively. The section of the book about
collecting data was also helpful. There were many ideas of ways that data can be
collected. This was helpful because some of the data collection methods I had
not thought of before reading this book. How to share my research was helpful
because since this is something new to me, I had not considered all of the
methods of informing others about what I learn in my research. This will help me
to share my research more effectively and to do a better job of doing so. The
quality indicators in the Dana text were helpful because they gave me ideas of
questions that I can ask at all stages of my research in order to ensure that my research is done effectively and without bias. Also, I can use these quality
indicators whenever I approach some research to judge whether or not it is
reliable and trustworthy to use in my learning as a leader.
The Harris text was helpful because it went through the steps of research. I have
gone through this type of process before with the SMART goals team, but I really
liked this book because it took the process step by step. I especially liked this
book because of the many resources in the book. The templates were great for
planning out my research plan. It made it easier to plan what needed to be done
and to follow the steps. Also, the different strategies for continuing in growth
were very helpful. It was great to learn about these strategies. I plan on using
them when I do this action research plan as well as others. I think they will be
invaluable in making sure that my plan is a success.
In this class I also did many searches on topics. I searched early literacy, parental
involvement, and I also searched teaching English Language Learners. All of
these searches helped to peak my interest on these subjects. I found some
interesting websites and articles that helped me to learn a little bit more about
each one of these topics. I learned about some great resources that are available
on these topics that I can use in the future.
I think I learned the most from the assignments that I did for this class. I learned
how to create an action plan that is sequential and included all of the important
components of a good action plan. I think this will help me in the future to not feel
apprehensive when it comes to doing research projects. I will already have
experience writing plans and developing them.
The discussion board and the blogs were the second most helpful thing about
this class. It allowed me to have a place to be reflective about what I was doing
and to express my thoughts and feelings about what I was learning. I liked the
fact that I could receive feedback from classmates about topics on the discussion
board. It validated my thoughts and helped me to see things that I might not have
seen or thought about before. The blog was a different way for me to reflect and
still is available for me and people of like topics to share what we learn and
bounce ideas off of each other. I look forward to using the blog throughout my
action research to improve my project. Overall, I learned a great deal about action
research in this class that I intend to continue as I do my own action research
projects during my career as an educator.

Dana, Nancy Fichtman (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as action Researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.