Action Research

Action Research

1. The nature

   • conducted by a teacher, administrator, or other education professional to solve a problem at the local level
   • each of the specific methods of research can be used in action research studies, although on a smaller scale
   • a given research question may often be investigated by any one of several methods
   • some methods are more appropriate to a particular research question and/or setting than other methods

2. Assumptions underlying action research

   • the participants have the authority to make decisions, want to improve their practice, are committed to continual professional development, and will engage in systematic inquiry

3. Types

   • practical research addresses a specific local problem
   • to empower participants or bring about social change

4. Level of participation

   • can range from giving information to increasingly greater involvement in the various aspects of the study

5. Steps

   • 1. Identifying the problem 2. gathering the necessary data 3. analyzing and interpreting the data 4. sharing the results 5. developing an action plan

6. Advantages

   • can be done by anyone in anywhere of any problem, can help to improve educational practice, help education to improve their craft, can help to identify problems systematically, can build up a small community of research-oriented individuals at the local level

7. Sampling

   • researchers are most likely to choose a purposive sample

8. Threats to internal validity

   • suffer from the possibility of data collector bias, implementation, and attitudinal threats

9. External validity

   • it's weak in external validity and replication is essential in these studies