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Action research: A qualitative study of educators in a collaborative inquiry process

DeLoris A Tonack, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Abstract

Critics of educational reform efforts accuse educators of reinventing the pedagogical wheel of education rather than creating, implementing and modifying new theories and structures for instruction. Teachers are often credited with having the essential power to instigate that change and discredited for not having done so. Visions are present but implementation vehicles appear lacking. This is an investigation of a process called action research and its potential to instigate teacher change in practice and insights into practice. Specifically, this is a study of twenty-two teachers from two different midwestern school sites as they conducted research investigations of self-identified issues during the second semester of the school year. Most of the teacher-researchers grouped themselves into collaborative teams and all participants at each site met periodically to support and assist each other in their efforts. One site involved a teaming of novice and veteran teachers. While researching the project, the dissertation researcher also acted as facilitator of the process. The findings of this study supported many of the acclamations given to action research by advocates from the United States, Britain, and Australia. Teachers and students became empowered and excited by the relevance, ownership, and practicality of the process and results. The same principles of learning that educators understand to be important in instructing students--constructivism, learning by doing, and relevance--surfaced as key components of action research and reinforcers of the process. Challenges exist in the action research process conducted by teachers. Practitioner research is sometimes discounted for lacking rigor and quality. Teachers are also confronted with dual and possibly conflicting roles of teacher and researcher. Time and expectations are other factors influencing the potential of action research as a change agent. Questions continuously before advocates and opponents of the process include the purpose, the direction, and the institutionalization of the process.

Subject Area

Curricula|Teaching

Recommended Citation

Tonack, DeLoris A, "Action research: A qualitative study of educators in a collaborative inquiry process" (1993). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9333986.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9333986

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