"Action researchers" are real-life problem-solvers who collaborate interactively in projects. As the activities of these researchers are often not documented well, in your opinion, how should their efforts be evaluated and valued?
I am not sure their actions can be evaluated under the current academic standards. Not only is it not appreciated and discouraged but publication is impossible. The real value will come from the public and not from academia. It is not the best way, I know, but currently I see no alternatives.
I am not sure their actions can be evaluated under the current academic standards. Not only is it not appreciated and discouraged but publication is impossible. The real value will come from the public and not from academia. It is not the best way, I know, but currently I see no alternatives.
Value based outcome is one of the best ways to evaluate action researchers
Hi Amir, thanks for the question. I do action research and it facilitates the learning of my students. I'm happy about this.
But it's not easy to find journals that publish action research. When I read certain journals, most articles are written in a conventional manner. The writers of the articles acknowledge scholarships and paid leave from work. Such benefits are not available to teachers/ lecturers who do action research on the job, and who sacrifice a lot of time! I hope that it's not just our students who value the teachers carrying out action research.
It is an interesting topic Amir, since it generally refers to the "state". If this topic is defined to be resolved by academia then rest assured we will never get positive solutions and values to put on these type of researchers. In academic environment as the most part, it is the case if you define your project based on the sponsor's interest. it is really doesnt show the originality of the proposed research or its applicability. "Action researchers" are those real observers of the problem and they could determine the original research which will be helpful for the society interest. Then In my opinion it is the state's duty to attract these people and support them for the sake of improvement in social problems.
I don't quite agree with the premise that action research goes undocumented. There are certainly journals in my field (education) that publish AR and journals that really specialise in this field: such as the Journal of Educational Action Research and a journal called Reflective Practice. It probably depends on your area of expertise. So, I would suggest that if you are involved in AR that you look at the pedagogical perspective and aim for journals in Education.
Finally, I would ask, 'Can we really call anything "research" if it is not documented in some form (journals, technical reports, conferences)?' AR is a legitimate type of research and work in this area should be published.
Yes Erik, I should have said that there aren't many journals publishing action research in my country. But recently I attended a conference and met the committee members of 1 such journal. I have sent them an article for consideration, just yesterday!
According to A. Christine Miller, action research is a natural part of teaching. Teachers are continually observing students, collecting data and changing practices to improve student learning and the classroom and school environment. Action research provides a framework that guides the energies of teachers toward a better understanding of why, when, and how students become better learners. There are Five Phases of Action Research:
1. Selecting an area or focus
• Identifying an area of interest
• Focus on students
• Look at both immediate and cumulative effects
2. Collecting data
• Collect existing archival data
• Use additional multiple data sources
• Collect data regularly
• Promote collective ownership of data
• Monitor data collection
3. Organizing data
• Count instances, events, and artifacts
• Display data in tables and charts
• Arrange data by classroom, grade level, and school
• Organize for analysis
4. Analyzing and interpreting data
• Analyze and question the data as a professional collective
• Decide what can be celebrated and what needs attention
• Determine priority area(s) for action
5 Studying the professional literature
• Identify professional literature that relates to or matches the interest
• Gather research reports, research syntheses, articles, videotapes, etc.
• Analyze and interpret these materials for understanding and action
• Determine the most promising actions
According to the above, action research is a very specific type of research in the field of education and for this reason, to consider any particular activity as research it should follow the common methodology used in order to present it for publication. This means defining the specific type of research you are going to carry out, the objective and scope, the main outcome, the scientific methodology to be used for collecting data, how your going to present this data, etc.
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