Action research plan

If my research plan is effective, I will share my strategies with the principal and all of the Reading teachers on the campus. I will use Power Point to present my research plan. First, I will provide background information by stating the number of students I have who did not pass TAKS and how this affects the passing percentage rate at my campus. Next, I will share my implementation plan which will consist of various steps and different forms of data and research. Teachers will fill out surveys so that I can consider different teaching techniques and styles, and  low achieving students will receive mentors. Then, tutorials and pullout programs will begin. I will measure students’ achievement by viewing TAKS scores. Even if the student still fails the TAKS exam, I will look to see if the student made any progress on their grade. For example, if the student made a forty the previous year, I will consider that the student has made progress if he makes a sixty-eight for the current year. Then, I will explain and reveal the progress of my students by providing improved TAKS scores. Finally, I will close my presentation by stating the importance and value of raising students Reading Achievement. This will not only bring success in Reading. Students will perform better in other subjects as their literacy improves. My primary goal is to raise TAKS Reading scores along with student achievement. If my plan turns out to be a great success, I will be very excited and thrilled to share my strategies with the district. I will also check with my Reading supervisor to see if I could share my plan on a professional development day.  

Knowledge of Action Research

     Action research is carried out in a educational setting. A person or group of people make an inquiry or find a problem in the school that needs a solution. This is a major problem or issue that strongly affects the campus. The problem exists within a teacher's classroom, and it is geared toward improving teacher's performance and success. It takes hours of work and hard effort to perform action research. Data, research, decisions, and reflections are all integral components of action research. A teacher can work alone on this project; however, they usually work collaborately with the help of administrators. Sometimes, the entire school can work together to find a solution. The major steps to action research is identifying the problem, collecting and analyzing data, making changes and adjustments (in regards to the data), and evaluating the results. If the results are positive, then the action research efforts were not all in vain. However, if the results are negative, perhaps more research and planning needs to take place. I can use action research to improve my students' skills. I teach Read 180 at my school and several ESL students are placed in there because they have problems translating the text. I decided to do action research geared toward helping them. I will review and analyze their TAKS scores from elementary school until now and research various forms of data to determine what methods work best at developing their literacy and comprehension skills.       
     Educational leaders can use blogs to stay in touch with large groups of people without having face-to-face interactions. They can socialize, listen to concerns, and get ideas from members of their campus and stakeholders. They can also use it as a way to inform people of what is going on at their campus.