Revised Action Research Plan

I have revised my plan based on feedback from fellow classmates and my site supervisor.

Action Research
Goal: To increase classroom grades through intervention and evaluation.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Create a teacher evaluation system to be administered to the math students at SJS	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13	Research of successful evaluation techniques	Ask for feedback on survey from teachers and administrators
Create a self-evaluation system using the same criteria as the student evaluation	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13	Research of successful evaluation techniques	Ask for feedback on survey from teachers and administrators
Student evaluation of teachers, the evaluation will ask motivation and implicit/explicit curriculum makers	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13, and will continue for one year at the end of each grading term.	Student Evaluation Survey	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administration. The teachers and administration will only receive a summary of the results.
Self-evaluation of teachers, the evaluation will ask motivation and implicit/explicit curriculum makers	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13, and will continue for one year at the end of each grading term.	Self-Evaluation Survey	Compilation of self-evaluation results shared with administration. Compare self-evaluation to student evaluation.
Small group discussion with most “at-risk” students to see what they need to be successful in their current math class.	Jay Smith	Before end of T6-13	Results from the survey.	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administrators.
Create a system to track student success before/during/after the research process. This system needs to include current and previous grades, previous test results, and student teacher history.	Jay Smith, Registrar, School Counselor	Before end of T5-13	Access to grades, test scores, teachers, and students.	Data to compare and analyze.
Reflection on results	Jay Smith	Ongoing, ending 2013-14 school year.	Student Evaluation Survey	Share with classmates on blog.
Meet with teachers and administration	Jay Smith, Administration, Math Department	Ongoing, ending 2013-14 school year.	Current Student Evaluations	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administration.
Continue to administer the student evaluations at the end of each grading term.	Jay Smith	Ongoing, ending 2013-14 school year.	Student Evaluation Survey	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administration
Continuously update the tracking system as new data arrives.	Jay Smith	Ongoing, ending 2013-14 school year.	Access to grades, test scores, teachers, and students.	Data to compare and analyze.

Action Research Plan

Action Research Plan
Goal: To increase classroom grades through intervention and evaluation.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Create a teacher evaluation system to be administered to the math students at SJS	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13	Research of successful evaluation techniques	Ask for feedback on survey from teachers and administrators
Student evaluation of teachers, the evaluation will ask motivation and implicit/explicit curriculum makers	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13	Student Evaluation Survey	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administration
Small group discussion with most “at-risk” students to see what they need to be successful in their current math class.	Jay Smith	Before end of T6-13	Results from the survey.	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administrators.
Create a system to track student success before/during/after the research process. This system needs to include current and previous grades, previous test results, and student teacher history.	Jay Smith	Before end of T5-13	Access to grades, test scores, teachers, and students.	Data to compare and analyze.
Continue to administer the student evaluations at the end of each six-week term.	Jay Smith	Ongoing	Student Evaluation Survey	Compilation of the comments and findings to present to teachers and administration
Continuously update the tracking system as new data arrives.	Jay Smith	Ongoing	Access to grades, test scores, teachers, and students.	Data to compare and analyze.

Data, Data, Data...

I know how important it is to have the needed data to fully understand a problem, but I never fully understood the quantity of data that is available. I started to plan my action research and found not only articles about my topic but fully papers already written on the subject. My site supervisor was very supportive of my topic and I am ready to start the research with my students.

How Educational Leaders Might Use Blogs

Blogging can be an informative and fulfilling activity. Educators can share information with fellow education and find out how other educators are completing similar tasks. Not only are you able to see what others are doing your fellow educators are able to comment our your posts and help provide the needed feedback for growth. 

What Is Action Research? How Will I Use It?

Action research is an form of research that asks the administrator to think about what they are doing and what they need to change based on that research. In administrative inquiry the administrator must ask a question that is open ended and has a quantitative component. The administrator would need to look at themselves and reflect on their actions and make the necessary changes to improve the situation and answer the specific question. I believe this form of research will be more successful than traditional research since you must look at what you are doing and how you can correct or change the situation. I plan to use this method of research to help improve the math department on my campus. To accomplish this task I will review Iowa Test of Basic Skills scores for the current underclassmen on my campus. Each student will complete a teacher evaluation and the data will be shared, anonymously, with the teacher. I believe that this additional data will help to teacher see how he or she can better assist the students. I plan to complete the evaluations each six-weeks along with small focus groups for both low and high performing students. Over that past few years the department has continued to decline and I believe that the teachers are innovating to engage the different types of learners in their classes.