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Building Your Research Base
As your
action research project progresses,
you may find it helpful to continue searching the literature in order to
build your research base, fine-tune your action plan, or to
increase your understanding of the data you are gathering.
During your action
research study, you may find that you would like to delve a little deeper
into the strategy you have chosen for implementation or the philosophy
underlying your teaching decisions. Now that your project is underway,
a continued search of the literature may help you to continue expanding your
rationale for selecting your targeted strategy. |
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For example: Perhaps you
started
an action research project on the use of response journals as a way of
improving your students’ understanding and appreciation of science. Now, in
the middle of your study, you realize that something “magical” is happening
as your students express their personal reactions to the experiments they
are performing and the topics they are exploring. You decide to read more
about “response theory” to learn why your students seem to be learning more
even though you have been requiring less memorization! |
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Fine-Tuning Your Action
Plan
You are implementing your chosen strategy, but now you are running into some
problems. Things are not working out as you had anticipated. A
continued search of the literature may reveal possible modifications to
consider as you try making adjustments to fit your students’ unique needs.
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For
example:
You are using Literature Circles as a means
of fostering lively discussions and improving understanding in your gifted
Social Studies class. Your students initially enjoyed the novelty of this
approach, but now they are becoming bored with “the same old routine.” A
search of the literature may help you answer questions like the following:
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Am I over-using this
strategy?
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What approaches have other
teachers used with this strategy?
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Are there other roles that my
students can take on besides the ones I have been using so far?
What follow-up
activities can I add to make my students more accountable for their lit
circle discussions?
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