Action Reserch Plan

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Action Research Plan
Goal: Will implementing a math workshop approach help students that are on or above level make a full year worth of growth and improve the percentage of students who will achieve the advanced level on the  state standardized test?
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Evaluate students current level of instruction based on prior years end of year assessments	Lindsey Keen and Instructional coach	Before school starts Aug. 2013	2nd Grade End of year Assessments, prior year teachers feedback	Through evaluating the EOY assessments from 2nd grade, I will identify my targeted small group of students.
Place students in small, leveled groups based on areas they need specific instruction and determine the specific group I will be collecting data on.	Lindsey Keen	September 2013	EOY assessments and specific SE	I will know that this step is complete when I have a group of students with like instructional needs that are in my targeted range.
Create scope and sequence that is specific to the needs of each group weekly Create higher level stations during the math block	Lindsey Keen and instructional coach Lindsey Keen/Grade level team/Instructional coach/Math leadership committee	Weekly during the school year August 2013, and at the start of each new unit of study	Results form their CBA data, which shows the breakdown of SE, and the math curriculum from the district and other resources District curriculum resources	When a guide specific to the targeted group is complete Through formative assessments and District Curriculum Based Assessments
Implement small groups math instruction schedule for each class	Lindsey Keen	September 2013	Class schedule and class lists and data from the first 2 action step	Classroom and small group observation
Meet with target group of students 4-5 times a week using individualized instruction	Lindsey Keen	September 2013-May 2014	Scope and Sequence I created and the various resources needed to teach those.	Use formative assessments and District Curriculum based assessments to monitor growth and advanced ratings
Compare Data	Lindsey Keen	October 2013-April 2014	Unit CBA scores,	I will use this data to make future decisions for this targeted group of students
Reflection	Lindsey Keen	May 2014	STAAR data	I will use the data to determine the benefits of this action research and make changes for following year.

After watching the videos this week on various ways action research can be conducted, it helped me understand the how critical it is in our profession, but also how beneficial it can be. Practically any concern or wondering with in an educational setting, can go through the action research process, as long as it will promote student success.
As I read, and gained a deeper understanding of action research, I kept thinking back to my experiences, and feel fortunate, that I have worked under leadership that has modeled this process on various levels. At one campus, we specifically came up with a goal for our students, and then worked toward achieving that goal, using and reflecting on data directly from our students. This data was then the driving force behind and future decisions during or collaboration and planning time as a team. Through this process we grew professionally as educators, but our students benefited due to the level of instruction in the classrooms.
I look forward to applying what I have learned through my own experiences, and combining those with the new learning from this class.

  Action research is critical for student learning and school improvement. Action research is a continuous, systematic process in search of information and knowledge in which teachers are able to implement new practices and then reflect on their new teachings to promote school improvement. It is the process of identifying weakness or areas of improvement, formulation an action plan to resolving the problem, and implementing researched strategies to bring about the change, and evaluating their effectiveness. Just as teachers continue their growth through professional development, and using student data to help increase the depth of their teaching practice, the administrators, or instructional leaders, have the responsibility to help lead their school on improvement efforts in order to best meet the needs of the students and staff. This process of inquiry is intentional study of one's professional practice and eventually can become not only part of the leader's professional role, but of the entire school culture. (Dana, 2009)

  Fortunately, I have had the opportunity to work under very two very strong instructional leaders who have implemented action research consistently. They believed in always looking for ways to improve, and focusing on student data to drive their decisions. While reading through, I was able to reflect on so many professional experiences involving action research that I’ve been a part of, I just didn’t always recognize it as “action research” because it can be approached through so many different formats. Whether through district meetings, leadership teams, or professional learning communities, the process is still the same.  

Blogs serve as a great communication tool for educational leaders is many ways. It is a great way to communicate with parents and students about the great happenings during school, sharing fun videos, or funny stories, or even stories of great achievement among students and staff. Blogs also are a great way to communicate with parents the latest teaching practices going on in the building to keep parents up-to-date with how their children are learning in school. I also love how you have the ability to link to other helpful resources on the web. Blogs are interactive and engaging for all and the benefits are endless.