The Plan Layed Out

Mrs. Adams’ Action Research Plan
Goal: to determine if the after-school tutorials program in Math result in student achievement and growth in grades 3-5
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Meet with principal to discuss thoughts regarding likely action research questions	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	February 2011	School Data Intern Plan SIP	Prepares a list of possible action research questions
Choose an action research question/study. Discuss strategies for implementation.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	March 2011	School Data Intern Plan SIP	Confirm a topic and question for action research study
Acquire permission to present the question/study at our monthly faculty meeting. Explain what an action research study is.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	March 2011	Action Research Plan	Comment cards from faculty and staff
Share the action research question/study with the 3rd, 4th and 5th grade teachers.	Lauren Adams and 3rd, 4th and 5th grade Math tutorial teachers (A. Neelley, J. Tate, R. Garvey, M. Crider, E. VonFlatern and K. Meyers)	March 2011	Action Research Plan School Data Tutorial Rosters	Comments, suggestions from tutorial teachers
Accumulate all data on our 3rd, 4th and 5th grade Math tutorial students.	Lauren Adams	March 2011	All available data (District Assessments, TAKS practice tests, grades, tutorial attendance)	Are we meeting the needs of all students in tutorials?
Collect tutorial attendance rosters.	Lauren Adams	March 2011	Tutorial rosters for each class	Attendance rates
Assemble student information as to who is attending tutorials (males/females, ethnicity, attendance rate)	Lauren Adams	March 2011	Tutorial rosters Chancery Data	Grade level, teacher specific spreadsheets
Compile teacher information.	Lauren Adams and tutorial teachers	March 2011	Tutorial teachers	Tutorial teacher information data
Design and overseea survey created for teachers and students.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	April 2011	Teacher and student surveys Survey Monkey	Surveys
Bring together results of survey. Analyze survey.	Lauren Adams	April 2011	Surveys (teachers and students)	Results of teacher and student surveys
Meet with site supervisor to conferwith her regarding results of surveys.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	April 2011	Survey results	Results of teacher and student surveys
Construct a tutorial plan based on results of surveys	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	May 2011	Survey results School Data	Tutorial Plan
Come together with tutorial teachers to share and discuss results of the teacher and student surveys.	Lauren Adams and tutorial teachers	May 2011	Survey results School Data	Meeting minutes, concerns, questions and celebrations
Use TAKS practice results to gauge student growth in tutorials.	Lauren Adams	April 2011	TAKS practice data results	Tutorial Spreadsheets accounting for student growth
Compile and analyze TAKS practice data.	Lauren Adams	April 2011	TAKS practice data results	Tutorial Spreadsheets
Meet with principal to examine TAKS data.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	April 2011	TAKS practice data results	Tutorial Spreadsheets
Disclose data with tutorial teachers during grade level PLC meetings.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson and tutorial teachers	April 2011	TAKS practice data results	Meeting minutes, concerns, questions and celebrations
Examine final TAKS scores for tutorial students specifically passing and commended percentages.	Lauren Adams	May 2011	TAKS results	TAKS results
Present results to principal and tutorial teachers.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson and tutorial teachers	May 2011	TAKS results School Data	TAKS results
Present preliminary results at May faculty meeting.	Lauren Adams	May 2011	TAKS results Tutorial results	TAKS results Tutorial results
Survey Stanford scores and final grades for tutorial students.	Lauren Adams	June 2011	Stanford results Final Grades	Stanford Results Final Grades
Evaluate all data (TAKS, Stanford and final grades)	Lauren Adams	June 2011	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards
Meet with principal and present final results.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	June 2011	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards Final Tutorial Spreadsheets
Consider recommendations for 2011 – 2012 tutorial programs.	Lauren Adams Principal, Amy Simson	June 2011	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards Final Tutorial Spreadsheets	2011 – 2012 Recommendations
Discuss action research findings with Lance Menster (Elementary Math Curriculum)	Lauren Adams, Amy Simson, Lance Menster	June 2011	All crucial data (TAKS results, Stanford results, final grades, tutorial attendance)	Impact on SIP, SMART goals and teacher goals (IPDP)
Discuss action research findings with Beth Dow (School Improvement Officer)	Lauren Adams, Amy Simson, Beth Dow	June 2011	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards Final Tutorial Spreadsheets	Impact on SIP, SMART goals and teacher goals (IPDP)
Final results and recommendations presented to faculty in the Fall of 2011.	Lauren Adams	August 2011	TAKS results Stanford results Final report cards	2011 – 2012 Recommendations

Format based on Tool 7.1 from Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010)

Components of my action research

The components of my action research plan are as follows:
Description:
I will be performing my action research study at XYZ Elementary School, a campus with roughly 680 students, where I teach 3rd grade ESL self-contained. The study will be geared toward the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade Math tutorial students and the teachers who instruct the after school tutorials.
Target Population:
My target population will be the 3rd, 4th and 5th grade students who have been attending after school tutorials since October 2010. Currently, we have 24 third graders attending after school tutorials; 11 are males and 13 are females. There are 16 fourth graders attending after school tutorials; 10 are males and 6 are females. Finally, there are 41 fifth graders attending after school tutorials; 16 are males and 25 are females. I will also be working with the teachers who teach after school Math tutorials. There are a total of 7 teachers: 3 third grade teachers, 2 fourth grade teachers, and 2 fifth grade teachers. My hope is to impact the students’ achievement and growth and how the teachers prepare for tutorial instruction.
Sample:
My sample will involve all of our 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students who attend our after school Math tutorial program. The total number of students receiving after school math tutorials are 81.
Rationale/Description:
XYZ teachers and students in the 3rd-5th grades have for the last 5 years be involved in an after school tutorials program for all tested core content areas (Reading, Math, Science and Writing). Mrs. Principal, our new administrator this school year, has poised the question a few times, how effective our after school tutorial program is and if our teachers our using the resources available to them to design quality effective lessons? It is of crucial importance that we answer this question so that we are using the teachers’ time, our students’ time, and our financial resources to the best of our ability. I have chosen to focus the action research project on our Math tutorials specifically, because this is our definite area of weakness on our campus. The data I will be using includes the District Math Common Assessments: Beginning of the Year, Middle of the Year and End of the Year, TAKS practice data, Sharon Wells 6 week benchmark assessments, Stanford Math, TAKS Math and Math grades (9 week grades and final grades). All the tutorial students and teachers will answer a survey and then the results will be compiled and analyzed. Afterwards, I meet with the grade level teachers to discuss the results of said survey. In the PLC meetings, we will also discuss who is progressing, who is not, and what the next steps happen to be. Without this study, we will continue to possibly waste money, time, and resources for the stakeholders involved.

Action Research Lessons from Scholar Practitioners

This week I watched videos from three scholar practicioners. I learned how three different practicioners viewed action research and suggestions they had for conducting it as well. Below I have included the reflections from two of the videos.
Scholar 1: Dr. Timothy Chargois, Director of Research, Planning, and Development, Beaumont ISD
Dr. Chargois discussed an action research project Beaumont ISD is collaborating on with the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation. The action research project focuses on the question “How can we teach our teachers to be data driven?” Beaumont ISD is focused on taking the data available to them and using it to impact instruction. He wants to see people in the district to be able to manipulate the data so that instruction is being changed because of what the data is telling them. Dr. Chargois believes that if they do just that, they will move closer to becoming a performance management group. “Performance management is about giving educators continuous access to the information and resources they need to respond to the unique needs of each student, thereby allowing them to guide their students to the college track sooner and more consistently.” ("Performance Management," n.d., para. 2) Dr. Chargois stressed the important idea that when doing action research we have to be able to answer, “yes” to the question “Is it going to increase student performance?” If not, it’s a waste of time.
Dr. Chargois said that teachers should never stop learning! He used the old adage “If you are green, then you are growing and if you are brown, you are dying.” Teachers leave college knowing the content of the area they are certified to teach and the pedagogy also. However, teachers are not taught in college how to use the data that will facilitate the instruction of their classroom. This is something that districts are spending millions of dollars teaching their teachers how to do. He also spoke about teachers being action research oriented. Teachers he said must know what research is and be able to use it in the classroom to impact student success.
After watching Dr. Chargois’ video, I began to think about my classroom. Am I really using the data the way Dr. Chargois explained? Could I use the data more constructively? What would that look like? I still am “brown” in this area where I should be “green”. Recently however, because the TAKS tests are lurking in the air, I have been looking at a lot of data from my class practice tests. The campus online format has really helped me be able to use the data to my classes’ advantage. It does the hard work for me. I don’t have to create an excel spreadsheet and track who missed which questions, I have it right in front of me with that data. Data can be intimidating but if you have the right training on how to use the data, it can actually be what “drives your instruction”.

Scholar 2: Dr. Kirk Lewis, Superintendent, Pasadena ISD
Dr. Lewis spoke about the research based grant Pasadena ISD “a data rich district” received from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The grant is funding a program that focuses on 9th grade students and setting them up for success when it comes to meeting graduation requirements. Within their research, Pasadena ISD is focusing on delivering instruction in the core curriculum areas that “beef up rigor and relevance”. One way they are doing this is by asking their administrators and teachers to look at the data and apply the data to their instructional strategies. He hopes that they will look at the data and with that find research that will help them bring in pieces that will influence student achievement.
Dr. Lewis explained that his opinion of the purpose of action research is you should ask yourself, “What is practical for me?” What is it you need to know to help it apply to student learning? Most importantly, the individual doing the research must believe in the research. If educators accept as true the research they are conducting, they will do three things. First, they will be interested in their research. Second, they will stay focused on the outcome of the research. And lastly, when doing research, educators must remember to make it practical and not theoretical or students will not benefit.
After watching Dr. Lewis’ video, I started thinking about my action research proposal and if it will be practical. I feel strongly that it will be. I feel that researching our after-school tutorials program will tell us with the budget crisis we are in as a district and campus, will paying teachers for after school tutorials be a smart budgetary item or loss? I also thought about the other two guidelines Dr. Lewis puts forth about making it practical. I am already interested in this action research project and I know I can stay focused on it. With TAKS being around the corner, the after school tutorials become so much more imperative for the “bubble” kids, the ones that are so close to passing or so close to making commended. I believe this will be a very practical and not theoretical action research project as Dr. Lewis suggested in his video.

References
Performance Management | Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. (n.d.).
Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. Retrieved March 5, 2011, from http://www.msdf.org/Programs/Urban_Education/Performance_Management.aspx

Week 1: How Educational Leaders Might Use Blogs

A blog is meant to be a reflection. It's a diary that you let everyone read. I have never personally blogged before, I ramble and I feel like I wouldn't get any followers. However, I have friends that blog about their families and I love reading their stories, recipes, seeing their pictures, etc.

Educational Leaders, specifically principals, I feel would benefit greatly from a creating a blog. Principals could easily use the blog to post comments about their day. They could ask for advice on dealing with a certain situation without breaking any privacy laws. The instant feedback would be very beneficial. Principals also could use a blog to connect teachers to resources they have found. Blogging would increase perspectives for classroom challenges when discussion questions are posted and a meanigful dialogue is initiated. Another positive aspect of blogging is that it would lend a hand to opening the lines of communication with parents and community about different events and programs and initiatives that are happening on their campus.

Week 1: What is action research and how can I use it?

This week I have learned the answer to the question "what is action research"? Action research is the way an educator examines what is going on in their own classroom logically and with awareness. I've learned their are 4 ways educators can go about using action research. The first is by taking a class on action research such as this one I am enrolled in right now. The second, is to meet with a Professional Learning Community you belong to and have data driven discussions regarding the at-risk students in your classroom. What do we need to do to reach those students? Another way to utilize action research is to be apart of a leadership team at your school. The leadership team is in place to discuss many different issues, to communicate the needs of the staff and grade levels, and to support the principal. They are constantly looking at data to faciliate discussions and focus on what is best practice for the students. Lastly, being apart of district meetings will lead to action research. Principals are given valueable information at the district meetings that they can use to help teachers in the classroom always do what is best for all students.

I decided that one way I might be able to use action research as a future administrator would be to ask how valuable the intervention our school conducts with the student actually is. Specifically, how effective is the after school tutorials we provide in all content areas? Are teachers strategically planning what they will re-teach during after school tutorials or are they just throwing a workbook, worksheet, work something, at the student to keep them busy so they can get paid $25 an hour and have “proof” on paper they are most definitely are helping the struggling student? Are teachers using data that is available to them (i.e. campus online) to group the students according to the TAKS objective or TEK they are struggling to master? Are teachers planning with their Professional Learning Community (PLC) and sharing students instead of only tutoring their own?

I believe the problem of ineffective intervention is of critical importance. If we are not being highly effective by asking ourselves “is what I’m about to do beneficial to the student” (i.e. how relevant is it to their learning), then we are being unproductive. If we are being irresponsible in our planning then we are doing a disservice to the students. When we ask families to make accommodations for tutorials, we as educators should be prepared to meet the students’ needs and be able to show student growth and achievement. It’s imperative that the teachers that volunteer to stay and tutor the low performing students, take on the responsibility of planning quality, objective based instruction.
By conducting an action research study, I believe that I would be able to prove or disprove the benefits of an after school tutorial program. Is the tutorial program benefiting all stakeholders? I would be able to investigate if teachers are strategically planning using objectives that they are aware their students are not mastering. I would also be able to chart student growth and achievement during this time using campus online data and my own pre and post tutorial assessment of students.

The overall purpose of an after school tutorial program is to help ALL students be successful. If the students leave the program in the same dilemma they were when they entered, then we as educators have not done our jobs.