Tools for Schools, February/March 2000, Vol. 3, No. 4
Teacher research leads to learning, action
By Joan Richardson
As a teacher in a Madison, Wis., middle school with a changing enrollment, Ginny Kester wondered how a sense of belonging affected the achievement of African-American students.
Starting points
This exercise will aid participants in thinking about the question that will guide their research. Prepare enough copies of this page to distribute to each participant. Participants should privately respond to each open-ended question. The facilitator then leads a discussion about ideas generated through this exercise.
Brainwriting
This activity will aid action researchers by providing them with new ideas and new ways of thinking about their questions. It will also give everyone practice asking questions.
Data collection
These questions can help a group of action researchers understand the points they must consider during data collection.
Data summary
Create this template and distribute to action researchers. Have them include this template in their action research journal. This will remind them of the importance of having three sources of data before drawing any conclusions about what they have learned.
Resources: Action research
