Update: Action Research Project Status!

I began my action research project as of the second week of school.  For this action research project I am using the Four Blocks of Literacy method in my second grade classroom to see how it affects my students with their independent reading and with their Istation scores (our online reading program that continuously assesses students’ reading progress) as compared to the other second grade classes using our typical method for teaching reading.  I have already done the necessary research to begin this project and collected the data I needed during the first two weeks of school.  I have documented my students’ current Istation scores and have given each of them a fluency probe to determine their beginning levels of reading development.  Currently, I am using the new schedule that I created during the summer for the four blocks method.  My current English Language Arts and Reading schedule is as follows: Phonics instruction for 30-45 minutes, Reading mini-lesson and practice for 30 minutes, Writing mini-lesson and practice for 30 minutes, Literacy Stations and Small Group for 30-45 minutes, and Independent Reading Time and Reader’s Conferences for 15-30 minutes.  It took practice and determination to get myself used to this new schedule and new way of teaching, but I feel very comfortable with it now and am definitely seeing the difference in their independent reading and hope to see their Istation scores improve once they are assessed again in the next few weeks.  I am enjoying my action research project and though it has been difficult at times to keep with the schedule and with the instruction, I am determined to see this through to the end and know that it will be worth it.         

Site Supervisor Conference

Hello all!

My site supervisor and I had our conference to discuss my action research project and tie up all of the loose ends today.  We discussed my two options for action research.  I was caught between two very different and possible topics: improving reading through the four blocks method and increasing parental involvement and volunteering within the school.  During our conference we discussed the options and the different possibilities for each and came to an agreed upon decision.  We decided that the best route would be for me to work on the project that would focus on improving reading with the four blocks method.  My site supervisor felt that this would be something worthwhile and that would help improve our reading scores and our students’ overall success.  While the parental involvement and volunteering project is not my focus for action research we did discuss some of the ideas that I had planned on implementing school wide and conducting those ideas at a smaller, more manageable level within my classroom.  Therefore, for the parental involvement portion for my internship plan I will be implementing the “Three for Me” involvement program and the 6 week parent/guardian conferences in only my classroom. For the parent conferences each 6 weeks I will be sending a form home for parents to complete in order to have a parent conference in person with each student’s parent/guardian each 6 weeks to discuss their progress and to help them feel more welcome and involved.  I feel much more comfortable and eager to begin my action research plan now that I have my site supervisor’s approval and we have discussed all of the possibilities.  After viewing my action research plan for my reading improvement plan my site supervisor did not have any recommendations or changes to make to it.  There were no changes because we have been consistently conversing via e-mail throughout my progress in this course and our face-to-face meeting simply solidified everything.  

I feel so much better and more stable with my action research plan and now feel that I can really move forward and begin the fun part!  

My Action Research Plan

OUTCOMES	ACTIVITIES	RESOURCES/ RESEARCH TOOLS NEEDED	RESPONSIBILITY TO ADDRESS ACTIVITIES	TIME LINE	Benchmarks/ ASSESSMENT	Revisions to SIP/PIP based on monitoring and assessments
Gain more knowledge for full and competent implementation.	1.      Read literary work pertaining to the four blocks method. 2.      Observe classrooms that use the “Four Blocks” method by watching a variety of videos.	The Teacher's Guide to the Four Blocks, Grades 1 - 3: A Multimethod, Multilevel Framework for Grades 1-3 Guided Reading The Four-Blocks Way, Grades 1 - 3 Self-Selected Reading The Four-Blocks Way, Grades 1 - 3	Alyssa Ware	05/2012-08/2012	N/A
By viewing the previous and current data I will better equip myself for the level of instruction I need to begin with.	2. Understand the need for improvement by viewing students Istation and Reading Benchmarks from first grade.	Istation and Reading Benchmark data from first grade.	Alyssa Ware and first grade teachers.	08/2012-10/2012	Istation reports and Reading benchmark scores.
By staying in contact and informed with the Rti team I will ensure that I am properly instructing and assisting my students in the classroom.	I will meet with the Rti team for Reading and will continuously confer with them for advice, strategies, and to stay updated and on the same page.	Rti team information and lessons	Alyssa Ware and Rti Team	08/2012-05/2013	Previous and current data and scores from Rti students.
By implementing the new schedule to only one classroom and comparing it to the remaining classes I will be able to see the results more clearly.  I will mainly focus on comparing my data to a select second grade classroom.	3. Implement a new ELA-R schedule to use with one second grade classroom.	Continue reading and researching books and information online.	Alyssa Ware and second grade team	08/2012-09/2012	Will use recorded Istation data on my students from first grade.
By monitoring Istation and their benchmark results I will be able to determine if the schedule is having the desired effect or if it needs to be altered.	4. Using the new teaching method, I will monitor my students Istation and benchmark results for Reading and compare them to the other second grade classes.	Istation data and benchmark data.	Alyssa Ware and second grade team	09/2012-05/2013	Reading benchmarks and Istation results.
By giving fluency probes and recording the data and making analytical notes I will have further data to support or contradict my new framework.	I will give fluency probes to my students that are in small group with me daily.	Various leveled fluency probes with scoring rubrics from our adopted Reading text.	Alyssa Ware	08/2012-05/2013	Fluency rubric data
This will be the final step in my project in which I look through the data and determine if this is a method we will utilize, tweak, or altogether drop.	5. Analyze the data collected throughout the year and determine if project was a success.	Cumulative Istation data and cumulative benchmark data.	Alyssa Ware	05/2013	Computer and printer access to view and print data.

Week 2 Reflections

This week allowed me to learn more about Action Research and to pinpoint a project that would work best for my school and best for me.  The most meaningful part of this week for me was Part 2 - Common Action Research Topics in School Settings.  This was meaningful for me because it required me to really focus and think about the nine areas that are considered major wonderings for school leaders.  At first this task seemed daunting, but once I became involved in reading about each area I quickly became hooked on looking at each area and creating a personalized inquiry for my school.  This activity helped me realize that there are so many options available for action research and that instead of having to come up with one I am now having to decide on one.  I am definitely excited about beginning my action research, but I am now stuck between two possible topics for research: improving reading or improving parental involvement.  My site supervisor mentioned parental involvement at the beginning of my first course, but I have been reading numerous books and articles about Reading instruction and I am interested to try out this new framework I have discovered to see if it will improve our Reading benchmark scores.  What do you think?  I would really appreciate comments about your thoughts on this!   

An Educational Leaders Practical Outlook on Blogging

Blogging is something that is new to me.  I was aware of what they were and I was aware that there were tons of them available on a vast number of topics, but I had never envisioned myself creating and using a blog.  After learning about blogs and creating my own I have come to the conclusion that they can be very useful, professional, creative ways to share your ideas and thoughts, tell others about your experiences, ask questions you might have, and communicate with a much wider variety of  people than you normally would.  The type of blog that I have created is one that documents my journey through my action research plan.  I believe that this is an extremely useful way to go about blogging by allowing myself to organize my thoughts and reflect on the progress and effectiveness of my action research plan.  This type of blog also allows others to learn from my experiences with this project and to decide based on the evidence and result if this is something that they would be interested in embarking on.  So with that said I hope you join me on this journey through my action research plan and whether it has positive results or not, I hope we all learn from it.

My View of Action Research

Action research is one of the most exciting and positive aspects of being a school leader.  Action research allows principals to work with teachers and other school leaders to create a plan that is unique and customized for the school and their classrooms.  Unlike more traditional methods of research, action research greatly involves the actual practitioners’ in the process of creating and planning, deciding what to use as data and how to gather it, and interpreting the results of their inquiry to decide if the result was effective.  I believe that action research allows the practitioners’ to have ownership of the project and that this will allow them to fully invest their time and efforts into their research. I believe that by empowering the practitioners' in the inquiry process that they will be more willing and motivated to go through with the change that needs to be made.  I also believe that allowing the practitioners’ to lead the action research will allow for flexibility with the design and with the implementation of change according to the schools needs.  After much investigation about what action research is and how it is an effective tool for school leaders and educators I have developed an idea for how I can use it in my current career as an educator.  I am currently a second grade teacher in a self-contained classroom and have discovered that many of my students' as well as the students' within the school struggle greatly with reading.  I have decided that an appropriate action research plan that would benefit my classroom, as well as many others if my plan succeeds, would be one that involves the revision of my Reading instruction.  I would like to completely reorganize and restructure my Reading instruction.  I plan to read a variety of literary work on best practices for teaching reading and how to help my students read in a way that is authentic and natural for them.  I believe that by using action research for this need in my classroom and school that I can learn and initiate a change in the way Reading instruction is taught in my classroom and for struggling classrooms throughout the school.