What I learned about action research

Thus far, I learned just how important action research is to aspiring administrators such as myself and veteran administrators. With the never ending demands that are place on administrators, along with possessing the ability to respond, lead others and manage the day to day operations in the pursuit of school improvement, one must actively engage in intentional studies of their own administrative practices. I learned that action research is a great professional development tool to be used to gain a clearer understanding of why various issues and concerns are existing in classrooms and in schools today, where as it creates opportunities for administrators to focus on goals and where viable solutions can be researched, identified, and implemented as practitioner’s practice to improve what’s wrong or to better understand what works (Dana, 2009). Another aspect of action research, which I learned and am looking forward to using, is its reflective practices. In order to grow as a strong leader, you must be able to reflect back on the decisions and actions you make. In making future sound decisions in an effort to improve learning, I want to be able to competently, make decisions and take actions based on my ability to reflect back on my prior experiences and make adjustments as I go forward. Martin (2005) states that “Expertise is gained as one learns to adjust the performance based on the factors and one’s experience with them.” (p. 104). In the end, the use of action research will undoubtedly help me with the goal of school improvement by focusing my attention on the following questions: Where are we now? Where do we need to be? And How do we get there?