Action Research 1 course content

1. Lecturer: Yee Bee Choo
IPGKTHO
Topic 5

2. Action Research: Concepts and Models
1. Definition and Concepts
2. The Characteristics of Action Research
3. The Importance of Action Research
4. Practical Issues
5. Models of Action Research
1. Kurt Lewin’s model (1946)
2. Dave Ebbutt’s model (1985)
3. Kemmis and McTaggart’s model (1988)
4. Jean McNiff’s model (1988)
5. John Elliott’s model (1991)
6. Jack Whitehead and McNiff’s model (2006)

3. 1. Definitions and Concepts
• Lewin (1946) described action research as “a
comparative research on the conditions and
effects of various forms of social action and
research leading to social action”.
• It is the idea that social practices could only be
understood and changed by involving the
practitioners themselves throughout an
inquiry (Lewin, 1946).

4. 1. Definitions and Concepts
“Action research is simply a form of self-reflective
enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations
in order to improve the rationality and justice of their
own practices, their understanding of these practices,
and the situations in which the practices are carried
out.”
In summary, AR is…
- the improvement of practice;
- the improvement of the understanding of practice;
- the improvement of the situation in which the practice
takes place.
(Carr & Kemmis, 1986:162)

5. 1. Definitions and Concepts
AR is…
• collaborative ‘educational’ action research,
emancipatory (Carr and Kemmis, 1986, Elliott,
1991).
• participatory action research is a social process of
collaborative learning realized by groups of
people who join together in changing the
practices through which they interact in a shared
social world in which, for better or worse, we live
with the consequences of one another’s actions
(Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988).

6. 1. Definitions and Concepts
AR is…
• The fundamental aim of action research is to
improve practice rather than to produce
knowledge. The production and utilisation of
knowledge is subordinate to, and conditioned
by, this fundamental aim (Elliott, 1991, p. 49).

7. 1. Definitions and Concepts
• Action research locates the heart of the process very firmly
with the individual, proposing that each participant is
involved in the formation of her own ‘living theory’ out of
the dialectical reality of her practice (Whitehead, 1985).
• Whitehead sees education as a value-laden activity and
refers to values as those qualities, which give meaning and
purpose to our personal and professional lives.
• He adopts rather an I-approach, which encourages
practitioners themselves to produce their own descriptions
and explanations for their own learning. He suggests that
by asking questions, ‘how do I improve what I am doing?’
(Whitehead, 1989), practitioners can create their own
theory by embodying their educational values in their
practice.

8. 1. Definitions and Concepts
• Action research is often referred to as practitioner
research, or practice-led or practiced-based research
that requires ‘critical self-reflection’.
• It involves two aspects:
1. Action – think carefully about the situations and
perceptions of the situations.
2. Research- involves data-gathering, reflection on the
action shown through the data, generating evidence
from the data, and making claims to knowledge based
on conclusions drawn authenticated evidence.
(McNiff, 2013)

9. 1. Definitions and Concepts
AR is…
• Any systematic inquiry conducted by teacher
researcher, principals, school counsellors, or other
stakeholders in the teaching/learning environment to
gather information about how their particular schools
operate, how they teach, and how well their students
learn.
• This information is gathered with the goals of gaining
insight, developing reflective practice, effective
changes in the school environment (and educational
practices in general), and improving student outcomes
and the lives of those involved.
(Mills, 2014)

10. 1. Definitions and Concepts
Types of Action Research
1. Practical AR is used to improve practice by developing and applying the
personal knowledge and wisdom of the participants. Working with a
group of colleagues and assisted by a facilitator, a teacher would
carefully and reflectively implement an innovation that he or she
believes is "good" and will assist students.
2. Emancipatory AR involves the full involvement of all the important
stakeholders in the social or educational system, including researchers,
practitioners, policy makers, clients or learners, and community
members. A facilitator can assist the group process, but "power within
emancipatory action research resides wholly with the group, not with
the facilitator and not with the individuals within the group"
3. In technical AR, a research facilitator convinces a group of practitioners
to implement an innovation (e.g., cooperative learning or assertive
discipline) according to his or her pre-set specifications.
(Grundy, 1982)

11. Difference between AR and Conventional Research
Action Research Conventional Research
Aim Teachers’ professional
development to improve
pedagogical practices
Testing theory
Design Flexible Fixed
Subject Teacher as participant Teacher not subject.
Sampling methods used
Method In real-life situation,
qualitative, descriptive and
narrative
Sampling techniques used,
statistical analysis,
quantitative
Report Non-technical language Technical

12. 2. The Characteristics of Action Research
AR is a recurring process.
• Problem –describe current situation
• Design – develop a strategy for improving
situation
• Action – Identify forces
• Reflection – looking back on your action after
collecting data
• Capture – the learning is accessible to others
(Lewin, 1946)

13. 2. The Characteristics of Action Research
1. A practical focus
2. The educator-researcher’s own practices
3. Collaboration
4. A dynamic process
5. A plan of action
6. Sharing research
(Creswell, 2012, pp 586-588)

14. 3. The Importance of Action Research
1. Encourages change in the schools
2. Fosters a democratic (i.e. involvement of many
individuals) approach to education
3. Empowers individuals through collaboration on
projects
4. Positions teachers and other educators as learners
who seek to narrow the gap between practice and
their vision of education
5. Encourages educators to reflect on their practices
6. Promotes a process of testing new ideas (Mills, 2014)
(Creswell, 2012)

15. 4. Practical Issues
1. Stay small, stay focused
2. Identify a clear research question
3. Be realistic about what you can do; also be aware that wider
change begins with you
4. Plan carefully
5. Set a realistic time scale
6. Involve others
7. Ensure good ethical practice
8. Concentrate on learning, not on behavioural performance, as the
outcome of action
9. Be prepared to problematise your thinking
10. Beware of happy endings
11. Be aware of politics
(McNiff, 2013, pp. 119-127)

16. 5. Models of Action Research
1. Kurt Lewin’s Model (1946)
• Kurt Lewin is generally
considered the ‘father’ of
action research. He first
coined the term “action
research” in 1944.
• His model is an action-
reflection cycle of planning,
acting, observing and
reflecting.

17. 5. Models of Action Research
1. Kurt Lewin’s Model (1946)
Later it is extended into ongoing action-reflection cycles.

18. 5. Models of Action Research
1. Kurt Lewin’s Model (1946)
His approach involves a spiral
of steps, ‘each of which is
composed of a circle of
planning, action and
reconnaissance (or fact-
finding) about the result of
the action’.

19. 5. Models of Action Research
2. Dave Ebbutt’s Model (1985)
• Ebbutt questioned Lewin’s
model by claiming that the
spiral is not the most
useful metaphor or image
to use to think about the
AR process.
• He uses a series of
successive cycles that
enable the possibility of
providing evaluative
feedback within and
between the cycles of
action.

20. 5. Models of Action Research
3. Kemmis and McTaggart’s Model (1988)
• A similar model as Lewin’s of the cyclical
nature of the typical action research
process. Each cycle has four steps: plan,
act, observe, reflect.
• In this model, it shows how reflection
leads on to the next stage of planning.
The planning stage is not separate from
the previous stage but is embedded in
action and reflection.
• The short and multiple cycles are to
ensure rigour. As it is intended that the
end result is change, effective action
research depends upon the agreement
and commitment of those affected by it.
This is achieved by involving them
directly in the research process.

21. 5. Models of Action Research
3. Kemmis and McTaggart’s Model (1988)
• The diagram shows a self-
reflective spiral of planning,
acting, observing, reflecting
and re-planning as the basis
for understanding how to take
action to improve an
educational situation.
• The diagram shows the
principles in action, the
movement from one critical
phase to another, and the way
in which progress may be
made through systematic
steps

22. 5. Models of Action Research
4. Jean McNiff’s Model (1988)
• McNiff ‘s abstract visual of her
action research model which
reflects the generative
tranformational nature of
evolutionary process.
• The visual metaphor she has
developed is an iterative spiral
of spirals, an exponential
developmental process.
• She believes it is possible to
begin at one place and end up
somewhere entirely
unexpected.

23. 5. Models of Action Research
4. Jean McNiff’s Model (1988)
• An aspect of the original 1988 diagram
of a generative transformational
evolutionary process.
• The diagram shows the process of
development as an expanding spiral.
The spirals of action reflection unfold
from themselves and fold back again
into themselves.
• They attempt to communicate the
idea of a reality which enfolds all its
previous manifestations yet which is
constantly unfolding into new versions
of itself, constantly in a state of
balance within disequilibrium.

24. 5. Models of Action Research
5. John Elliott’s Model (1991)
• John Elliott points out that in
using Lewin’s model, one might
assume that the ‘general idea’ can
be fixed in advance, that
‘reconnaissance’ is merely fact-
finding, and that ‘implementation’
is a fairly straightforward process.
• Elliot argues that the general idea
should be allowed to change, that
reconnaissance should include
analysis as well as fact finding and
should occur throughout the
action research process and not
only at the beginning.
• Elliott says that implementation is
not a simple task and one should
monitor the effects of action
before evaluation takes place
(Elliott, 1991, p. 70).

25. 5. Models of Action Research
6. Jack Whitehead and McNiff’s Model (2006)
• Whitehead and McNiff’s model
consists of 5 disciplined and
systematic steps in a research
cycle known as “action-
reflection”.
• The cycle is complete with a
plan to modify the action and
move in new and improved
directions.
• The critical aspect of action
research is that of the individual
“I” being at the centre of the
process, the “first person”.

26. Tutorial 5a
• In groups, select any one of the models of
action research and discuss its advantages and
disadvantages.
• Present group discussion.

27. Tutorial 5b (Individual writing task)
1. Explain the term action research with one
significant characteristic of it.
2. Explains two differences between Kemmis and
McTaggart’s (1988) and Lewin’s (1946) action
research models.
3. Adapting Kurt Lewin’s Model of action research,
Mrs Liew conducted an action research using
her pupils in Year 5 as her research participants.
However, due to time constraint, Mrs Liew did
not reflect prior to planning her intervention.
Discuss two implications of her not reflecting
during the initial stage on the research process.

28. References
Carr, W. & Kemmis, S. (1986) Becoming Critical: education, knowledge and action research. Lewes,
Falmer.
Creswell, J.W. (2012). Educational research: planning, conducting and evaluating quantitative and
qualitative research (4th Ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.
Ebbutt, D. (1985) Educational Action research: some general concerns and specific quibbles, in: Burgess,
R. (ed.) Issues in Educational Research: qualitative methods. Lewes, Falmer.
Elliott, J. (1991) Action Research for Educational Change. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Grundy, S. J. (1982). Three modes of action research. Curriculum Perspectives, Z(3), 2 3-34 .
Kemmis, S. & McTaggart, R. (1988). The Action research planner. Geelong: Deakin University Press.
Lewin, K. (1946). Action research & minority problems. Journal of Social Issues, 2(4), 34-46.
McNiff, J. (1988) Action Research: Principles and Practice. Basingstoke, Macmillan.
McNiff, J. (2013) Action Research: Principles and Practice (3rd. ed.). New York: Routledge.
McNiff, J & Whitehead, J. (2006). All You Need To Know About Action Research. SAGE Publications.
London. Page 107 – 153
Mills, G. E. (2014). Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher (5th eds.). London: Pearson
Education Limited.
Whitehead, J. (1985) An Analysis of an Individual’s Educational Development: The Basis for Personally
Oriented Action Research, first published in Shipman, M., Educational Research: Principles, Policies,
And Practices. London: Falmer Press.
Whitehead, J. (1989) ‘Creating a living educational theory from questions of the kind, “How do I
Improve my Practice?”’. Cambridge Journal of Education, 19(1): 41–52.
Whitehead, J., & McNiff, J. (2006). Action research living theory. London: SAGE Publications.