Research for Reflective Practice

Research for
Reflective Practice
Dr Jennie Bales
Adjunct Lecturer, Charles Sturt University
© EDUWEBINAR PTY LTD | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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Introduction
• Adjunct lecturer with Charles Sturt
University
– Teacher Librarian as Leader (MEd TL),
Research in Practice (MIS)
– OZTL_Net coordinator
• Over 30 years in Education,
committed to evidence based
practice, conducted action research
to evaluate and inform program
implementation and development
• Doctoral research – qualitative study
investigating a specific online
learning environment and literature
circles as a collaborative model in an
online environment

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Housekeeping
• Disclaimer
– The views and opinions are those of the presenter and are
provided as general information which will require further
research to identify the application of the specific
requirements to the participant.
• Restrictions
– Eduwebinar Pty Ltd does NOT give permission for any
capture, recording or reproduction of this webinar in any
format.

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Housekeeping
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The value of research
• Provides a framework for reflection
• Consolidates learning and experience
• Inspires and justifies project development
• Guides future directions
• Contributes to personal and professional growth
• Provides evidence of professional attainment

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On the table
• Informal practitioner research
• Evidence based practice
• Formal research
• Research design
• Application of research findings to inform and improve
practice
• Ethics in human research
• Disseminating research outcomes and
• Building personal teaching credentials

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Informal research
• Teachers act as informal researchers as they introduce
and adapt new strategies, test ideas and reflect on
daily practice and interactions with students.
• Ongoing testing and refining of practice is a form of
research that is rarely shared or discussed
• Often individual, sometimes collaborative
(Pezaro, 2015)
The next
step….

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Personal professional development
“For teachers, evidence has shown that involvement in research
increases teachers' commitment to developing their teaching
and keeping up-to-date with new information” (Hedges, 2001).
• Planned critical examination of teaching practice for personal professional
development
• Means to examine and assess teaching practice, curriculum
implementation, program design and delivery
• Reflective practitioner
• Current example – Peer observation
– (AITSL Peer observation toolkit, focused on classroom observation)

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Evidence based practice for educators
• Planned critical examination of teaching practice for personal professional
development
– Subjective = Qualitative methods
• Means to examine and assess teaching, curriculum implementation,
program design and delivery the focus is on the delivery (practice) rather
than the program itself
– CBL in a classroom
• Reflective practitioner
• AITSL 3 Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning
– 3.2 Plan, structure and sequence learning programs
– Highly Accomplished: Work with colleagues to plan, evaluate and modify
learning and teaching programs …
– Lead: Exhibit exemplary practice and lead colleagues to plan, implement and
review the effectiveness of their learning and teaching programs

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Evidence based practice as research
• Employs multiple sources, types of evidence, and ways of gathering evidence.
– Lesson plans, work samples, interviews, observations, student evaluations
– If cyclic then can build in comparative data
• This facilitates triangulation—an approach to data analysis that synthesises
and compares data from multiple sources
• Triangulation increases the validity of your arguments. You can develop
stronger claims about your practice’s impact and outcomes
• Focus is on the teacher or the program rather than student participants –
thoughtful research design can avoid ethical pitfalls and challenges

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Action research: Challenge-based
learning
• Context (overview and background, literature review)
– Definition
• Purpose – hypothesis rather than questions: that CBL is authentic,
collaborative, technology and student directed would lead to engaged and
deeper inquiry.
• Cyclic
• Planning phase
• Project phase – in stages
• Feedback – summary of findings – students and teachers
• Taking the next step
– repeat project and develop further – assumption of ongoing evaluation
… more formal
research …

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Research as a structured study
• What do you want to investigate?
• Why?
• Is it significant & for whom?
• AITSL 6 Engage in professional learning
– 6.2 Engage in professional learning and improve practice
– Highly Accomplished: Plan for professional learning by accessing and
critiquing relevant research, engage in high quality targeted
opportunities to improve practice…
– Lead: Initiate collaborative relationships to expand professional
learning opportunities, engage in research…
• Is there a problem to be solved or a program to be studied?
• What has already been investigated? What do you know? Is there a
need to find out more? (the research gap)

® • Think about the 3 methods of
research in the readings – did one
connect with you? Why?
• Do you prefer facts and figures, or
narrative?
• Can you identify a program about to
be implemented in your school?
Would a study like the CBL one
provide a useful way to review it?
• Has interest in reading and borrowing
declined? Could you adopt or adapt
one of the survey instruments in
Wilhelm’s (2016) study in your
school?
• How could the School Library Survey
be harnessed for advocacy?
• Can you think of a use for infographics
to present a case for change?

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Steps of the process
• Conduct a literature review >
• Develop research questions, hypothesis >
• Identify methodology and research design >
• Develop instruments >
• Data collection > Data analysis >
• Interpretation > Findings >
• Research writing > Recommendations >
• Reporting

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Literature review
• Background reading to better understand the topic
• Examination of other research in the field
• Defines the topic
• Provides a focus and purpose to identify the problem and research
questions. For example:
– How to establish challenge based learning across grades?
– What value is placed on free choice reading by young adults?
– What correlations can be drawn between school library budgets and
staffing and student achievement?

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Research questions
• Positivist / Quantitative
(scientific)
• Quantifiable, measurable,
objective, descriptive,
comparative
• Experiments, Survey method,
Case study
• Questionnaires, structured
interviews
– How many, much often…?
– What is the difference…?
– What is the relationship…?
• Interpretivist /Qualitative
(social)
• Subjective, open-ended,
discovery, exploratory
• Survey, Ethnography, Field
Study, Action, Case study
• Open questionnaires,
interview,, focus groups,
observation
– In what ways…
– What are the features…?
– Opinions, thoughts, beliefs
School library survey
Challenge based learning
Free-choice reading

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Questions Inform the design
• Positivist / Quantitative
(scientific)
• Quantifiable, measurable,
objective
• Experiments, Survey
method, Case study
• Questionnaires, structured
interviews
– How do…
– How long…
– How many, much…?
• Interpretivist /Qualitative
(social)
• subjective
• Survey method – open-ended,
discovery, exploratory
• Ethnogoraphy, Field Study,
Action, Case study
• Open questionnaires,
interview,, focus groups,
observation
– In what ways…
– what are the features…?
– Opinions, thoughts, beliefs
People =
Ethics

® Data collection:
Techniques and instruments

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Data analysis
• Data analysis:- how the data is analysed and
examined for meaning.
• Quantitative data is collected as numbers which represent the values
of variables which measure characteristics of what is being
researched. Often presented in figures, tables, charts and diagrams.
• Qualitative data comes in many forms (rarely as numbers). Analysis
may begin during the gathering stage, but must be systematic –
organising, integrating, examining, searching for patters and relations,
identifying trends and themes to link to concepts and theories.
• Findings:- what was discovered or proved from the
research?
• Were the questions answered?

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What did you
discover?
• Applying the findings to inform, initiate and review practice and programs
• Recommendations drawn from the findings
• Often cyclic – e.g. CBL with new program
• Sharing to a wider audience
– Share the research process
– Harness the findings to support change, challenge the status quo and
contribute to professional community
• AITSL: 7 Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the
community
– 7.4 Engage with professional teaching networks and broader communities
– Highly accomplished: Contribute to professional networks and associations
and build productive links with the wider community to improve teaching and
learning.
– Lead: Take a leadership role in professional and community networks and
support the involvement of colleagues in external learning opportunities.

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Share to a wider audience

® Ethics
• Codes of research ethics – practical rules and guidance laid down by your
educational system
• Talk to your principal – there is a fine line between evidence based
practice and research. Once you commit to a formal research study you
need to follow the rules
• AITSL 7 Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the
community
– 7.1 Meet professional ethics and responsibilities
– Highly accomplished: Maintain high ethical standards and support colleagues
to interpret codes of ethics and exercise sound judgement in all school and
community contexts.
– Lead: Model exemplary ethical behaviour and exercise informed judgements
in all professional dealings with students, colleagues and the community.
– 7.2 Comply with legislative, administrative and organisational requirements
– Highly accomplished: Support colleagues to review and interpret legislative,
administrative, and organisational requirements, policies and processes.

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The people factor
• Know and follow systemic requirements
• Justified – clear and relevant purpose
• Informed consent
• Minimising harm
• Minimising disruption
• Voluntary participation – risk of coercion when studying students,
particularly those in your class or that you teach
• Privacy considerations – Purpose: public reporting from one setting,
to improve individual outcomes requires identification

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Tips for success
• Ensure you have senior staff support
– Adopt as PLP – lessens impact of time constraints and ensures it is
relevant and purposeful
• Start small. It can be build on
• Stay focused on the problem
• Use one instrument
• Investigate data analysis techniques before you start
• Survey tools provide an easy starting point and will do base level
analysis for you.
• Prepare a report and circulate
• Without findings and recommendations the exercise is undervalued

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Your challenge to take
away from this session:
• Identify a problem
• Do some background
reading
• Design a small research
project
• Share the results
• What did you learn?

® References
• Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (n.d.). Australian
professional standards for teachers. In AITSL: Teachers. Retrieved from
http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-
teachers/standards/list
• Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (n.d.). Peer
observation. In AITSL: Teacher toolkit. Retrieved from
http://www.toolkit.aitsl.edu.au/category/classroom-practice/resource/131
• Corcoran, S. & Jensen B. (2014). Challenge-based learning: Exploring
sustainability. Scan. 33(4), pp. 6-12.
• Hedges, H. (2001). Teacher/researchers in early childhood: Ethical
responsibilities to children. Networks. 4(2). Retrieved from
http://journals.library.wisc.edu/index.php/networks/article/view/43/47
• Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. (2005).
Research@work. Retrieved from
https://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/edulibrary/public/publ/research/publ/Resea
rch@Work-rpt-v1.0-20051121.pdf

® References
• Pezaro, C. (2015, April 12). Teachers as researchers: What they do where
to find them and how academic researchers can engage with them.
EduResearchMatters. Retreived from
http://www.aare.edu.au/blog/?p=980
• Softlink. (2015). 2015 Australian and New Zealand School Library Survey.
Retrieved from https://www.softlinkint.com/resources.
• Todd, R. (2008, April 1). The evidence-based manifesto for school
librarians. School Library Journal. Retrieved from
http://www.slj.com/2008/04/sljarchives/the-evidence-based-manifesto-
for-school-librarians/
• Wilhelm, J. (2016). Recognising the power of pleasure: What engaged
adolescent readers get from their free-choice reading, and how teachers
can leverage this for all. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy.
(39)1, pp. 30-41.

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Copyright statement for images
• All images free to use without attribution are
purchased or sought from pixabay.com

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Keep in touch
email: jenbales@iprimus.com.au
blog: https://jenniebales.wordpress.com/
twitter: @JennieBales

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Research for Reflective Practice

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