The document defines action research as a systematic study aimed at improving educational practice through reflection and collaborative problem-solving. It outlines a four-phase process for conducting action research, including planning, action, analysis, and conclusion, while also comparing it to traditional research methods. The text emphasizes the importance of using research to inform practice in education and provides practical steps for addressing specific problems within schools.

1. Action Research in Education
Theory& Practice
Mohamed Hossni

2. Objectives
• To define what action research is
• To describe the Principles of action research
• To illustrates how to conduct an action research
• To situate the action research among other kinds of research

3. Defining
Action
Research
as a systematic study that combines
action and reflection with the intention
of improving practice.
a process in which practitioners study
problems scientifically, so that they can
evaluate, improve and steer decision-
making and practice
Action research is a term used to
describe professionals studying their
own practice in order to improve it.

4. History of Action
Research
“Kurt Lewin”
www.schoolofeducators.com
The term “action research” was coined by
Kurt Lewin, a social-psychologist
According to Kurt Lewin, social
conditions might be enhanced through the
group processes that involve four steps:
Planning &Acting & Observing &
Reflecting
These steps leads to the development of
action research.

5. Principles and characteristics of action
research
Makes for practical
problem-solving as
well as expanding
scientific knowledge
Enhances the
experiences of
participants is
collaborative
Undertaken directly
in workplace.
Uses feedback from
data in an ongoing
cyclical process
tends to avoid the
paradigm of research
that isolates and
controls variables
is formative, such that
the definition of the
problem, the aims and
methodology may modify
during the process of
action research

6. How to conduct an Action Research?

7. phase One:
Planning for
Research
It starts with an inquiry process,
where you define a specific research
question. It needs to be something you
can test. Next, conduct a literature
review to gain a deeper understanding
of the related research.
Finally, you move into the design
process, where you determine your
data methods, consider ethical issues,
get required permissions, create
deadlines and set up systems

8. Phase two
Action
engage in multiple cycles of
experimentation and data
collection. Your data collection
might include:
- qualitative data, like observations,
artifacts, and interviews.
- quantitative data like rubric
scores, surveys, or achievement
data.

9. Phase Three
Analysis
You will often start by organizing
data with charts or graphs and
looking for trends.
- You might also discuss it with
peers, free write in a journal, or
create a cluster map before
eventually writing out your results.

10. Phase Four:
Conclusion
- share your research with the
world and reflect on your own
practice
- This will ultimately lead to
new questions
- the cycle will continue again
as you refine your craft as a
better, more creative teacher

11. Action
research
VS
Case study

12. Do the
research
studies of
faculties of
education take
a place in
practice ?
- YES - NO
WHY?

13. Formal
research
VS
Action
research

14. David
Hargreaves
Using
research
to inform
practice
The idea of using research to inform
practice (evidence-informed
practice) attracted extensive
discourse
in the 1990s particularly in the UK following a
keynote address by David Hargreaves in a teacher
training conferences in which he made an
unfavorable comparison between:
Educational research
Medical research

15. Educational research vs Medical research
Educational research Medical research
Education and medicine are deeply
people-centred professions
majority of researchers are not
practitioners (usually university
academics)
there is rarely differentiation between
researchers
and users; both are practitioners
rarely utilises research
outcomes to inform practice
systematic and effective application of
research

16. If you have the problem in your
school what will you do?
The absence of teachers is
increasing?

17. Action
Research
in
School
context
Significant increase in the absence of teachers
1- Identification of a problem: Teachers absence
2- Locating Resources: what others have learned about solving
a particular problem.
3- Act: implementing our plan: two hours permission, 2 times in
a month for devoted teachers
4- Data Analysis: Absence Ratio Decreased
5- Developing a plan for Action: Reward devoted teachers
Implementing an ongoing research agenda to explore new
practices

18. Action Research may help explain and solve many issues
1- Students’ absence
2- Students’ reading underachievement
3- Teachers’ performance

19. ACTION RESEARCH AS
a MASTER'S THESIS
• Minnesota State
University
• ST. KATE’S University,
Minneapolis

20. CONCLUSION
&
ACTIVITY
Identify an issue in your school that needs to be
researched and try to solve it applying the steps of
“Action Research” .
Plan
Act
Observe
Reflect

21. References
Baburoglu, O.N. and Ravn, I. (1992)"Normative Action Research."Organization
Studies (13:1),, pp. 19-34.
Davison, R.M., Martinsons, M.G., and Kock, N. (2004)“Principles of canonical
action research,” Information Systems Journal (14).
Peters, M. and Robinson, V.(ND) "The Origins and Status of Action Research,"
Journal of Applied Behavioral Science (20:2)
Stiggins, R. J. (2001) Student-Involved Classroom Assessment (third edition).
Upper Saddle River, NJ:Merrill Prentice Hall.
Trist, E. "Engaging with large-scale systems,(1994)" in Experimenting with
Organizational Life: The Action Research Approach, A. Clark (ed.), Plenum, New
York.