In all honesty, whenever the word “research” is mentioned, a cringe is immediately seen on my face. It took a lot of energy to bring myself to reading Chapter 2 on the Dana text. Surprisingly, I was actually mesmerized by the topic especially by the many examples given of action research on campus. My mind went on hyper-speed and instantly thought of “wonderings” that are applicable to my roles as special education teacher/department chairperson and as Renzulli site manager. My research cringe face changed into a wide eyed and eager to learn look like the Von Trapp children as Maria taught them the first line of the song, “Doe a dear a female dear”. I find action research to be exciting, practical and extremely beneficial to my profession. Traditional research is boring and at times, not applicable to my present situation. Action research, on the other hand, is a proactive and a worthwhile endeavor. I could not wait to proceed with the 3 topics that I wanted to pursue.
The interviews of the three scholars provided a look at the current trends in education. Data seems to be the word in this decade of accountability. It is also one of those words that bring a pout to my face almost similar to “research”. However, I could not fight this trend any more if I am to survive as an educator. It is like aging, no matter how much you try to hide it with make-up, plastic surgery, or exercise, you still age with every tick of the clock. Thus, just as I accept that I am getting older each day, I accept that I need to look at data, analyze it, and make instructional adjustments accordingly no matter how much I disdain it. So bring on the data; I am now ready to digest it and use it to increase student achievement.
No comments:
Post a Comment