Week 3 Blog EDLD5301Research ET8021

Background information I would share about my action research topic is that during my teaching career, I have noticed that those students who are actively engaged in extracurricular activities tend to be more actively engaged in the classroom. I thought this might be simply a coincidence one year, but I noticed the same trend year after year. That observation led me to question if indeed there was a direct positive correlation between student achievement in the classroom and student involvement in extracurricular activities, and if there is a positive correlation, then why isn’t more funding channeled their way? Regarding the Design of the Inquiry, my first step will be to meet with the PEIMS clerk in order to get a list of 10-12 grade enrolled students. I will then filter this information to identify those students involved in extracurricular activities. I need to stop at this point and find a ratio between students involved and students not involved in extracurricular activities. I will need to meet with the PEIMS clerk a second time to generate a confidential list of student grade point averages. This information will not be shared outside of this action research, but is crucial information for my action research. I will then compare the gpa’s of the active group to those of the uninvolved students to see if my action research topic is true. During this phase of my research, I will also conduct a student survey. The survey will poll all 10-12 grade students and ask if they are involved in any extracurricular activities, and if not, why not. Are there barriers in their lives such as transportation or funds that limit their activity, or do they simply choose not to participate? This survey might further divide my findings of students who choose not to participate with a subset of those who cannot participate. Once I collect all the data, I will be able to determine if my topic is accurate. In summary, I will most likely end up with three outcomes – those students who participate in extracurricular activities, those students uninterested in participating in activities, and those students who, for reasons out of their control, cannot participate. I believe the gpa’s of the actively involved student might be similar to those of the students who are unable, not unwilling, to participate.

Melba Gilbert Lamar EDLD 5301 Action Research Blog

This week has been phenomenal. The research course has goaded me out of my comfort zone and required that I meet a challenge face to face. I need to ask questions regarding my campus, and not accept status quo. There are several ideas I have regarding my action research. I simply need to pin one down and act on it. Twenty years in industry has made me question why the education profession does not have to, on a continual basis, question and alter their lessons based on new information, demographics, test scores, etc. The minute an educator stalls, they become stagnant. I loved what Dr. Timothy Chargois used as an example. If you are green, you are growing. If you are brown? You are dead. My goal, as a technology teacher, and limited only by the school district's budget, is to teach my students the most current technology that my lab can accomodate. I want to prepare those who are not college bound with skills they can use immediately upon graduation. Hopefully, I will choose an action research topic that will help me as I endeavor to meet the needs of my students.

MelbaHavardGilbert LamarU EDLD5301 Action Research Blog

Action research is a vital tool that allows teachers to evaluate their teaching performance, identify problem areas, formulate an inquiry regarding this problem area, research the inquiry, either online or through other educational journals, and put into action a plan that will lead to the solution to their problem area. Action research is not admission of poor teacher performance. Instead, it is a tool that allows teachers to pause and reflect, in the midst of a seemingly endless array of distractions, on their performance and the need for continual "tweaking" of their teaching style, lesson plans, content and delivery of content in an attempt to engage the student and thus create a healthy and interesting learning environment.

Currently, my campus utilizes Professional Learning Communities as a way for teachers to meet on a regularly scheduled basis and discuss concerns such as failure rates, tardies, excessive absences and lack of motivation on the part of the students. Although our subject areas may differ (I teach a technology elective, and those teachers in my PLC, although not directly teaching my same course, struggle with some of the same student / learning issues), the teachers in my PLC all have the same goal: to raise the success rate of our students, be it in the classroom, or in their lives in general. Through my campus PLC, I have learned that raising questions, seeking solutions, and sharing ideas with colleagues, in other words, Action Research, is a useful tool.

Melba Gilbert How Educators can use blogs

Blogs are an exciting method of sharing information between colleagues. They are real time accumulations of thoughts and events. Blog information can be shared among many people at the same time, thus allowing instantaneous collaboration. Blogs can be used to share lesson plans, and in my case today, while attending the Texas Career Education Conference, I can share my learning experiences with those educators in my department who weren't able to attend. I don't have to take notes, then transcribe those notes, and I don't have to rely on my memory to share what I have learned when I return. I can simply sit down at the many computer stations located in the lobby of my hotel and update my blog instantaneously.