Planning for Action Research - Assignment Example

Planning for Action Research and Question one CONSIDERATIONS RESPONSES Topic College drop-outrate among youths. What to learn this topic Leading causes of college drop-out among youths across all races. What to do to address the topic: Perform an action research study to establish the causes of increased college drop-out and thus propose the best recommendations. Beneficiaries of the outcome of the study: -Teachers -Parents -Learners -Educationists -The government Time-frame Approximately six months. Anticipated difficulty in conducting the research: -Negative attitude from the respondents especially the youths. -Financial constraints during the execution of the entire research process. Monetary costs involved: -Funding the data collection process -Expenses on relevant materials needed -Financial commitments on hiring relevant expertise Possible ethical problems -Some youths might be emotionally disturbed to share private challenges. -Persistent inquiry and interviews may torture the respondents psychologically. Question 2 Ethical considerations during the Action Research Study (i) Physical harm to the interviewers and the respondents during the action research study. The individuals involved should not be subjected to dangerous and harmful situations during the study. (ii) Chances of emotional torture on the respondents, when subjected to interviews, observation and other modes of study. The entire process should not compromise on areas that engage the emotions of the respondents. (iii) Possibility of psychological torture of all stakeholders during the action research. The entire process involves the collection of information that cuts across personal life of individuals and their private affairs. Breaching their privacy would subject them to psychological torture an element that is not acceptable. (iv) Financial commitments involved should not pose a burden on others at the expense of other areas of education. Past research on the same area should be used to complement the current research to cut expenses. Question 3 Most difficult aspect while conducting reconnaissance related to a potential action research topic Having to focus on a couple of issues at the same time proves to be difficult as the action research process appears to be chaotic and disorganized (Mertler, 2013). This may lead to a mix-up of the data collected a possibility of drawing wrong conclusions about the topic at hand hence. This calls for a keener teacher-researcher who would have to engage in collaborative research with effective results. This further demands financial commitment amid scarce resources thus possible hitches along the course of the research. The researcher has to engage in self-reflection, description and explanation while trying to get an insight of educational theories, values and historical contexts of the school. Question 4 Most difficult aspect while conducting a literature review related to a potential action research topic Every research study happens to be different based on dates conducted and the focus spared on the topic at hand (Mertler, 2013). This creates a literature body that is different relative to all other available research results on the same area of study. As such, it is difficult to have a prescriptive step by step process for writing such a review. Additionally, some topics may experience a lack of attention over a given period. It would be difficult to gather information pertaining to them. It is pretty difficult to consider the number of references that would be regarded as enough during a review. There is no parameter for that amount of related literature that one would term as enough. Question 5 Topic of interest: Attitude towards mathematics Searching online for the above-stated literature presents web sites, journal articles and conference papers with content established by individuals who shared interest in the topic. Markku S. Hannula shares some findings at link.springer.com about attitude towards mathematics (Hannula, 2002). Pietro Di Martino presents a conference paper on attitude towards mathematics on theoretical issues during 25th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education held At Utrecht Netherlands (Martino, 2014). The Pakistan Economic and Social Review Journal sheds some light on the attitude towards mathematics by learners (Shah, 2008). Question 6 Literature review for the journal, conference paper, and the articles featured in question 5 Attitude towards mathematics Introduction Every academic setting has experienced varied attitude towards some subjects especially sciences and mathematics. The learners liking and tendency to dislike a subject is prompted by a number of factors that the like of Markku S. Hannula has explored (Hannula, 2002). We shall also examine what Piertro Martino finds out (Martino, 2014), and seek more insight from the work presented in the Pakistan Journal in the same area (Shah, 2008). Causes of varied attitude towards mathematics Shah* sites gender factors as an element that contributes to varied attitude towards mathematics (Shah, 2008). Many are stuck with that myth that mathematics is meant for the males while females should dominate the language department. This leads to reduced participation in mathematics among the females whose performance is relatively less impressive than that of the boys. This doesn’t otherwise mean that all boys like mathematics. Records have shown dismal performance in all genders though rampant when it comes to females. Markuu Hannula investigates the role of emotions in liking or disliking the mathematics (Hannula, 2002). He cites quality of teaching in building such emotions and socio-psychological climate of the class. Learners would like a subject when they understand the content at hand, an aspect that comes with quality teaching. Good performance motivates learners and thus a positive attitude towards mathematics. Pietro Martino finds a measure of attitude as ambiguous and primitive, and thus the idea of like and dislike doesn’t hold water (Martino, 2014). Performance is more about ability and thus no need to blame poor performance on attitude. Teachers’ perception of attitude towards mathematics Teachers insist that reinforcement has a role towards attitude developed by a learner. Reward and punishment provoke positive and negative reactions. A rewarded learner will be motivated to research more on the subject involved and earn a better attitude towards it. Ability of the learner matters but is highly dependent on discipline and everyday conduct. The findings of most research suggest that attitude towards mathematics is dependent on a number of factors. Myths based around gender, methods of teaching, teaching environment and teachers competence have a role. Creating a healthy environment for mathematics starts with the teacher, availability of resources and the learners’ commitment. The Unexpected Journey: Renewing our commitment to students Through educational Action research Authors: HELEN MEYER & BENNYCE HAMILTON University of Cincinnati, USA STEVE KROEGER Lokata Junior High School, USA STEPHANIE STEWART Amelia High School, USA MARY BRYDON-MILLER University of Cincinnati, USA The article entails an action research performed by a couple of authors who focuses on working to make teaching efficient for all categories of learners. That is average and poor performing learners. A close examination of the content reveals a great deal of findings that have sound implications for teaching. They use a multiplicity of research techniques that incorporates even the learners. The researchers introduce photo voice, in an attempt to transform teaching practice. The learners can use photographs used by the community to share information amongst them. The method is fascinating enough drawing close learners with different abilities. Learners who perform poorly are involved, and their frequent involvement earns them self-esteem. The journey involved is pretty extensive as it features evaluation of senior exit project. The teachers find touch with the learners, and the value they attach to education is put upon parameters. The role of evaluation in academics is echoed here. It illuminates the effectiveness of the methods employed by teachers in teaching. A good performance would imply a good rapport between the teacher and the learner. One of the authors illuminates the role of race in teaching and how it affects oneself. She feels that race is personal, and it depends mostly on one’s self-perception. The society today has different statistics regarding African Americans and how they fair in education system. The number of drop-outs from school is relatively higher among African Americans compared to other races. The African American kid should be taught to own up his education for assurance of a bright future. Critical thinking and creativity are key elements in performance. The author underscores how they shared struggles and successes. Teaching is not a walk in the park. It demands sacrifices, commitments, and unselfish devotion. Before the fruits are realized, there are struggles to deal with in the course. All stakeholders should equally share success. Such success becomes a reality when the teaching methods, implementation of recommendations and corrective policies are employed. The action research featured in this article generates results that underscore incorporation of quantitative techniques and methods that take the learner out of the boring class. The learner and the teacher can both benefit from performed action research. REFERENCES Hannula, M. S. (2002). Attitude towards mathematics. Retrieved Feb 9th, 2015, from Springer: link.springer.com Martino, P. D. (2014, August 26). Retrieved Feb 09, 2015, from researchgate: www.researchergate.com Mertler, c. (2013). Action Research: Improving Schools and Empowering Teachers . SAGE publications inc. Shah, M. S. (2008). Students’ Attitude Towards Mathematics. Pakistan Economic and Social Review, 70-73. Read More