Research Project Question
Week 5 (Jan 17 - Jan 23)
Overview
| Activity | Due Date | Format | Grading Percent |
| Mock Action Research Proposal Presentation | Day 3 | Discussion | |
| Sample Action Research Report Evaluation | Day 7 | Assignment |
Note: The online classroom is designed to time students out after 90 minutes of inactivity. Because of this, we strongly suggest that you compose your work in a word processing program and copy and paste it into the discussion post when you are ready to submit it.
Weekly Learning Outcomes
This week students will:
Create a nine-step action research plan proposal in digital presentation format.
Critique your own writing rituals.
Evaluate a sample action research plan.
Draw conclusions on the evaluation process and your own action research plan proposal.
Introduction: Practice and Reflect
This week will be full of eye-opening opportunities, making the steps of the action research process come together cohesively. You will have the unique opportunity to create a visual representation of your final action research plan proposal and share it with your classmates. You will stretch outside of the traditional way of sharing work by creating a mock presentation via video for us to view and respond to with constructive feedback; feedback you can then apply to your summative assignment.
Additionally, you will review and evaluate an actual action research report from a study involving use of technology in the classroom. This process of seeing an actual finished study and applying evaluative criteria will equip you with more information and skills to better evaluate the effectiveness of your own action research plan.
Required Resources
Texts
Action Research: A Guide for the Teacher Researcher (5th ed.)
Chapter 8: Writing Up Action Research
Chapter 9: Evaluating Action Research
Research Design for Educators: Real-World Connections and Applications
Chapter 6: Applying Action Research Outcomes to Educational Settings
Article
Hollis, J. L. (1995). Sample action research report 1: Effect of technology in enthusiasm for learning science. Retrieved from http://www.sagepub.com/mertler3study/resources/reports/88896_sr1.pdf
This sample action research report is required for this week’s assignment.
Multimedia
Wienot Films. (2011, May 9). How to give an awesome (PowerPoint) presentation [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i68a6M5FFBc
Wienot Films creates fun, simple, yet effective animated whiteboard explainer videos turning complex ideas into concise, easy to understand stories. The essential “rules” for creating effective presentations is here.
Accessibility Statement
Privacy Policy
Recommended Resources
Multimedia
Brooks, K. (2010, January 5). Tutorial for Voki [Slideshare]. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/kbrooks/tutorial-for-voki-2834271
Provides a how-to-guide for setting up this alternative, fun presentation format.
Kostanecki, M. (2013, January 26). 4 scientific reasons why your PowerPoint presentation sucks (and the 2 tips you need to fix it) [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLGLtnRopJM
This video uses PowToon to show you how to make an effective PowerPoint presentation and provides scientific evidence of how our brains process bullet points and other factors commonly associated with PowerPoint presentations.
Ritter-Guth, B. (2008, May 26). Voice thread tutorial [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1--CdU4pljg
How to create and share your presentation through video and audio formats.
Websites
Jing (http://www.techsmith.com/jing.html)
Present.me (https://present.me)
Voki (http://www.voki.com)
VoiceThread (http://voicethread.com)
Discussion
To participate in the following discussion, go to this week's Discussion link in the left navigation.
Mock Action Research Proposal Presentation
As you prepare for your Final Project, take this opportunity to create a mock presentation using PowerPoint, or other professional presentation software and present your action research proposal to your peers through Jing, Present.me, or PowerPoint to create your presentation with both a visual and audio component.
Your visual presentation must include all nine components of the action research plan and follow the guidelines for creating effective presentations as discussed in the required and recommended video tutorials located in the recommended and required readings section.
In order to ensure your viewers experience the full effect of your mock proposal, it is imperative that your voice and a visual presentation complement each other as you explain all nine of its components. Therefore, it is a requirement you include the video component with audio as you share your action research proposal.
You must keep your presentation under five minutes. Keep in mind, the emphasis is more on you and your ability to share your knowledge, heart, and passion about your topic, while leading your viewers through the nine components of your mock action research proposal. Your visual presentation will provide the main points of each of the nine components, as you follow the seven by seven rule. But your oral complement will elaborate to fill in the blanks between those main points. Thus, you will have the opportunity to provide all the details, important information, and passion behind it to your audience verbally. This will not only appeal to both visual and auditory learners, simultaneously, it will make your presentation more enjoyable and enriching for both you and your viewers. Include a link to your presentation or attach it to your discussion post.
Guided Response: View and respond to at least two peers. As you move through the forum, if you see that some classmates’ posts do not have any posted responses, please view their video and respond so everyone receives feedback. Provide each other with the following constructive feedback:Areas of strength regarding their action research plan itself
Areas of strength regarding their presentation (think of the tutorial tips)
Pose a question regarding what you saw and heard in their presentation. Were there any components that were not entirely clear?
Make a recommendation for improving or enhancing an element of their work so as to be better prepared for their final action research proposal project.
*It is expected you follow-up by the last day of the week to provide a secondary response to any comments or questions your instructor may have provided. This is part of the grading criteria as a demonstration of critical thinking.
Carefully review the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to evaluate this Discussion Thread.
Assignment
To complete the following assignment, go to this week's Assignment link in the left navigation.
Sample Action Research Report Evaluation
Instructions: The purpose of this assignment is for you to review a FINISHED action research report showing the entire planning process and allowing you to put together visibly, what a finished action research proposal consists of including the planning stage you are responsible for in this course as well as the results portion of the report for which you will be responsible for in EDU675 (MAED students). Having this exposure to a finished report should help you make connections with what you’ve been planning as well as what you will be actually implementing through your proposed intervention/innovation once you begin EDU675.
According to Mills (2014), “To evaluate a research study competently, you must have knowledge of each component of the research process” (p. 215). For this assignment, you will consider all that you have learned and practiced up to this point in our course and apply criteria for evaluating action research to the following: Sample Action Research Report 1: Effect of Technology in Enthusiasm for Learning Science. Finally, you will include a self-reflection. Note that it is acceptable to write in the first-person voice in the reflection.
Content
The assignment needs to include the following areas of content.Area of Focus (1 point): Describe the area of focus and whether it involves teaching and learning. Include support from the literature where appropriate.
Research Questions (0.5 point): List the research questions and discuss whether the researcher states questions that were answerable given the researcher’s expertise, time, and resources.
Locus of Control (1 point): Discuss the locus of control and whether the area of focus was within the researcher’s locus of control.
Data Collection (1 point): Describe the data collection techniques and whether the researcher used appropriate data collection techniques to answer the study’s research questions (e.g., qualitative and/or quantitative). Include support from the literature in your description.
Ethics (1 point): Describe the ethical challenges the researcher faced and how they were resolved.
Reflective Stance (1.5 points): Explain the ways the action research effort contributed to the researcher’s reflective stance on the ways teaching and learning are viewed.
Action (0.5 point): Describe the actions that resulted from the study.
Action-Data Connection (1.5 points): Describe how the proposed action connects to the study’s data analysis and interpretation.
Reflection - Learning (0.5 point): Describe what you learned from this study and the process of evaluating it, considering what insight this researcher gave you indirectly regarding the process of action research.
Reflection – Application (0.5 point): Describe what you have taken away from this experience for use in your Final Project in this course.
Written Communication
The assignment needs to adhere to the following areas for written communication.
Page Requirement (0.25 point): The assignment must be three to five pages, not including title and references pages.
APA Formatting (0.25 point): Use APA formatting consistently throughout.
Syntax and Mechanics (0.25 point): Display meticulous comprehension and organization of syntax and mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. Your written work should contain no errors and be very easy to understand.
Source Requirement (0.25 point): Use no less than two scholarly sources in addition to the sample action research report, which may be your course textbooks. All sources on the reference page need to be used and cited correctly within the body of the assignment.
Review and Submit the Assignment
Review your assignment with the Grading Rubric to be sure you have achieved the distinguished levels of performance for each criterion. Next, submit the assignment to the course room for evaluation no later than day 7 of the week.
Week 5 - Instructor Guidance
Introduction
Welcome to Week Five! This week will be full of eye-opening opportunities, making the steps of the action research process come together cohesively.
Before moving any further, please take a moment to review and reflect on our learning expectations for the week.
Weekly Learning Outcomes
Create a nine-step action research plan proposal in digital presentation format.
Critique your own writing rituals.
Evaluate a sample action research plan.
Draw conclusions on the evaluation process and your own action research plan proposal.Create and justify intervention plan.
Week Five Overview
In Week Five, you will have the unique opportunity to create a visual representation of your final action research plan proposal and share it with your classmates. You will stretch outside of the traditional way of sharing work by creating a mock presentation via video for us to view and respond to with constructive feedback; feedback you can then apply to your summative assignment. Next, you will learn about writing rituals and determine the current state of your own writing practices, finding additional ways to improve your practice.
Discussion 1: Mock Action Research Proposal Presentation. As you prepare for your Final Project, take this opportunity to create a mock presentation using PowerPoint, or other professional presentation software and present your action research proposal to your peers through VoiceThread, Jing, Voki, or other screencast digital tool.
Assignment 1: Sample Action Research Report Evaluation. In this assignment you will discuss and justify your area of focus, research questions, locus of control, data collection, ethics, reflective stance, action and action-data connection. You will also provide a self-reflection on any take-aways from this study and the process of evaluating the study, what insights did the research give you regarding the process of action research and how will you apply it to your final project?
Intellectual Elaboration
Writing Rituals
Writing has long been a way for people to express themselves. Written language has been around for about 5000 years, and in that time, people have written countless words in countless forms. Once the province of the learned few, writing is now a recognized part of basic education. Its close connection to reading (writers need readers) makes writing an even more valuable thing to know and skill to have. And, of course, in an online classroom setting like this on, it is of necessity a key academic skill to master.
While writing is a skill that many possess, there is no one way that writing is accomplished—there are as many approaches to writing as there are people. To be sure, there are many similarities, but there are infinite individual nuances within these similarities. This essay will examine writing rituals and their importance.
Rituals
People are creatures of habit, and among these habits are rituals. In its broadest sense, a ritual is a set pattern of default behavior that people turn to, often unconsciously, in key situations. The ritual is often first developed by noting and observing others, then is individually modified to suit individual needs. What is telling about rituals is that they are very ingrained in our behavior, and disrupting the ritual can disrupt our actions and even diminish the meaning of the ritual. This is true in many types of rituals, including writing.
Writing Rituals - Environment, Time, and Behavior
Observationally speaking, writing rituals can take many forms, but according to one study, there appear to be three key elements in creating a writing ritual (O’Shaughnessy, et.al., 2002). They are environment, time, and behavior. Environment includes, but is not limited to, where a writer writes, clean or cluttered, music or no music, pencils/pens/computers, etc. This set of environmental factors matter—if they are right, the writer can work productively. If not, they serve as distractors.
When considering time, many serious writers have a set time each day to conduct their writing. This is often early or late in the day, but can really be any time that works for the individual writer. Churchill, for example, who made his living in part as a free-lance journalist, did much of his writing late in the evening. What is (nearly) certain about this is that the time of day that writing is done is very important, and seldom deviated from.
As for behavior, O’Shaughnessy, et. Al. (2002, para 15) note that “The behaviors of the writers we surveyed can be described as rehearsed (as opposed to spontaneous), repetitious, and seemingly unrelated to the work at hand.” These are, additionally, highly idiosyncratic, and set additional conditions so that the writer can write.
Application of Writing Rituals to Our Work
As a practical matter, we should be thinking about our own writing rituals and how they help (or hinder) our ability to be productive in our writing. If we need background noise to be able to be productive, then we need to organize our environment to include this. In order to write well, then we need to arrange for a steady supply. And if we need the latest computer technology to write well, then we need to set about obtaining one. The bottom line, particularly as it concerns your work as graduate students, is to be able to organize things in the way that you can be the most productive. This becomes your writing ritual and following it can lead to success.
Have a great week!
References
Guiding Instincts (www.guidinginstincts.com)
Hollis, J. (1995). Sample action research report 1: Effect of technology in enthusiasm for learning science. Retrieved from http://www.sagepub.com/mertler3study/resources/reports/88896_sr1.pdf
O’Shaughnessy, K, McDonald, C., Maher, H., & Dobie, A. (2002). Who, what, when, and where of writing rituals. The Quarterly 24(4). Retrieved from http://www.nwp.org/cs/public/print/resource/456
