This course has been my favorite out of the two that I have done. I have learned very valuable information during these five weeks. Like everybody else, I was aware of the most common type of educational research there is. The research that is done by outside experts that are not in the classroom or school campus on a daily basis. I have always thought that these outside experts do not really know what is actually going on and thus far their research is in some cases ineffective. The research can work if you have the same type of students that they had in the case study. Unfortunately, as all educators know no two students are alike and they do not all learn the same way. In some cases this makes it very difficult for this type of outside research to be effective. This being said I have come to appreciate action research since it is based on the researcher’s wonderings. Action research is a process in which administrators examine their own educational practice systematically and they take action on what has been learned.

        Being an aspiring administrator, there are thousands of concerns that I question that could help improve my current campus. Upon meeting with my principal, I expressed various concerns and asked her advice as to which topic I should look more into. I was very intrigued by several issues that I have seen in my six years as a special education teacher. I finally came to a settlement on which topic I feel more passionate about. My question is; How effective are tutorials for special education students? This wondering was brought about from my years in special education as a Resource/Inclusion teacher at the beinging of my career.

        We were also given the opportunity of listening to some excellent examples of experienced leaders that LAMAR University has produced. There were two interviews that caught my attention as to what they had to say. One of them was Dr. Timothy Chargois, Director of Research Planning and Development-Beaumont ISD and Dr. Kirk Lewis, Superintendent of Pasadena ISD. Both of them gave excellent points on how important it is to conduct action research within you campus/district. One comment that caught my attention and is still on my mind was mentioned by Dr. Lewis, he states how in order for this method of research to be effective, the topic needs to have direct meaning and connection towards you. As I mentioned in week 2 I agree with his comment and believe my topic has a real connection with me. Also, with the methods that we learned in week 4 they will allow me to gather more information for the improvement of my topic. I will use the Delphi Method but not exactly as it is intended since I will not be summarizing the teachers’ answers when I meet with them in regards to each student’s performance.

        The discussion board and blog have been very helpful in developing my action research plan. In the sense that I have had the opportunity to look at what others are doing and how there plans are formatted. This helped because it made me go back and look at my plan and make sure that I had explained all of the areas of the plan well. I also received several comments that were very encouraging and I hope that I also encouraged others with their research plans. I look forward to reading the progress of some of the action research plans that I am following and I hope others also look forward to reading mine. 

This week we were asked to meet with our site supervisor and have them review our Action Research Plan. I was very pleased with my meeting. My site supervisor had very positive things to say about my research. On my research plan she asked me to add two more areas of concern. They were student participation during tutorials and support for PASS students. I look forward to start creating my checklist for my research plan and meeting with the teachers.

Action Planning Template
Goal: How effective are tutorials for special education students?
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Create inquiry for action research plan.	Claudia Garza	January/February 2012	Idea(s) inquiry plan	Approval and recommendation from site supervisor
Select 3 students to  monitor	Claudia Garza & Julissa Alcantar-Martinez	February  2012	List of all special education students on campus	Receive feedback from site supervisor on student selection
Grades from previous district assessments and CBA’s	Claudia Garza	February 2012	Eduphoria (software program)	Review data
Meet with the students teachers to discuss students grades and performance	Claudia Garza & students teachers	February 2012	Grade book	Receive feedback from teachers regarding students
Create a checklist of student attendance to tutorials (Saturday, before and after school) with their grades	Claudia Garza	February 2012	Dates of tutorials offered to students
Monitor student attendance and grades	Claudia Garza	February-April 2012	Checklist	Evaluate and organize information gathered
Report findings to site supervisor	Julissa Alcantar	May 2012	Raw data on the projects findings	Receive feedback and suggestions from site supervisor
Complete draft of report based on findings	Claudia Garza	September 2012	Data	Revision of drafts and editing when necessary
Submit final report finding to site supervisor	Julissa Alcantar	September 2012	Final Draft	Receive approval of action research

Format based on Tool 7.1 from Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010)

After reading this weeks assigned chapters I am very excited to start my research. There are many areas that interest me but my soft spot has always been special education. I know that my research topic will take time and effort but the information learned from it will be beneficial for everybody. My research will be on how effective are tutorials for special education students. My focus will be based on data which will include student grades after attending tutorials. The data will be collected from benchmarks, district assessments, and weekly tests. I am looking forward to start this new adventure.

Week 1 Research in Action.

This week we were asked to read from two very interesting books. They were Leading with passion and knowledge: The Principal as Action Research by Nancy Fitchtman Dana, and Examining what we do to improve our schools: 8 steps from analysis to action by Sandra Harris, Stacy Edmonson, and Julie Combs.

I was aware of what research was and what it consisted of. A question is posed and several means of data are then gathered to solve the question. What I was not aware was of this specific type of action research. In action research, the educator poses the question and the research is done by the educator with the goal in mind to improve his/hers own practice within the actual school. One of the things that I liked about action research is that the educator is the one doing the actual research and not an outside source like it is customary.

I believe I can use action research in various ways in my educational goals. Action research can be utilized to verify if the instructional approach being used is being effective. I can also use it to asses differentiated instruction with my students. Action research is something that I will use constantly in the future not only on my masters degree.

Blogging is an ideal form of communication for educators since we tend to be so focused on our students we don't have time communicate with other educators during the day. The blog allows you to build a learning network  in which you can learn from other people and vice versa. Bloggers can learn about your research, leave comments, and also help you when you have some concerns.