As I began my reflection of this course, I couldn’t help but think of the image that I had of the course before it began. I had a colleague that had taken this course several months ago, and he had somewhat warned me about the course and its requirements. Also, this is my last course in the program, and I have taken it at the same time as my internship course in order to graduate. I would have to say that from what I had heard before, and what I experienced in this course, the changes that have been made to the course are great. I really enjoyed the activities of the course, and I feel as though I have become better prepared to be an action researcher. I know that it would have been better to have taken this course earlier in the program because of the help that it would have been in the internship and other courses. However, because of the interest that I have in my research, I will complete my project even though I have completed my degree. You were successful in your objective for the course, because you have turned me into a teacher/principal researcher.
I felt as though the lectures and the assignments were directly related to what we were learning that week. The progression of the course built up to a research project that is ready to be implemented. There were times in the course when I felt as though some of the work was repetitive, but perhaps that repetitiveness is what provided the focus on the most important points. The template that we used for the action research plan was particularly helpful in developing and organizing my work into a working plan. The textbooks for the course were especially helpful. The Dana text was really a well prepared text that I will use throughout my career. It would be an excellent book for a future book study of a leadership team.
The discussion boards and the blogs also provided the interaction with peers that helped develop our research plans. It helps to see others viewpoints on topics and it really help when others provide feedback on your plans. One adjustment that I would recommend would be assigning specific groups within the course for feedback. This was done in an earlier course, and it forces each person in the group to give feedback on their plan. The blogs were something that was new for me. The technology course was the first time that I ever experienced this type of medium, and I believe this is something we will all be using in the future. It was beneficial to look at others blogs and see the creativity of the other student’s plans.
As a future leader, I can see the importance of action research in our schools. Action research is facilitating the importance of data-driven decisions in our schools. All schools are different and therefore have different needs. Action research provides the data for a school to make decisions that are applicable to that campus, not just because it is the latest trend. The process of action research is something that I will definitely use as a leader. I want to be able to make decisions based on data that is from my school rather that someone else’s.
Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with passion and knowledge: The principal as an action researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
