Steps of Action Research Plan

1. Examining the work:
Define if our Stakeholders determine that bullying is an issue that needs some type of intervention. This will be done by interviewing the different stakeholders- Administrators, Teachers, Staff, Parents, and Students. I would also ask them what their opinion is of what can be done about bullying at school.

2. Analyzing data
I will use a variety of data gathering to build up a stronger base on the problem of bullying- causes, intervention strategies. I will try and collect data from success stories from similar schools. Initially I will look to the internet- Google bullying to find out what is happening in other schools and how they deal with it. I will also investigate anti-bullying campaigns and programs that have been successful.

3. Developing deeper understanding
To dig deeper I would like to interview administrators from other schools that have been successful dealing with bullying or lessening the effects at their campus. I would also research literature and other articles to answer new questions as they come up. I realize there is an extensive amount of literature on bullying so I will try and focus on information that have been written on programs in schools that are similar to my campus.

4. Engaging in Self-Reflection
I would reflect on if the information of what I have researched up to now, these programs have produced positive results in their schools? What were the difficulties they encountered to change bullying habits at their school? Who was involved in the programs? Will these programs be able to be adapted successfully at my school? What modifications will need to be made? How were these programs evaluated? How are the programs ongoing or sustainable?

5. Exploring Programmatic
I will form a Site Based Decision Making Committee to help formulate the action plan. The committee will include Mari Dillon the General Director, Ana Bonilla- school Psychologist, two experienced teachers (one from upper elementary, and one from lower elementary), and myself. I will give them an overview of the information I have researched to give them some background on the problem. I would like to get their feedback on what things they think are essential for successful project implementation as well as pitfalls and difficulties we might encounter.

6. Determining direction
Working with the same Site Based Decision Making Committee I will try to determine direction by answering the following questions as well as any others that have come in the process up until this point:
· Is everyone clear that we are trying to lessen the effects (or get rid of all together) of bullying in our school?
· Do I feel like we have done adequate research in trying to understand bullying and read up on other anti bullying programs?
· Have we established a collaborative approach with all the stakeholders (Administrators, Teachers, Staff, Parents, and Students) as well as made all decision and plan of action with a SBDM committee?
· Are our time lines as well as people responsible realistic?
· Have we determined how the plan will be monitored and by whom?
· How will we determine if we have been successful (evaluated)?
· Will it be difficult to make modifications and improvements if necessary to the plan if problems arise?
· How will we make sure the plan is ongoing or sustainable (if successful)?

7. Taking action for school improvement
I will work with the SBDM committee mentioned above to develop a template (or use the one from section 2) to assign responsibility to steps, a timeline, resources necessary and how the step will be evaluated. We will also work together to prepare a summative evaluation once the plan is finished and present this information to the stakeholders.

8. Sustaining improvement
Working with the SBDM Committee we will identify successes of the program as well as pitfalls. We will share the results with the stakeholders as well as other interested colleagues that were involved in the research. We will also determine how the anti-bullying program will continue and remain sustainable. We would also evaluate the entire action research process and see what would be changed or duplicated for the next action research project.

The Purpose and Significance of My Action Research

The purpose of my proposed action research study:
I plan on researching bullying in schools. I would like to find out more about successful anti bullying programs in other similar schools. How did they get started? What techniques do they use that have made them successful? What obstacles have they run into? How do they differentiate anti bullying tactics for physical, emotional, and cyber bullying?

The significance of my proposed action research study (who will benefit and how will they benefit):
The information gathered from this research will benefit most of the stakeholders of the school, most importantly the children. I would like to implement a program that is deemed most likely to have success with the bullying problem at my school. Hopefully the children at the school will be taught ways to deal with bullies and bullying and alternatives to being a bully. I realized that bullying has existed in schools since the beginning. I just feel at this point our school isn’t doing anything about it and some type of program is better than nothing.

How Educational Leaders might use blogs

Blogs are a very effective tool for educational leaders. They can be used to write about issues at their school as well as any action research they are doing to improve their schools. The blog format allows other educational leaders to post comments and provide feedback and create a professional learning community.

Action Research and How educators can use it

Administrative inquiry or action research is a process that administrators undertake to somehow improve a certain aspect of their profession. They can do this in a variety of ways- by researching literature, interviews, observations, or any other means that might shed more light on the area they are investigating. Another component of action research is the administrator or researcher takes action to make the necessary changes based on what they learned from their research. “Whether you are studying to be a school administrator or are a veteran administrator with years of experience but faced with new educational challenges every day, administrator inquiry becomes a powerful vehicle for learning and school improvement” (Dana 2009).

Something that I found interesting about action research is that it is something that has been happening in schools for the last several years. As teachers have moved from a more traditional teaching model of standing in front of a class and lecturing, to being a facilitator of learning, they have been teaching students how to use action research to further their own education. Teachers have also been using action research in their own professional development to improve the quality of their teaching. Now it has moved on to administrators to use action research in their world.

I might use action research in any area of the school that might need improvement. I would spend time reflecting on the problem to define the issue. I would then review the professional literature to see how other administrators deal with the issue. I would then formulate and implement an action plan for my school on how to improve this issue. Finally I would use and share the results.

Dana, N.F. (2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.