TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 1

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1 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 1 The Spectrum of Teacher Action Research Projects in Science Classrooms Marissa E. Bellino Jennifer D. Adams The Graduate Center, The City University of New York

2 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 2 Abstract The pressure of today s standards, assessments, and accountability measures leaves little room for teachers to conduct a self-study of their professional world. Current education research privileges research that focuses on quantitative and data driven inquiry that supports today s neoliberal education reform agenda. These education reforms leave little time and space for creative action research endeavors by teachers to reflect on their teaching practice and address the multiple inequalities that are embedded in these reforms. This study looks at the variation in action research projects conducted by secondary science educators in a teacher education program. Action projects ranged in participation with some projects embracing participatory action research (PAR) principles of increased participation of stakeholders aimed at transforming unjust school structures to projects that were teacher focused and uphold the education reforms of high stakes testing, Common Core Learning Standards (CCLS), and teacher evaluation systems. Reflections on the action research process revealed the power of research, the assumptions science teachers hold about research, and the challenges that conducting action research presents in the classroom. Keywords: teacher education, action research, participatory research, reflective practice

3 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 3 The Spectrum of Teacher Action Research Projects in Science Classrooms Introduction The pressure of today s standards, assessments, and accountability measures leaves little room for teachers to conduct a self-study of their professional world. Stenhouse (1975) championed the notion of teachers studying their own work claiming that teachers are the best researchers of their own classrooms because they are the ones who really know the history and background of their pupils and the classroom activities. Teachers tend to conduct research as part of their teacher education program, but it is often viewed as hurdle to clear on the path to graduation and is rarely held onto as a part of the teachers professional practice. There is little incentive, time, space, and support for practitioner inquiry with the multitude of professional responsibilities heaped on teachers. However teachers as researchers can enable them to take control over their own teaching situation allowing individual and collectives to make judgments based on their knowledge and experience and the demands of practical situations (Postholm, 2009). Action research is one form of practitioner inquiry that empowers teachers to study their own classroom situations based on specific needs and generates knowledge and practices that work best and can be shared with others. Embedded in action research is the ideology that the person who has the problem has the solution (Freire 2013) and it involves the study of a problematic situation in an ongoing, systematic and recursive way to take action to change the situation (Pine 2009, p. 30). While there is a long history to action research, rooted in social justice movements worldwide, it has evolved in the current context of educational policies and has been utilized by practitioners in multiple ways and in various settings. Embedded in action research is the epistemological stance that knowledge generation does not have to come solely

4 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 4 from academics with limited experience in education, schools, and classrooms, but that all people by virtue of their experiences have knowledge that can be cogenerated with multiple stakeholders to improve and transform schools. Action research's purpose is to improve social formations by involving participants in a cyclical process of fact-finding, planning, exploratory action, and evaluation (Lewin 1948, p ). It challenges traditional forms of research with its emergent and contingent nature and involves teachers conducting research with participants as opposed to academics conducting research on participants (Savaskan, 2013). Action research incorporates multiple goals including the democratization of power differentials in educational settings, the improvement of student education, and professional growth and identity formation of teachers through self-reflection. In recent years, under the strong influence of neoliberal education policies, teacher action research has been used to serve the purpose of promoting narrow reforms aimed at improving scores on high stakes tests or examining the effectiveness of federal curriculum mandates and instructional methods (Somekh and Zeichner, 2009). As a result, equity and social justice issues at the heart of action research are left out of many practitioner inquiry courses and texts, which instead frame practitioner inquiry as a formulaic strategy that does not challenge underlying social and economic inequalities that are in fact influencing the classroom experience of children (Brydon-Miller and Maguire, 2009). Participatory action research (PAR) moves action research towards the more political end of the spectrum privileging the local cultural, economic, and social contexts of the research inquiry with a commitment to the transformation of schools. Critical Participatory Action Research (PAR) is an epistemology that engages research design, methods, analyses and products through a lens of democratic participation (Torre et al. 2012, p. 1). By partnering with multiple stakeholders (i.e. students, administrators, parents) PAR is

5 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 5 inherently an approach that begins with the needs of those most affected by an oppressive situation and works with them to improve and change their situation. While teacher action research has become the norm in many university teacher education programs, it often takes the shape of benign investigations that do not challenge current education policies and dilute the historical and political nature rooted in action research (Cochran-Smith and Lytle, 1999). The focus of this study is to broadly look at how a cohort of in-service secondary science teachers utilized the action research model of practitioner inquiry in various settings and reflected on their experience as teacher researchers. More specifically, we looked at the spectrum of action research projects conducted to begin to uncover the ways that science teachers positioned themselves with respect to dominant education paradigms and current education policy. Final research reflections revealed teacher learning and challenges faced during the year of conducting action research in urban science classrooms. Methods Course Overview The study utilizes data collected in a research methods course at a city university. The course is a seminar in education research with a focus on science education and takes place during two semesters. The fall semester is centered on current science education research utilizing urban and general research literature as well as the development of basic tools/methodology to collect and analyze data on classroom practice. The course focuses on issues around teaching science in diverse urban settings and with children of diverse abilities, economic, and cultural backgrounds. This second semester is designed for independent work on a specific action research project focusing on data collection and analysis and communication as a praxis of critical reflection on teaching and learning.

6 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 6 Participants Participants were all second year science teachers working in middle and high school classrooms in a large urban school district. All participants entered the teaching profession through an alternative certification program and are finishing their Masters in Secondary Science Education while teaching fulltime in a science classes including biology, earth science, general science, forensic science, and environmental science. Twenty-four teachers were enrolled in the course representing diversity in age, ethnic background, and gender. Data Collection Throughout the year a variety of data were collected from participants in the form of weekly informal reflections using an online course management program, final research action plans, critical research reflections, small group meetings, and one focus group with a small group of teachers specifically utilizing PAR methods. Additionally, a short questionnaire was sent out to teachers one year later asking about the long-term impacts of the action research course and project on their practice. Action Research Projects and Reflections Participants completed a final action plan that outlined their research questions, methods, and findings. Each teacher completed a final reflection based on his or her research findings and on the experience of conducting action research in their classrooms. The final reflections were intended to provide a space for participants to discuss their growth as educators and teacher researchers, the comfort and challenges experienced while conducting action research, and ways action research informed participants teaching praxis. Focus Group

7 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 7 The five teachers that utilized PAR methods in their classrooms sat down to discuss their experiences. Focus group questions were semi-structured around the uniqueness of PAR as an epistemology for conducting research, the specific constraints of this type of methodology, as well as the impact of the research process on both teachers and students. Questionnaire: Action Research One-Year Later Almost one year later, all 24 teachers were asked to complete a short questionnaire through Google Forms reflecting on their experience conducting action research as part of their graduate coursework. There were a total of 6 questions (see Appendix A for questionnaire) focusing on how their teacher practice has been impacted by action research and in what ways. Teachers were also asked if they still utilize action research methods in their classrooms and if they were to conduct and action research project today, what issue or concern it might address. Results Final action research projects were analyzed looking at the following categories: (1) area of investigation, (2) type of investigation (3) use of students as co-researchers and (4) methods used to conduct investigation. Final reflections were analyzed looking at (1) impacts on teacher practice (2) shifting ideas about research and (3) challenges to conducting action research. Focus group data with the teachers who utilized PAR methods was analyzed looking for unique experiences of the teachers and students involved and the unique challenges associated with conduction PAR in a classroom environment. Questionnaire data was analyzed for lasting impacts on teacher practice, ways teachers still draw on aspects of the action research process in their classrooms, and the benefits that teachers experienced having conducted action research. Action Research Projects

8 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 8 The action research projects ranged along the participatory spectrum from projects that were primarily teacher centered to ones that were more student centered. The area of investigation data (Table 1) shows that of the 24 projects, five of the projects drew on the local experience of students through the incorporation of community places including school gardens, neighborhoods, and local parks. Three of the projects were focused on student experiences that were occurring outside of the direct classroom experience of the teacher including afterschool clubs. The remaining 16 projects were focused on investigations taking place inside of the teacher classroom with a specific focus on an intervention (i.e. grouping, literacy, incorporation of arts or technology, breathing, journaling). All of these investigations were aimed at addressing a specific need of the teacher in the classroom. Table 1. General categories of action research projects. Area of Investigation Number of Projects Local Environments (school gardens, neighborhoods, local parks) 5 Grouping Strategies 5 Arts and Technology Integration 5 Literacy Techniques 3 Inside Classroom Interventions (breathing, journaling) 3 Outside Classroom (Clubs, school failure) 3 The type of investigations, use of students as co-researchers, and methods data (Table 2) highlights the variation in the ways teachers approached the action research project and is differentiated based on the larger theoretical paradigm associated with the action research project. Positivist (causal) projects had a natural scientific view of teaching and learning, interpretive projects sought understanding and meaning in teaching and learning, and PAR

9 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 9 projects embraced a critical stance to education research forming research collaboratives with the aim of investigating an issue central to the school community. Fourteen of the teachers approached their research in search of a causal relationship between two variables in the classroom (i.e. The effect of breathing strategies on student focus, the effect of journaling on student test scores, the effect of using video reviews on student test scores). The majority of these projects were narrowly focused on the issues facing teachers within the current education reform movement, specifically student achievement on high stakes exams, implementation of the Common Core Learning Standards, and teacher evaluation systems. These projects represent the concerns that are currently facing new teachers as well as reflect a way of thinking that is evident in science teachers that privileges causal relationships. Of the 14 action research projects that investigated causal factors in the classroom none of the projects utilized students as coresearchers in any aspect of the research project. Using students as co-researchers could have been at any stage in the research process, from determining the research investigation to aiding in data collection and analysis. All of these projects involved teachers conducting research on students as opposed to with students. Even with the utilization of mixed qualitative and quantitative methods (i.e. surveys, interviews, focus groups), the focus of the research was always unidirectional, beginning with the issues of the teacher and guided by the teacher research question. In contrast, the PAR projects all incorporated students in the research process, allowing them to shape the research question, create data collection tools (i.e. surveys, questionnaires), and collect and analyze data. Methods utilized by the PAR teachers also represented a mixed methods approach to data collection. The five interpretive investigations attempted to uncover meaning in multiple school contexts (i.e. the impact of school failure on student perceptions of their school, the impact of using students as co-developers of final

10 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 10 projects) and two of the five projects incorporated students as co-researchers in some capacity of their inquiry process. Methods associated with the interpretive projects were more qualitative in nature including cogenerative dialogues, student journals, and focus groups. Table 2. Types of investigations conducted by science teachers and methods utilized Type of Investigation Number of Projects Number of Projects with Student Researchers Methods utilized Positivist (causal) 14 0 Surveys, interviews, journals, focus groups, test scores PAR 5 5 Photovoice, narrative, field investigations, surveys Interpretive 5 2 Cogenerative dialogue, journals, focus groups Action Research Final Reflections Three overarching themes emerged from the final research reflections related to teacher learning, ideas about research, and challenges to conducting action research in schools today. The power of action research in urban science classrooms. The process of participating in action research allowed teachers to look at their practice more reflexively, contributed to personal and professional growth, learn about their students in unique ways, and see how research directly benefited students. Action research created a teacher identity that is more reflective on teacher practice. Almost all teachers cited a newfound reflexivity in their teaching that was either absent before or was under the conscious surface. Conducting action research over the course of the year allowed teachers to hone this reflective practice and incorporate this way of thinking into their teacher identity.

11 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 11 The results of my action research not only generated a sense of pride in my vocation, but are also extremely useful to a second-year teacher, like myself, whose curriculum and teaching persona is still evolving. Teachers also cited the ways that teacher research allowed them to learn about their students in new ways, particularly on a more personal level that shifted the ways that teachers thought about their students. Now I feel empowered to include all my students regardless of their academic limitation in the science classroom experience. Assumptions about conducting education research. In reflecting upon the research process many teachers discussed the ideas they held about research prior to conducting action research in their classrooms. Upon being introduced to the theory and methodology of action research teachers expressed high levels of discomfort specifically the way that action research challenged their views about scientific research. At the start of this research project I was stuck on developing a methodology that could point to causality.it bothered me that I could not control the many variables within my classroom. Mostly all teachers expressed tensions between the ways they were taught to think about science and research (many teaching fellows come from science backgrounds) and the more emergent and grounded nature of action research. Because many teachers teach the scientific method to their students in class they were more comfortable with generating clear hypotheses, controlling variables, and collecting quantitative data that would lead to valid results. My results were inconclusive.

12 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 12 Most teachers were unfamiliar with qualitative methods that are more often utilized in social science and education research. I have realized the importance and use of qualitative data. I have always valued quantitative data, however this project showed how this type of research necessitates an interpretation of quantitative date with the insights of qualitative data. Challenges to conducting action research in the urban science classroom. Almost all teachers cited multiple challenges to conducting action research in their classrooms. The main challenge that almost all teachers discussed was the time commitment to conducting research atop multiple demands placed on them as new teachers. While I truly enjoyed the experience it also was an added source of stress. Balancing all of my responsibilities inside and outside of teaching, action research was another job to take on. Another common challenge cited was the dual role as teacher and researcher and how to be both at the same time. It was difficulty to observe students while teaching. More specifically with the teachers who conducted PAR were tensions in their role as teacher and researcher as well as the purpose of education towards more critical consciousness or higher test scores. PAR Focus Group All of the PAR projects had aspects of research in common. All five of the teachers conducted their work with a group of students that investigated an issue that was locally situated in the school or neighborhood environment. Projects occurred in local parks, school gardens, and

13 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 13 school neighborhoods. PAR projects utilized the expertise and knowledge of students in coresearcher roles at multiple points along the research process. Student co-researchers helped develop research questions, design data collection techniques, and aided in collective data analysis. The value of learning in local places was a powerful theme for all teachers as they cited the ways that the research was directly able to connect content and skills to the experiences of students. All five of the teachers expressed the tensions of giving up power in the classroom and how while they felt it was important for the authenticity of the research, it challenged their ways of thinking about what their roles are during the research process. PAR as an alternative pedagogical choice turned out to be a positive experience for students and teachers. Both stakeholders experienced a sense of empowerment throughout the research, an increase in confidence around taking risks in the classroom, particularly after teachers observed the ways that PAR gave their students a space to voice who they are and how they see their world. Teachers cited this alternative teaching experience as liberating in many ways but also difficult with the many institutional constraints placed on them and their students. Another challenge many teachers cited was the ways in which PAR work needs to be heavily structured but unstructured enough to allow room for students ideas and needs to emerge. Impacts of Action Research: One-year later Apparent during the entire research process was a constant tension between the search for clear answers to a specific issue and the learning of the process to becoming a reflective practitioner. Many teachers talked about wanting the answer to what makes for the best grouping strategy, literacy strategy, or test taking strategy as opposed to having a deeper understanding that there is no one right answer due to the shifting context in schools and classroom. The struggle between wanting a solution to an immediate issue overlooks the the value of action

14 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 14 research as a process of observing, reflecting, asking questions, taking actions, assessing actions, and asking new questions. Most teachers cited some aspect of the action research process or the an outcome from their action research that they valued and still continue to utilize in their classroom. These included a constantly reflective teaching identity, the incorporation of students into decision making which teachers feel empowers students, facilitates relationships building between students and teachers, and allows teachers to draw upon students experiences. Teachers cited broad strategies or ethics they learned from their action research that they still draw upon including the importance of creating a safe and caring classroom environment, incorporating varieties of grouping strategies, and specific projects that worked well with students. Many teachers still utilize research methods (surveys, cogenerative dialogues) and conduct research in some capacity in their schools and classrooms. When asked what issues they might address today if they were to conduct action research most teachers continued to discuss the day-to-day issues that they face (turn in rates, problem-solving ability, how teachers plan together) without addressing the deeper issues as to why these situations exist. Most teachers look for solutions to problems without a critical investigation of the larger education system and/or the context in which these situations are arising. Discussion The current movement in educational research privileges scientifically based education research calling for narrowly defined quantitative data to drive decisions to improve teaching with little critique of the contexts or purpose of schooling (Brydon-Miller and Maguire, 2009). Constrained by educational and institutional demands, action research as utilized by the group of teachers in this study tended to focus on ways of supporting reform movements towards improvement of standardized test scores, implementation of the Common Core Learning

15 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 15 Standards, and new teacher evaluation systems. In these instances the action research is supporting the status quo and not challenging the oppressive social structures that exist in the classroom, school, community. However when more participatory methodologies were incorporated into the research process the projects embraced the more critical and emancipatory aspects of action research. The incorporation of student s communities and neighborhoods allowed the research to flow from the students challenging traditional education research resulting in a sense of agency among students and teachers. New science teachers bring with them many assumptions about research drawing from their own experiences as teachers of the scientific method. For science teachers, education action research can challenge those assumptions, either unsettling them or reinforcing them. Many science teachers want very clear experimental methods that yield "valid" results and many of their action research projects reflected this tension. Therefore it is important to acknowledge this tension with science educators in the process of introducing action research through the incorporation of the history and political roots of action research as well as the distinction in education research paradigms. Additionally, education policy should privilege the knowledge that teachers and students bring to the classroom and encourage teachers to study their own practice by creating spaces for teachers to conduct research collaboratively, with internal and external (university) support and structures in place. The focus of this study on action research with in-service teachers in a teacher education program and more specifically the use of action research methods to conduct teacher research speaks directly to what it means to be a science educator in our current era of global science education reform. We attempt to provide one answer to the larger question of what it means to be a next generation science educator, the opportunities and challenges that exist, particularly in our

16 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 16 urban schools. This research sheds light on the ways that teacher action research can incorporate the social, cultural, epistemological, ontological, linguistic, personal, and moral dimensions of learning science into science education while at the same time opening up space for emerging and shifting personal and professional identities among science educators.

17 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 17 References Brydon Miller, M., & Maguire, P. (2009). Participatory action research: contributions to the development of practitioner inquiry in education. Educational Action Research, 17(1), Cochran-Smith, M., & Lytle, S. L. (1999). The Teacher Research Movement: A Decade Later. Educational Researcher, 28(7), Freire, P. (2013). Education for critical consciousness. London: Bloomsbury Academic. Lewin, K. (1948). Resolving Social conflicts: Selected papers on group dynamics. (G. W. Lewin, Ed.). New York: Harper & Row. Pine, G. J. (2009). Teacher action research: building knowledge democracies. Los Angeles: Sage. Postholm, M. B. (2009). Research and development work: Developing teachers as researchers or just teachers? Educational Action Research, 17(4), Savaskan, I. P. (2013). Readiness for Action Research: Are Teacher Candidates Ready to Become an Agent of Action Research? International Journal of Innovative Interdisciplinary Research, 2(12), Somekh, B., & Zeichner, K. (2009). Action research for educational reform: Remodelling action research theories and practices in local contexts. Educational Action Research, 17(1), Stenhouse, L. (1975). An introduction to curriculum research and development. London: Heineman. Torre, M. Fine, M., Stoudt, B.. & Fox, M. (2012). Critical participatory action research as public science. In P. Camic, & H. Cooper (Eds.), Handbook of research methods in psychology. Washington, DC: American Psychology Association.

18 TEACHER ACTION RESEARCH IN SCIENCE CLASSROOMS 18 Appendix A Questionnaire for teachers one year later 1. How has your teaching changed as a result of your action research project? Please explain. 2. How has the way you think about your teaching changed as a result of engaging in the action research project?. 3. What have you implemented in your teaching practice that you learned from your action research. 4. Do you continue to conduct action research (in any modified form) as part of your classroom practice? Please explain. 5. If you had to do an action research project in your classroom today, what issues would you want to explore? 6. Is there anything else you would like to add about your experience conducting action research and how it influenced/influences your teaching practice?