Reflections

This course has allowed me to explore an idea that I’ve wondered about for a while.  Middle school is an awkward time for both parents and students.  Students are trying to figure out who they are and how to manage themselves.  Parents are trying to allow students to take on more responsibility without overwhelming them.  Parenting styles and philosophies also differ greatly about when a student should be allowed to care for themselves unsupervised for long periods of time.  All of these factors led me to wonder about after school care for middle school students.  This course has given me the tools to know how to take that wondering and turn it into a project that fits the culture of my school right now as we try to engage students in the school community.  I will use the process explained and defined by Dana in Leading with Passion and Knowledge as a guide for my project. I really enjoyed the blogging part of the course as well.  I would like to use blogging in the future to communicate with my staff, students, and parents when I am a principal.  Our district and the education community as a whole in encouraging the use of technology.  I believe that blogging can also help teach the students how to communicate professionally with others.  I’ve started my own personal blog as a result of using a blog in this course.

Revised Action Research Plan

The only thing that I revised was the dates for evaluation to include them in the time period of the degree program.  I will probably still evaluate the program after I am finished with my degree, but I want to have a final evaluation before I graduate.

Action Planning Template
Goal:  Increase standardized test results and school culture through an after-school program designed to meet the needs of middle school students unsupervised after the school day.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Determine which students will be included in focus group by conducting a survey through Advisory class (facetime).	Sarah Landry and teachers	February 2012 and again in August 2012	Survey created by S. Landry	How many and who are the students who are unsupervised after school?
Review programs from other schools that are currently in place on the elementary level and middle school level.	Sarah Landry	February 2012 – May 2012	Other programs for similar populations	Which programs were effective in reaching the focus group?
Survey students to determine what they would like in an after school program (i.e. what activities, what type of setting, which teachers, etc.)	Sarah Landry	March 2012 and again in August 2012	Survey created by S. Landry	What are the common characteristics that students mentioned?
Examine what ideas I have that I feel are necessary to the success of the program and compare those to what the students said in the survey and what the data reveals in reviewing other programs.	Sarah Landry	April 2012 and again in August 2012	Survey results and results from analyzing data from other schools	What are the common characteristics and the differences in my thoughts and the data?

Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Explore the programs of other schools to find patterns that may reveal why a certain program is successful or unsuccessful.	Sarah Landry	April 2012 – June 2012	Details about programs from other schools	Was bias present in any of the programs researched?  How can I eliminate bias from my program?
Create a program that meets the needs of the students and the school culture based on the data from the surveys and research of other successful programs.	Sarah Landry and Principals	May 2012 – June 2012	Data from all of the research	What characteristics will our program have?  Who will be involved?
Write a grant to fund the program for one year.	Sarah Landry	May 2012 – June 2012	Grant information	Did the grant get approved?
Implement the program, introduce and promote with students.	Sarah Landry and entire Staff	May 2012 and again in August 2012	All program characteristics need to be in place	Was everything ready for the first day of the program?
Maintain the program by surveying students periodically to determine if effectiveness is still being maximized.	Sarah Landry	October 2012, December 2012, and February 2013	Surveys for students	Is the program meeting the needs of the students and culture?
Analyze student data to determine the results of the program on the students who have been attending.	Sarah Landry	November 2012, March 2013, and May 2013	Student benchmark and STARR results	Are students improving on their scores because they are involved in the program?
Review student attendance to analyze if students like the program.	Sarah Landry	October 2012, December 2012, and February 2013	Student attendance records	Is attendance decreasing, maintaining, or increasing?
Survey students and teachers at the end of the year to determine effectiveness and participation.	Sarah Landry	April 2013	Survey	Is the overall result positive, indifferent, or negative?
Review results from testing and surveys to determine if program should be a part of next year’s programming.	Sarah Landry and Principals	April 2013	All surveys and data	What should we do next year?

Action Planning Template

This week in my course on action research, we planned out our action research project using a template from the Harris, Edmonson, and Combs book Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools.  I thought through how I wanted to approach my project of creating an after school program for middle school students.  My goal is to target the students who are unsupervised after school and create a safe environment that would mimic the ideal situation if a parent could be home after school.  My overall goal is to increase test scores and grades of these students, but a secondary goal would be to create a more positive school climate for these students as well.  Below is the plan as of right now.  I know I may have to adjust or change as I develop the project.

Action Planning Template
Goal:  Increase standardized test results and school culture through an after-school program designed to meet the needs of middle school students unsupervised after the school day.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Determine which students will be included in focus group by conducting a survey through Advisory class (facetime).	Sarah Landry and teachers	February 2012 and again in August 2012	Survey created by S. Landry	How many and who are the students who are unsupervised after school?
Review programs from other schools that are currently in place on the elementary level and middle school level.	Sarah Landry	February 2012 – May 2012	Other programs for similar populations	Which programs were effective in reaching the focus group?
Survey students to determine what they would like in an after school program (i.e. what activities, what type of setting, which teachers, etc.)	Sarah Landry	March 2012 and again in August 2012	Survey created by S. Landry	What are the common characteristics that students mentioned?
Examine what ideas I have that I feel are necessary to the success of the program and compare those to what the students said in the survey and what the data reveals in reviewing other programs.	Sarah Landry	April 2012 and again in August 2012	Survey results and results from analyzing data from other schools	What are the common characteristics and the differences in my thoughts and the data?

Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Explore the programs of other schools to find patterns that may reveal why a certain program is successful or unsuccessful.	Sarah Landry	April 2012 – June 2012	Details about programs from other schools	Was bias present in any of the programs researched?  How can I eliminate bias from my program?
Create a program that meets the needs of the students and the school culture based on the data from the surveys and research of other successful programs.	Sarah Landry and Principals	May 2012 – June 2012	Data from all of the research	What characteristics will our program have?  Who will be involved?
Write a grant to fund the program for one year.	Sarah Landry	May 2012 – June 2012	Grant information	Did the grant get approved?
Implement the program, introduce and promote with students.	Sarah Landry and entire Staff	May 2012 and again in August 2012	All program characteristics need to be in place	Was everything ready for the first day of the program?
Maintain the program by surveying students periodically to determine if effectiveness is still being maximized.	Sarah Landry	October 2012, December 2012, and February 2013	Surveys for students	Is the program meeting the needs of the students and culture?
Analyze student data to determine the results of the program on the students who have been attending.	Sarah Landry	November 2012, March 2013, and May 2013	Student benchmark and STARR results	Are students improving on their scores because they are involved in the program?
Review student attendance to analyze if students like the program.	Sarah Landry	October 2012, December 2012, and February 2013	Student attendance records	Is attendance decreasing, maintaining, or increasing?
Survey students and teachers at the end of the year to determine effectiveness and participation.	Sarah Landry	May 2013	Survey	Is the overall result positive, indifferent, or negative?
Review results from testing and surveys to determine if program should be a part of next year’s programming.	Sarah Landry and Principals	May 2013	All surveys and data	What should we do next year?

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

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010)

Importance of Action Research

Action research is essential to the success of an administrator and a school.  As a future administrator, I believe that I can contribute to the success of a school, but I am also aware that I don't have all of the answers.  I must choose to examine my weaknesses and learn to improve in every aspect of leadership.  I'm a testing coordinator for my school right now.  I am in charge of organizing all of the state and district testing for the campus, down to the last detail.  This job has taught me a lot about asking questions and getting feedback from my staff and from other schools on the best practices for certain procedures.  I've had to learn a lot.  Sometimes I go home and my brain feels full.  This is great preparation for me.  I am learning to ask questions that are important to the success of my campus, which will lead directly into action research when I become a principal.  I'm looking forward to continuing my learning and becoming more inquisitive through action research as I learn more about the process.