Teachers As Action Researchers
Read the information below and learn how your school and / or school district can experience ongoing improvement through the implementation of an Action Research Initiative that utilizes the experience and expertise of your teachers guided by Dr. Jim Gamble.
Recent mandates and demands for increased accountability require schools and school districts to establish additional formative assessment tools and more effective school based decision making protocols. Action research is an excellent solution for classroom and school-wide data driven decision-making.
Dr. Jim Gamble has guided groups of teachers in the Action Research Process and provides schools and school districts with the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively engage in this ongoing, researched based, and job embedded decision making initiative.
What exactly is Action Research? Action Research, according to Emily F. Calhoun (1993), “is a fancy way of saying let’s study what’s happening in our school and decide how to make it a better place.”
Action Research can be individual (i.e., teacher-classroom), collaborative (i.e., interdisciplinary or departmental team), or school-wide. Recently Dr. Gamble has been working with three collaborative teacher teams at the Holland Township School. Holland Township is an exemplary school district that has been identified as a “School to Watch” by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform.
Here is what Dr. Nancy Yard, principal of the Holland Township School, says about the professional development that is provided by Dr. Jim Gamble:
"Dr. Jim Gamble knows what it means to be a teacher and a teacher leader. His workshops reach the heart of education; student learning. He immediately connects professional learning with classroom practice. As a participant and professional development planner, I am pleased to know that I can rely on Dr. Jim to provide engaging and effective staff training."
At Holland Township teacher teams are currently designing Action Research studies that focus on improving student study skills, organizational skills, and a school wide initiative that will include recommendations for scheduling formats that will foster student achievement and success.
Your school and school district can also benefit from Dr. Gamble’s guidance.
Forty plus years of experiences in education and a long list of successful professional development initiatives at the local, national, and international levels has enabled Dr. Gamble to effectively design a method for accessing the expertise of teachers for the success of their students. Dr. Gamble’s approach to Action Research is best described as a “common sense step by step process that engages teachers in a research based decision making and school improvement protocol.”
For more information on how you can begin immediately and engage your teachers in a professional development experience that is ongoing and directly benefits their students...
Contact Dr. Jim Gamble at jgamble@fiited.com or call 201-602-4558. As Dr. Gamble states, “The best learners make the best teachers.”
Calhoun, E. Action research: three approaches. Educational Leadership v51, n2 (Oct, 1993):62
