As I reflect on this course the first thing that comes to mind is the importance of doing action research to improve schools. According to Harris (2009), “… inquiry is an essential component in order to establish a firm foundation for school improvement.” It is seen as a tool that engages practitioners to seek answers to their concerns and results in improvement of their practices. During the process of looking for an area to do my research, I was surprised to discover that there are many areas at my school that can benefit greatly from action research. I questioned why we aren’t doing more of it if it is a process that results not only in self growth but also in increased student achievement. It also helps to increase collaboration among school leaders and teachers.Another aspect I liked about this course was reading some of the chapters in the book Leading with Passion and Knowledge. The book is very informative, engaging and easy to understand. Having learned about the definition of administrator inquiry/action research and the nine areas of major wondering for leaders, truly provided me with the needed guidance and knowledge to understand what action research is all about as well as reflect on the areas that interest me. This allowed me to choose my topic of interest. I also liked reading about the different strategies to sustain improvement: Field Force Analysis, Delphi Method, CARE model and Normal Group Technique. These strategies can easily be implemented at schools to help leaders to continue to improve those initiatives that are working or to implement new ones.What I found most valuable during this course was creating the blog and being able to collaborate with other teachers. The blog has allowed me to become more reflective and truly look at the issues that need change at my school. Receiving and providing feedback to others through the blog and discussion boards have helped me grow more as a transformational leader.
In order to continue to build on the knowledge gained during this course I plan to involve the science teachers in one of the strategies to sustain improvement I learned about to sort of reflect/evaluate different programs that our department currently has in place to increase student achievement. I look forward to utilizing many of the ideas learned in this course to continue my personal growth as a leader and collaborating with others to improve my school.
In order to continue to build on the knowledge gained during this course I plan to involve the science teachers in one of the strategies to sustain improvement I learned about to sort of reflect/evaluate different programs that our department currently has in place to increase student achievement. I look forward to utilizing many of the ideas learned in this course to continue my personal growth as a leader and collaborating with others to improve my school.
Dana, N.F.(2009). Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The principal as action researcher. Thousand Oaks.CA: Corwin Press.
Harris, S., Edmonson, S., & Combs, J. (2009). Examining what we do to improve our schools: 9 steps from analysis to action. Larchmont, N.Y.: Eye on Education.
