There are some significant issues that I can foresee in implementing my plan. As a reminder, my plan is to research the causes of disproportionately low number of minority students, and particularly African American student participation in extra-curricular activities.
1. a. The primary concern I have in doing this involves the social reception of the plan, itself. Race is such a hot button issue that many do not like to bring it up or recognize problems when they exist, at all. Many people simply choose to "look the other way" and don't want to recognize the importance of diversity. Or, perhaps, they don't think there is anything that can be done, since basically, extra-curricular activity is voluntary and it would be impossible to force students to get involved.
b. Others may simply think that because this project does not have a direct link to core subject curriculum that it is not a worthwhile project to undertake. Therefore receptiveness in the data or even participation in finding the data could possibly be lacking.
c. Other challenges involve the logistics of conducting the research. I anticipate a challenge in developing the surveys and coming up with questions to ask in interviews. The questions will need to be pointed and direct, but sensitive to people's own feelings and background. Futher, this is the kind of subject that can easily devolve into subjects or side-subjects that are irrelevant to the research. Staying completely on topic will be a challenge.
2. Here is how I plan to address these issues:
a. Be sensitive. Approach every interviewee with the knowledge that everyone's opinions are based on a unique and varied person history regarding race and race relations. Therefore, I will not enter into a line of questioning attempting to push a particular adgenda other than the stated research inquiry. While being sensitive to my interview subjects it will also be important to be direct with the questions. Mitigated questioning on difficult topics can make the interviewee think that I believe there is something wrong with the line of questions. The questions should be direct, unnapoligetic, but keep in mind the sensitive nature of the topic.
b. For those who do not feel that this this topic is worthwhile I will need to find research and a basis for my claim that core subject success is bolstered by extra and co-curricular involvement. At the moment, I believe that this information is out there, but have yet to get my hands on anything concrete. And, if some still do not wish to recognize the importance of the research that is their choice. Hopefully, however, those leaders of the school who make decisions will be receptive to the idea of improving co-curricular involvement and recognize the data.
c. As for developing the research itself, as I stated before the questions will need to be sensitive, but direct. This will also help in keeping the interview on topic and free of diversion.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
ACTION PLANNING
Goal: To find ways to increase participation in extra-curricular activities by black students at Travis High School, in order to more equally represent the racial make-up of the student body.
Objective: This would ultimately serve the purpose of increasing the number of black students who are prepared for and attractive to colleges and employers. Additionally, extra-curricular activities will ideally act as an incentive to perform on standardized tests as well as classroom material.
Person(s) Timeline: Needed
Action Step(s) Responsible Start/End Resources Evaluation
1. Interview Various sponsors of sports, fine arts and other service oriented or honor societies regarding the number of African American students participating in their respective organizations. Kyle Martin August 17-30 Example questions, List of school organizations, data on the number of African American students enrolled Compare findings with succeeding steps and surveys.
2. Develop a survey for students to answer regarding their organizational involvement, either extra or co-curricular. Kyle Martin September 1-5 Examples of previous surveys Share survey with Site Supervisor, requesting feedback.
3. Contact area and statewide high schools with common racial make-up as Travis. Determine which schools would be most beneficial from such research and which schools would be most helpful. Kyle Martin September 1-5 Contact information and demographics for district and other nearby schools. Contact and demographic information for schools in similar high schools in other parts of the state. Compare the demographics of selected schools with that of Travis to determine whether the selected school is similar in racial make-up and socio-economic status to Travis and therefore would be an appropriate comparison.
4. Conduct survey with various core subject classes. Contact area and state wide schools to gain permission to conduct the same survey on their campuses for the purpose of comparison Kyle Martin, various core subject teachers September 6-10 Course and level schedule for schools selected to participate in the survey. Data obtained through surveys will be compared to the interviews conducted with organizational sponsors’ interviews. Data will also be compared amongst the various schools.
5. Contact schools where there is a higher rate of black student involvement in extra-curricular activity. Request meetings with organizational sponsors and administrators Kyle Martin October 11-15 Administrative Inquiry and statement of goal. Series of questions directed toward finding out the schools’ faculties’ take on the issue at hand. Similar questions to those used with sponsors at Travis will be used. Compare the answers and attitudes of those interviewed with those of the sponsors at Travis.
6. Based on the findings at Travis as well as area and statewide participating schools develop a plan to encourage African American students to participate in school organizations, extra and co-curricular activities Kyle Martin, organizational sponsors, site supervisor. October 18-22 Collected data and interview bullets Share recommendations with Site supervisor as well as sponsors and other administrators. Put recommendations into practice and evaluate improvement over time.
7. Form a committee of stakeholders (students, teachers, administrators, etc.) to discuss this issue. Discuss the reasoning for the research and the feelings of those in the group discussion about how things can be changed, and whether they should be changed. Kyle Martin Complete by November 12 Data and observations collected in previous steps Record discussion and share with other teachers and administrators that are not present. Get feedback.
Objective: This would ultimately serve the purpose of increasing the number of black students who are prepared for and attractive to colleges and employers. Additionally, extra-curricular activities will ideally act as an incentive to perform on standardized tests as well as classroom material.
Person(s) Timeline: Needed
Action Step(s) Responsible Start/End Resources Evaluation
1. Interview Various sponsors of sports, fine arts and other service oriented or honor societies regarding the number of African American students participating in their respective organizations. Kyle Martin August 17-30 Example questions, List of school organizations, data on the number of African American students enrolled Compare findings with succeeding steps and surveys.
2. Develop a survey for students to answer regarding their organizational involvement, either extra or co-curricular. Kyle Martin September 1-5 Examples of previous surveys Share survey with Site Supervisor, requesting feedback.
3. Contact area and statewide high schools with common racial make-up as Travis. Determine which schools would be most beneficial from such research and which schools would be most helpful. Kyle Martin September 1-5 Contact information and demographics for district and other nearby schools. Contact and demographic information for schools in similar high schools in other parts of the state. Compare the demographics of selected schools with that of Travis to determine whether the selected school is similar in racial make-up and socio-economic status to Travis and therefore would be an appropriate comparison.
4. Conduct survey with various core subject classes. Contact area and state wide schools to gain permission to conduct the same survey on their campuses for the purpose of comparison Kyle Martin, various core subject teachers September 6-10 Course and level schedule for schools selected to participate in the survey. Data obtained through surveys will be compared to the interviews conducted with organizational sponsors’ interviews. Data will also be compared amongst the various schools.
5. Contact schools where there is a higher rate of black student involvement in extra-curricular activity. Request meetings with organizational sponsors and administrators Kyle Martin October 11-15 Administrative Inquiry and statement of goal. Series of questions directed toward finding out the schools’ faculties’ take on the issue at hand. Similar questions to those used with sponsors at Travis will be used. Compare the answers and attitudes of those interviewed with those of the sponsors at Travis.
6. Based on the findings at Travis as well as area and statewide participating schools develop a plan to encourage African American students to participate in school organizations, extra and co-curricular activities Kyle Martin, organizational sponsors, site supervisor. October 18-22 Collected data and interview bullets Share recommendations with Site supervisor as well as sponsors and other administrators. Put recommendations into practice and evaluate improvement over time.
7. Form a committee of stakeholders (students, teachers, administrators, etc.) to discuss this issue. Discuss the reasoning for the research and the feelings of those in the group discussion about how things can be changed, and whether they should be changed. Kyle Martin Complete by November 12 Data and observations collected in previous steps Record discussion and share with other teachers and administrators that are not present. Get feedback.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
How this blog can be used
Blogs are an excellent way to share ideas and to get feedback on a given topic. I've been using a blog for several years now, although I've been a little MIA as of a couple of years ago. While I was writing I used it for a variety of things. Before Twitter I would use it to update friends on things that I was involved in or point them toward a link that I found interesting. More than that, though, I used it to express my opinions on things that concerned me regarding film, art, politics, etc. My friends, or whomever wished to respond would give me feedback and I learned a lot about myself and about people at large through, sometimes quite heated, discussions.
I imagine that my action research blog will serve in a similar way. I will post ideas that I have regarding my project as well as various findings and hopefully receive feedback that will enable me to consider multiple views of the work I'm doing.
I imagine that my action research blog will serve in a similar way. I will post ideas that I have regarding my project as well as various findings and hopefully receive feedback that will enable me to consider multiple views of the work I'm doing.
What I've learned about Action Research
I think that action research is more along the lines of how I expect true research is done. Rather than just gathering information that has already been found by someone else, action research exists to solve real problems and find real explanations for questions that educators often have. I often find myself wondering "why does our school have such-and-such issue," or "why do we do things this way?" I imagine that I'm not alone and many teachers and administrators wonder this. Action research is a means by which one can discover the answers to our questions. It is the job of the principal to answer these questions and find a solution. If it is a problem having to do with a disparity between achievement between socio-economic groups then action research can be conducted to help discover the problem and hopefully lead to a solution. There may be a rule or policy put into place years ago to solve a particular problem. The policy may take time and energy away from other, more pressing issues and the problem may not even exist anymore. An example of this would be rules against torn jeans. The administration, at one point, deemed torn jeans to be a distraction and therefore it is against the dress code for students to wear jeans with frayed edges or holes. However, in the current culture, it has become much more common for jeans to have a "worn" look and, in fact, many jeans are now sold this way. It is no longer, within the larger cultural setting, seen as taboo or a distraction and therefore it is simply not worth the time or the effort to ensure that every student is wearing jeans without holes in the knees or frayed cuffs.
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