ACTION RESEARCH AND CLASSROOM ACTION RESEARCH DEFINITION

1. Action research is conducted by teachers and for teachers. It is small scale,

contextualized, localized, and aimed at discovering, developing, or monitoring
changes to practice (Wallace, 2000).
2. Action research is a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by
individuals working with others in teams or as part of a "community of practice" to
improve the way they address issues and solve problems. Action research is done
simply by action, hence the name. Action research can also be undertaken by larger
organizations or institutions, assisted or guided by professional researchers, with the
aim of improving their strategies, practices, and knowledge of the environments
within which they practice.

3. According to Geoffrey E. Mills, Action research is any systematic inquiry conducted

by teacher researchers, principals, school counselors, or other stakeholders in the
teaching/learning environment to gather information about how their particular school
operates, how they teach, and how well their students learn. This information is
gathered with the goals of gaining insights, developing reflective practice, effecting
positive changes in the school environment, and improving student outcomes and the
lives of those involved.

4. Action Research is a form of self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in

social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of (a) their own social
or educational practices, (b) their understanding of these practices, and (c) the
situations in which the practices are carried out. (Carr and Kemmis 1986)

5. Classroom Action Research is the process through which the teachers collaborate in
evaluating their practice jointly; raise awareness of their personal theory; articulate a
shared conception of values; tryout new strategies to render the values expressed in
their practice more consistent with the educational values they espouse; record their
work in a form which is readily available to and understandable by other teachers; and
thus develop a shared theory of teaching by researching practice (John Elliot)

6. Classroom Action Research is research designed to help a teacher find out what is
happening in her or his classroom, and to use that information to make wise decisions
 for the future. Method can be qualitative or quantitative, descriptive or experimental.
(Indiana University South Bend, Division of Education)
7. Mills (2003) provides definition of action research: Action research is any systematic
inquiry conducted by teacher researchers to gather information about the ways that
their particular school operates, how they teach, and how well their students learn.
The information is gathered with the goals of gaining insight, developing reflective
practice, effecting positive changes in the school environment and on educational
practices in general, and improving student outcomes. (p. 4)
8. Classroom Action Research (CAR) is systematic inquiry with the goal of informing
practice in a particular situation. CAR is a way for instructors to discover what works
best in their own classroom situation, thus allowing informed decisions about
teaching. 

9. Action research, sometimes called "practitioner research," is a reflective investigation

of a personal interest, problem or challenge.  The process begins with the
development of questions, which may be answered by the collection of data. Action
implies that the practitioner will be acting as the collector of data, the analyst, and the
interpreter of results.

10. Action research is a systematic form of inquiry that is collective, collaborative, self-
reflective, critical, and undertaken by the participants of the inquiry [McCutcheon, G.
& Jung, B. (1990).

HISTORY OF ACTION RESEARCH

1.  The origins of action research are unclear within the literature. Authors such as
Kemmis and McTaggert (1988), Zuber-Skerrit (1992), Holter and Schwartz-Barcott
(1993) state that action research originated with Kurt Lewin, an American
psychologist. McKernan (1988 as cited in McKernan 1991) states that action research
as a method of inquiry has evolved over the last century and careful study of the
literature shows "clearly and convincingly that action research is a root derivative of
the scientific method' reaching back to the Science in Education movement of the late
nineteenth century." (McKernan 1991:8)
 McKernan (1991:8) also states that there is evidence of the use of action research by a
number of social reformists prior to Lewin, such as Collier in 1945, Lippitt and Radke
in 1946 and Corey in 1953. McTaggert (1992:2) cites work by Gstettner and Altricher
which has a physician named Moreno using group participation in 1913 in a
community development initiative with prostitutes in Vienna. Freideres (1992:3-4)
asserts that the concept of participatory research emerged in the 1970s from
development work in low income countries and mentions names such as Fals-Borda
and Freideres.

Despite the clouded origins of action research, Kurt Lewin, in the mid 1940s
constructed a theory of action research, which described action research as
"proceeding in a spiral of steps, each of which is composed of planning, action and
the evaluation of the result of action" (Kemmis and McTaggert 1990:8). Lewin argued
that in order to "understand and change certain social practices, social scientists have
to include practitioners from the real social world in all phases of inquiry" (McKernan
1991:10). This construction of action research theory by Lewin made action research
a method of acceptable inquiry. (McKernan 1991:9)

2. The idea of using research in a “natural” setting to change the way that the researcher
interacts with that setting can be traced back to Kurt Lewin, a social psychologist and
educator whose work on action research was developed throughout the 1940s in the
United States. “Lewin is credited with coining the term ‘action research’ to describe
work that did not separate the investigation from the action needed to solve the
problem” (McFarland & Stansell, 1993, p. 14). Topics chosen for his study related
directly to the context of the issue. His process was cyclical, involving a “non-linear
pattern of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting on the changes in the social
situations” (Noffke & Stevenson, 1995, p. 2). Stephen Corey at Teachers College at
Columbia University was among the first to use action research in the field of
education. He believed that the scientific method in education would bring about
change because educators would be involved in both the research and the application
of information. Corey summed up much of the thought behind this fledgling branch of
inquiry. We are convinced that the disposition to study…the consequences of our own
teaching is more likely to change and improve our practices than is reading about
what someone else has discovered of his teaching. (Corey, 1953, p. 70)
3. Action Research: A Brief History of Action Research
The idea of using research in a “natural” setting to change the way that the researcher
interacts with that setting can be traced back to Kurt Lewin, a social psychologist and
educator whose work on action research was developed throughout the 1940s in the
United States. “Lewin is credited with coining the term ‘action research’ to describe
work that did not separate the investigation from the action needed to solve the
problem” (McFarland & Stansell, 1993, p. 14). Topics chosen for his study related
directly to the context of the issue. His process was cyclical, involving a “non-linear
pattern of planning, acting, observing, and reflecting on the changes in the social
situations” (Noffke & Stevenson, 1995, p. 2).
Stephen Corey at Teachers College at Columbia University was among the first to use
action research in the field of education. He believed that the scientific method in
education would bring about change because educators would be involved in both the
research and the application of information. Corey summed up much of the thought
behind this fledgling branch of inquiry.
We are convinced that the disposition to study…the consequences of our own
teaching is more likely to change and improve our practices than is reading about
what someone else has discovered of his teaching. (Corey, 1953, p. 70) Corey
believed that the value of action research is in the change that occurs in everyday
practice rather than the generalization to a broader audience. He saw the need for
teachers and researchers to work together. However, in the mid 1950s, action research
was attacked as unscientific, little more than common sense, and the work of amateurs
(McFarland & Stansell, 1993, p. 15). Interest in action research waned over the next
few years as experiments with research designs and quantitative data collection
became the norm.
By the 1970s we saw again the emergence of action research. Education practitioners
questioned the applicability of scientific research designs and methodologies as a
means to solve education issues. The results of many of these federally funded
projects were seen as theoretical, not grounded in practice. The practice of action
research is again visible and seen to hold great value. Over time, the definition has
taken on many meanings. It is now often seen as a tool for professional development,
bringing a greater focus on the teacher than before (Noffke & Stevenson, 1995). It is
increasingly becoming a tool for school reform, as its very individual focus allows for
a new engagement in educational change.
Action research emphasizes the involvement of teachers in problems in their own
classrooms and has as its primary goal the in-service training and development of the
teacher rather than the acquisition of general knowledge in the field of education.
(Borg, 1965, p. 313)
 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FORMAL RESEARCH AND ACTION
RESEARCH

TOPIC FORMAL RESEARCH ACTION RESEARCH

Training needed by Extensive On own or with consultation
researcher
Goals of research Knowledge that is generalizable Knowledge to apply to the
local situation
Method of Review of previous research Problems or goals currently
identifying the faced
problem to be
studied
Procedure for Extensive, using primary sources More cursory, using
literature review secondary sources
Sampling approach Random or representative Students or clients with whom
sampling they work
Research design Rigorous control, long time frame Looser procedures, change
during study; quick time
frame; control through
triangulation
Measurement Evaluate and pretest measures Convenient measures or
procedures standardized tests
Data analysis Statistical tests; qualitative Focus on practical, not
techniques statistical significance;
present raw data
Application of Emphasis on theoretical Emphasis on practical
results significance significance
 REFERENCES
http://salamku7.blogspot.com/2010/04/classroom-action-research_15.html

http://www.answers.com/topic/participatory-action-research

http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/transform/teachers/teacher-development-tools/action-
research

http://technologysource.org/extra/113/definition/3/

http://www3.telus.net/linguisticsissues/actionresearch

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_research

http://fromlearningtoteaching.blogspot.com/2010/02/action-research-brief-history-of-
action.html

http://action-research-brief-history-of-action.html

http://rmc.upsi.edu.my/v2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=779&Itemid=108

http://www.arlecchino.org/ildottore/mwsd/group2final-comparison.html
 ECAR ASSIGNMENT
Definition, History, and Differences between Action
and Formal Research

Created by :

PRETTY ELISA AYU NINGSIH A1B008006

ENGLISH STUDY PROGRAM

THE FACULTY OF TEACHER TRAINING AND EDUCATION

UNIVERSITY OF BENGKULU

2011