Wow, one of my hesitations in selecting an online degree program was that I didn't feel that I would learn as much as I would learn in a traditional classroom setting. So far, I'm finding the readings that have been selected for us to be profoundly insightful. I can't say enough good things about the Leadership/Internship Plan book from course 1, and this Dana book, wow. It really explains action research and gives great examples from different principals on different campuses from elementary to high school. I have really learned what action research is. It's those wonderings I've had over the last 9 years of teaching. But it's not just wondering. It's doing something about your wondering. I really like that the book actually uses the term "wonderings," because that's really what it is. You have something going on and you begin to "wonder". And that wondering becomes action research. I'm excited to take many of my wonderings and put them into action research. But, one at a time of course.

How Educational Leaders Might Use Blogs

There are numerous ways that educational leaders can use blogs. Since an exceptional educational leader would be one who engages in regular action research, I think that educational leader could utilize blogging by having one location for reflection and for data recording. A blog offers the ability to keep pictures and keeps things in a reverse chronological order, so it's a nice way to journal and reflect along the way. By sharing a blog, the educational leader is expanding the collaboration efforts and is inviting feedback from colleagues, thus furthering the effort to expand important factors such as trust and buy-in.

What I have learned about action research:

Action research is something I think that can easily be pushed aside as an administrator has more than enough on their plate to fill several days without sleep. But, I really think this can be said for a teacher as well. As a teacher, I know that as soon as I feel caught up, I'm drowning again. Between planning, grading, contacting parents, and conferencing students, there's always an abundance to do. People who sit down and analyze their data must have too much time on their hands. Maybe I can give them some papers to grade. Or so I used to think. Action research is extremely important. It's not just one person sitting down and doing some research. It's really a collaboration of colleagues working together on a relevant topic for the ultimate goal of making things better for our students. It's not something you try to find the time to do; it's something that you make the time for. Action research should be something that is built into the work week ahead of time, on a regular basis, so that you're sure that it gets done. I think of it as a really great functioning PLC. The results can be profound because everything is relevant. Instead of researching someone else's data or trying to implement someone else's plan for their issues, you're able to gather your own data, in your own community, on your own campus, and collaborate with colleagues that you see and work with every single day. Action research is a very valuable tool that, if used regularly and treated very seriously, can have profound impact on an individual campus or even a district as a whole.