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Descriptors:
Action Research; Teaching Methods; Research Projects; International Studies; Democracy; Classroom Techniques; Foreign Countries; Political Attitudes; Elementary School Students; Teacher Attitudes; Reflection; Student Participation; Teacher Role

Abstract:
Finnish youth are found to be, despite their broad knowledge, uninterested in politics and in societal participation. As a remedy, international studies suggest enabling democratic experiences in schools. This article discusses an action research project aimed at developing deliberation-based democratic practice in an elementary classroom. Results suggest that the formal deliberative-democratic practice opens up a way for pupils to productively express themselves, challenge the prevailing structures, make sense of social reality and, thus, practise skills and motivations needed in democratic citizenship. However, the teacher is argued to be in constant struggle between deliberative-democratic stance and control orientation. This tension exists in the teacher's actions and thinking and in his reflections about the contrast between the classroom practice and the overall school ethos. Therefore, this article suggests using the understanding of this tension in scrutinizing projects aiming at pupil participation and involvement. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Action Research; Children; Foreign Countries; Grounded Theory; Access to Education; Parent Attitudes; Parents; Semi Structured Interviews; Barriers; Preschool Children; Child Care Centers; Nursery Schools

Abstract:
This was a collaborative action research study by lead staff, researchers and parents at the Pen Green Centre for Children and their Families in England. The study focuses on the factors enabling access to children's services by nine parents from challenging family contexts. The critical questions were: What enabled some parents to overcome potential barriers (e.g. gender, ethnicity, language, additional needs) and to access services for their children? What was it about them personally? What was it about the Centre? And what was it about the relationship between them and the Centre that enabled access to be sustained? Using the parents' own words, a grounded theory on the nature of access to early childhood services within a children's centre was developed. It is described as the "architecture of access." (Contains 1 table, 1 figure, and 2 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Early Intervention; Teacher Attitudes; Early Childhood Education; Cultural Pluralism; Action Research; Program Improvement; Educational Improvement; Educational Change; Educational Development; Change Strategies; Integrated Services; Best Practices; Educational Practices

Abstract:
In this article, the author focuses on diversity and working with families in the early childhood field. She has chosen to look to the potential for improvements in the future. It is impossible to predict the future, but there are strategies that can help ensure that practices in early intervention and early childhood special education (EI/ECSE) continue to improve. Evaluation followed by action often results in positive change. Therefore, the author is proposing five questions that can be used to evaluate, reflect, and take actions to improve educators' practices as the future so relentlessly becomes the present. She stresses that evaluating current services, reflecting on those findings, and making the changes to improve programs and practices require time, energy, and commitment; but it is always worth it. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Experiential Learning; Action Research; Epistemology; Meetings; Reflection; Agenda Setting; Research Needs; Educational Research; Learning Theories; Group Discussion; Focus Groups

Abstract:
The case for the notion of action learning research has been posed and explored in several publications over the past few years. There is no tradition within action learning of understanding it as an approach to research. Within some academic circles, there has been a focus on the "action turn," the development of the notion of actionable knowledge, the epistemology of practice and the research potential of action modalities. Over the past few months, a series of e-mail exchanges between some members of the editorial team of this journal on whether there is any such things as action learning research and how might it be different from action research took place. Out of those exchanges, a colloquium was held to explore the topic at the Third International Conference on Action Learning held in Ashridge in March 2012. Speakers at the colloquium were: (1) David Coghlan; (2) Joe Raelin; (3) Clare Rigg; (4) Jeff Gold; (5) Mike Pedler; (6) Aileen Lawless; and (7) Elaine Allison. In this article, the author provides a flavour of the questions posed so as to encourage a continuing discussion and exploration. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
International Education; Global Approach; International Organizations; Educational Theories; Teacher Education; Researchers; Teacher Role; Critical Thinking; Criticism; Equal Education; Educational Attitudes; Action Research

Abstract:
In this article, we set out from the challenge that globalising synchronisation--usually exemplified by Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and World Bank initiatives--presents for education to argue that the time-space compression effected by globalisation must educationally be dealt with with caution, critical vigilance and a broadening of educational theoretical outlooks. We focus on the demands this raises upon the teacher as a researcher and a critical thinker and claim that meeting such demands presupposes some curricular enrichment of teacher education. We suggest two theoretical frameworks that can effect such enrichment and be made relevant to a critique of the globalising educational synchronisation, namely, the charge of developmentalism and the capabilities approach (Sen, Nussbaum) to equality. We conclude with some indications of the need for a reformulated notion of cosmopolitanism that should be contrasted with those globalising practices that often appear in cosmopolitan guise. (Contains 10 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Boards of Education; Teacher Role; Mathematics Activities; Indigenous Populations; Action Research; Culturally Relevant Education; Preschool Teachers; Elementary School Teachers; Ethnology; Mathematics; Multicultural Education; Instructional Design; Mathematics Instruction; Program Implementation; Teaching Methods; Class Activities

Abstract:
The goal of Indigenous education is that it should be approached on the basis of the Indigenous language and culture; this is also the case with Sami education. The Sami School Board has stated that all teaching in Sami schools should be culturally based, despite the fact that Sami culture-based teaching is not specifically defined. Therefore, teachers themselves must adapt the teaching and as a result, usually no Sami culture-based mathematics teaching takes place. The aim of this article is to discuss Indigenous teachers' experiences with designing and implementing culture-based mathematics activities in Sami preschool and primary school. The teachers' work with culture-based mathematics activities took the form of "Sami cultural thematic work with ethnomathematical content," "Multicultural school mathematics with Sami cultural elements," and "Sami intercultural mathematics teaching." Culture-based mathematics activities took place within an action research study in the Swedish part of Sapmi. Sapmi comprises northern Norway, Sweden, and Finland, as well as the Kola Peninsula in Russia. In the action research study, six teachers conducted culture-based mathematics activities in preschool and primary school on the basis of the action research loop "plan-act-observe-reflect." During the study the teachers changed from a problem-focused perspective to a possibility-focused culture-based teaching perspective characterised by a self-empowered Indigenous teacher role, as a result of which they started to act as agents for Indigenous school change. The concept of "decolonisation" was visible in the teachers' narratives. The teachers' newly developed knowledge about the ethnomathematical research field seemed to enhance their work with Indigenous culture-based mathematics teaching. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Indigenous Populations; Teaching Methods; Foreign Countries; Research Design; Skill Development; Oral Language; Elementary School Students; Creative Teaching; American Indians; Oral Tradition; Language Arts; Disadvantaged; Inclusion; Cultural Differences; Political Influences; Action Research

Abstract:
This paper reports on an innovative approach to oral language development in one British Columbia elementary school, in the context of a larger-scale research project aimed at building cultural inclusive classrooms through the development of imaginative teaching practices. A number of approximately three-week units were designed to lead students through a series of increasingly challenging oral language activities; each unit was developed on the basis of a traditional oral narrative of the Sto:lo, the aboriginal people of the region. In the tradition of design-based research, key features of the units are discussed in connection with pedagogical challenges encountered by the teachers using them. This approach to integrating oral language in the language arts curriculum was effective at promoting engagement by at least some marginalised students, but limited by cultural and political factors that were not addressed in the original research design. Conclusions are drawn for future research on imaginative oral language development. (Contains 1 figure and 1 table.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Museums; Nonschool Educational Programs; Learning; Schools; Educational Improvement; Professional Development; Professional Identity; Teachers; Action Research; Foreign Countries

Abstract:
It seems uncontroversial to claim that museums are unique places of interest with the potential to inspire learners, yet what this means and how it is managed are complex questions. Museum educators' work is currently shaped by accountability requirements typically expressed as visitor targets. Centralised teaching and learning initiatives are presented as "good practice". In opposition to these factors, the action research inquiry discussed here set out to enable the participants to research and reflect upon the challenges of their individual contexts, and to develop ideas for practice that were "bespoke". Deliberation on particular predicaments raised important issues, such as the relationship between schools and museums; the educational value of museums to schools; and the distinctive nature of museum pedagogy. A group of museum educators began with the question: "How can we support teachers in integrating learning in a museum, with the school curriculum, to help raise pupil attainment"? The paper tells the story of the project and includes reflections on the use of action research as a method of personal professional development and organisational problem-solving. (Contains 4 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Outcomes of Education; Health Education; Public Health; Action Research; Professional Education; Transformative Learning; Health Personnel; Foreign Countries; Interdisciplinary Approach; Social Change; Nursing Education; Nutrition; Dietetics; Occupational Therapy; Interviews; Focus Groups; Allied Health Occupations Education; Relevance (Education); Health; Cultural Differences

Abstract:
Transformative learning aims to awaken students to issues of injustice, and to promote their critical analysis of assumptions, beliefs and values that lead to and sustain social inequities, so that they may become agents of social change. This paper introduces the Sensitise Take Action and Reflection (STAR) framework, which encapsulates transformative learning principles, as a tool for educators to enhance student health professionals' capacity and preparedness to address health inequities they are likely to encounter in their future practice. Using an action research methodology within a three-cycle process, STAR was trialled and evaluated by an interdisciplinary team of health educators (n = 25) in an Australian university. Disciplines included: nursing, nutrition and dietetics, public health, occupational therapy and paramedic science. Data were gathered via individual interviews, focus group discussions and field notes, and were analysed inductively, with member-checking of emerging themes to ensure interpretive rigour. The results of this research suggest that STAR is easily understood by users, has relevance for health professional education, and holds promise for producing desired educational outcomes within and across health disciplines. Furthermore, this project could be considered a model for fostering inter-professional collaboration in health education, research and practice. (Contains 3 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Visual Arts; Teaching Methods; Freehand Drawing; Elementary School Students; Males; Reading Difficulties; Literacy; Student Motivation; Popular Culture; Cultural Capital; Student Interests; Action Research; Foreign Countries

Abstract:
This paper reports on a small-scale action research project conducted by two university-based researchers using a visual arts method. The seven-week drawing programme was the second cycle of an action research project. The participants were nine boys of primary school age variously identified by their teachers as reluctant readers and/or as struggling with print literacy. The thematic concerns addressed in the paper fall into two broad categories: motivating learners by drawing on their popular cultural capital and interests, as well as tracing the construction of visual texts as data in action research. Findings are presented in response to the following research questions: What happens to those students who do not or cannot meet the required standards in literacy? What kind of research approach can be utilised or adapted to respond to the literacy practices and behaviours of young people? (Contains 1 table.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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