Week 3 - Steps to Follow in My Action Research Plan

1. SETTING THE FOUNDATIONThrough discussions with my colleagues, an unsatisfactory feeling has emerged concerning the productivity and effectiveness of our current daily grade level team meetings. My action research project and plan will focus on the question: Will a new PLC agenda and structure prove to be more effective than our current grade level team meeting agenda and structure?

2. ANALYZING DATAI will use the data from other schools successful use of the PLC agenda and structure. I will also research the successes and failures of using a PLC agenda and explore how to effectively utilize them in our meetings.From my research I found that not all schools utilize a specific PLC structure and that they make alterations to meet the school’s and teachers’ specific needs.

3. DEVELOPING DEEPER UNDERSTANDINGI will use an online survey to assess the teachers’ opinions and satisfaction of our team meetings before and after the implementation of the new agenda and structure. These surveys will also include an area for teachers to write in their own comments and recommendations. I will also utilize faculty meetings to present findings and keep the teachers up to date. Before I introduce the new agenda and structure options, I will meet with my principal to discuss my findings and create a list of appropriate options for the teachers to choose from.

4. ENGAGING IN SELF-REFLECTIONOver the course of my study, I may find that my own personal opinion of what agenda items and structure to utilize was not chosen as the most popular vote. I will have to continually engage in self-reflection to make sure that I have the teachers’ best interests at hand as a group and not as an individual.

5. EXPLORING PROGRAMATIC PATTERNSMy principal and I will have to discuss pros and cons of each plausible solution before we can present the options to the teachers. I will continually be in communication with my principal to discuss her observations, recommendations, and possible requirements of a T-STEM academy meeting agenda.

6. DETERMINING DIRECTIONThe purpose of this action research project and plan is to see if a new PLC agenda and structure will prove to be more effective than our current grade level team meeting agenda and structure. The main goal is to change the current low level of productivity and ineffectiveness in our grade level team meetings. Teachers in the T-STEM academy, our principal, and myself will collaborate to resolve this issue. The timeline for a successful completion and implementation of this project has been carefully planned and will be followed. Monitoring will be conducted frequently by myself, the teachers, and my principal to ensure the accurate incorporation of the new agenda and structure. The success of the plan will be determined by the teachers through a survey since their opinion of productivity and effectiveness of the meetings is the focus of the project. Based on a final survey given to the teachers after implementing the new agenda and structure, any necessary revisions and improvements will be made to improve our meetings.

7. TAKING ACTION FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENTBy conducting frequent surveys of the teachers’ satisfaction of the agenda and structure and eliciting recommendations from other schools and my principal, our meetings will improve. I will use the Harris et. al. Tool 7.1 Action Planning Template, p. 85 will be used to help my plan stay on track.

8. SUSTAINING IMPROVEMENTA report summarizing my findings and benefits will be shared with the schools that I solicited examples from and with my principal. If the plan proves to be effective, implementation will continue in the following years with continued evaluation through teacher surveys.