In an era of unprecedented challenges and rapid change, community colleges need effective leadership that brings out the best in people, organizations, and communities. This qualitative study was based on interpretive research using appreciative inquiry (AI). AI is based on social constructivist theory and is a collaborative and highly…

This article documents a currently unfolding example of that reclamation, which originated from the desire of evaluators of the "Comprehensive Indian Resources for Community and Law Enforcement" (CIRCLE) Project to make the federally mandated evaluation as useful to the Oglala people as possible. Using the models of participatory action research…

The purpose of this research is to chart the mathematical actions-on-objects young children use to compose geometric shapes. The ultimate goal is the creation of a hypothetical learning trajectory based on previous research, as well as instrumentation to assess levels of learning along the developmental progression underlying the trajectory. We…

This paper describes a small-scale action research project that aimed to increase the effectiveness of a learning support centre within a secondary school. Central to the project was the use of a solution-focused approach with groups of pupils. The added dimension in this project involved a focus on class teacher involvement. The paper discusses…

This article deals with some long-standing philosophical issues concerning the nature of educational theory, its relevance to educational practice and its role in the professional development of teachers. Instead of treating these questions as "theoretical", however, it approaches them through a reflective autobiographical account of the role that…

This article describes the design and results of a descriptive and explorative case study into the development of professional knowledge by teachers through action research and the facilitation of this by teacher educators. The theoretical framework of the study links the Anglo-Saxon Action Research tradition and the German "Allgemeine Didaktik."…

We applied a classroom research model to investigate student understanding of sampling distributions of sample means and the Central Limit Theorem in post-calculus introductory probability and statistics courses. Using a quantitative assessment tool developed by previous researchers and a qualitative assessment tool developed by the authors, we…

This article details the efforts of a department of educational leadership chair and her faculty to reorganize a doctoral program to better meet the changing needs of its students. A modified action research model was used as the conceptual framework to accomplish this undertaking. (Contains 2 figures.)

In this article, the authors expose, for critical review and public scrutiny, their challenge to the critical paradigm as an adequate location for the transformational practice development and research approaches that they are developing in healthcare. Whilst they accept the fundamental assumptions of the critical paradigm, in their view it does…

A photoessay is a group of photographs with a common theme, used as instruction through its presentation, accompanied by narration. Through a qualitative study embedded within an action research process, photoessays have been found to aid knowledge construction through a reinforcement of understanding, feedback, cognitive efficiency, reflection,…

This article is based on a "think piece" produced as a resource for action researchers working within networks of schools. The original article considered the utility of key ideas within knowledge management to practitioner researchers attempting to share their research outcomes with other teachers in their network. This article, rather than…

In this article, the two authors of "Becoming Critical: education, knowledge and action research" look back at the book's history since its publication 20 years ago. We describe how the book was originally written, and the diverse responses and reactions that it has produced. We identify some of the book's inadequacies and limitations,…

This article is a retrospective critique of "Becoming Critical" by Carr & Kemmis. Into it are woven responses to other retrospective reviews of the book by Susan Groundwater-Smith, Susan Noffke, and Carr & Kemmis themselves. The basic argument is that "Becoming Critical" was overdependent on the work of Jurgen Habermas…

The Yale Child Study Center School Development Program (SDP) practices an action research approach to look into obstacles to good teaching and learning in schools, and to reduce or eliminate them. A discussion on the SDP explains how the pilot, field-test and dissemination aspects of the work evolved, the intervention methods used and their…

A purpose-built blend of teaching and learning activities was used with trainee teachers on a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) course, and subsequently evaluated in a cyclical action research study, over a period of two years. The purpose of the blend was to engender the formation of a learning community, by giving them access to each…