Posits that both clients and counselors must be regarded as active agents within the counseling process. Using four phases of counseling, client actions at each phase are viewed in terms of their implications for action planning. Implications are discussed for both counseling practice and evaluation. (Author/JBJ)

Uses action research methods to describe one classroom in order to urge English educators to invite their students to participate in literacy and social action. Suggests ways that Mikhail Bakhtin's literary theory can help English teachers and English educators discover and better understand the link of word and deed. (NH)

Describes reconstruction, at the department level, of an Australian university policy away from norm-referenced assessment to criterion-referenced assessment. Action research methods were conducted including individual and focus group interviews, participant journals, and successive drafts of criteria and standards. Analysis suggested that the use…

This action research study examines the perspectives and voices of students in a postsecondary Japanese class through an authentic project--a pen pal letter exchange. The project's effects on student motivation and learning are analyzed through the lens of the five goals of the national standards: communication, cultures, connections, comparisons,…

Presents a study that measured the impact of a peer-assisted learning (PAL) program on student academic performance, and evaluated student and faculty feedback regarding their experiences with the program. Reports that PAL participants had a significantly higher course success rate than non-participants, and a significantly lower withdrawal rate…

Responds to the article "From Understanding to Action: New Imperatives, New Criteria, New Methods for Interpretive Researchers" (Lincoln, Yvonna), asserting that Lincoln needs to further examine what kinds of action and collaboration are necessary for action-oriented research. Pulls the ideas about action toward a positivist and managerial…

Responds to the article "From Understanding to Action: New Imperatives, New Criteria, New Methods for Interpretive Researchers" (Lincoln, Yvonna), focusing on what Lincoln calls "the leap from understanding to action." Draws from two books: "Excitable Speech, A Politics of the Performative" (Butler, Judith) and "Fields of Play" (Richardson,…

This case study describes an action research project that explored the relationship between a supervisor and a dissertation student who was following an in-service Master's course for teachers. Focuses on initial expectations of both the supervisor and the student in relation to their one-to-one relationship. (Author/LRW)

Presents five key elements of school improvement: effective leadership, teachers at the center of improvement, shared outcomes, action research as staff development, and continuous assessment. These five elements recognize the central role of teachers in lasting school improvement. They can help unlock the full potential of educators so they can…

Reports on a student-based action research project in quality management within a postgraduate education program at Massey University (New Zealand). Finds the program to be complex, interconnected to the wider university system, with poorly defined processes, and unclear assignment of responsibilities. Considers the role of students and other…

Describes an informal research activity in which third grade students invent their own algorithms for multidigit multiplication and division. Discusses teaching implications and action research ideas. (ASK)

Forms part of a themed issue describing "Parent-Kid-Teacher Investigators," a program in which parents, children, and teachers gather regularly to use language and literacy for action research projects. Offers a classroom portrait of these weekly meetings, looking at the process of research and the impact that "learning how to learn" had on all…

The Ottawa, Canada, Emergency Child Care Research Project examined the impact of emergency child-care service on individuals, families, and an Ottawa-based consortium; the effectiveness of emergency child-care service; and features and practices of consortium models in developing and providing human services. Findings indicated that emergency…

Investigated preservice teachers' thinking on research, considering how it might inform approaches to inquiry-oriented teacher education. Surveys and interviews with preservice teachers involved in inquiry-oriented programs indicated that the programs only modestly influenced their thinking about research. To have more influence, goals must be…

This commentary discusses the limitations of traditional research and the benefits of participatory action research (PAR) that changes the stance of the researcher from dispassionate observer to that of friend, ally, and colleague of the "subject". The use of PAR in helping researchers, parents, and advocates work together in promoting…