Improving Teaching With Collaborative Action Research: An ASCD Action Tool

The best instructional practices are driven by research, and when educators become researchers who investigate their own methods, struggles, and problems, they can improve their teaching. That's the essence of collaborative action research, or collegial inquiry.

This action tool guides educators through the learner-centered approach to staff development, helping inquiry groups learn to formulate questions about topics of their own choosing, take action, and then collect and analyze data to answer those questions. The action research process is designed to help you identify the root causes of issues and plan corrective actions while fostering leadership qualities, such as intellectual perseverance, reflective practice, and a commitment to collaboration.

Whether you're new to collaborative action research or want to improve the rigor of your existing process, you can use the practical tools, step-by-step quality-assessment rubrics, and reflection prompts in this book to systematically explore any range of topics, from students' questioning practices to the district's science curriculum.

The tools can also help educators learn to support, respect, and listen to their peers and to capitalize on the various perspectives in a learning community, which can improve the professional learning culture of a school and create a foundation for sustainable growth.

By reflecting on practice through pursuing answers to questions about student needs and school and district goals, educators can use this valuable resource to help improve their teaching and most important students' learning.