Web Conference 3/14/13

I was not able to attend Dr. Cortez-Rucker's web conference live due to a conflict, but I just listened to the recording.  Here are my thoughts.....

The outline provided in this week’s web conference was very helpful as it gave me a visual of what is expected of me in completing my action research assignment.  I really appreciated Dr. Cortez-Rucker walking us through the entire template (i.e. instructions on Times New Roman and size 12 font is good to know!).  I had been using the provided template to work on my project and now it is much clearer on what I need to do.  I also appreciate some of the questions my peers asked for clarification. I am now feeling more confident and ready to make a dent in the project! 

Web Conferences

I know that there are probably many students at Lamar that utilize and need the web conferences for the courses.  They can be a great way to talk live with the professor(s).  I have participated in very few of the web conferences while studying at Lamar.  I feel that they are somewhat ineffective as so many questions are posed at once that the professors cannot always keep up and participants will have to repeat the questions.   Sometimes participants use the conference time as a social hour and those who just a question or two can have their time wasted.  I will usually just email my TA if I need anything answered as they are proficient in answering any questions that I may have. I hate to be negative about a tool that is probably beneficial to others, but it is not something that I use. 

Update on Action Research Plan

In my action research project, I am looking to evaluate the effectiveness of the Behavior Modification Room (BMR) on my campus.  BMR is what we call ISS at Bea Salazar.  It seems that sometimes students are placed in BMR and they quickly adjust their negative behaviors and return to the classroom without incident.  There are other student however, who have multiple placements in BMR.  I want to look at how students’ progress academically, in having good attendance, and behaviorally while in BMR.  I have begun tracking students that have already been placed in BMR this school year.  There have only been two students to date, but I am recording if they complete the 3 day placement on time, if their grades drop or increase during their placement, and whether or not they receive referrals during their placement.  I will need more time and student data before I can make an informed judgment.  I have also begun some research at what programs we could implement to enhance our current program or possibly some alternatives to BMR as a discipline tool.  I have looked at CHAMPS being a way to look at better classroom management to prevent some of the student behaviors that cause BMR placement.  I have also read up on mediation between student and teacher with a school counselor or social worker as another step before BMR placement.  I am interested it trying to incorporate service projects as an alternative but I need to conduct more research and talk to my school’s administration team as to how we can implement service learning without jeopardizing our school’s structure and non-negotiables.  I hope to have more data to act on in the next two months so that I can stream line my research and create an ISS program that will create student success.  

EDLD 5301 Final Reflection

At the beginning of this course, I was very unsure of what I wanted to do for research.  I was really not aware of the role that research plays in the career of a school leader and hadn’t given much thought to it.  After studying and creating my action plan, I gained a new understanding of the vital role that research plays in being an innovative and well-rounded school leader. 

The text resources were a key element in the knowledge that I gained regarding action research.  The Harris, et al text, “Examining What We Do To Improve Our Schools”, was very informative on how to implement research plans in schools.  The text gave very specific examples on what data analysis looks like (pg. 25) as well as how to sustain improvement in schools throughout my career (pg. 94-98).  I can see myself referencing this text throughout my career in order to be a pioneering principal that is dedicated to improvement in schools.   In the text, “Leading with Passion and Knowledge: The Principal as Action Researcher” by Dana, I was given a detailed step by step process on going from a wondering to creating an action research project.  I feel that I will utilize her description on data collection (Chapter 3) when I actually conduct my research project.  

Taking the time to first consider the topic and let colleagues give some insight on the topic via the discussion boards and blogs was imperative to the development of my action plan.  It was so helpful to see what others were doing on their blogs to get jumpstart when I was having a mental block or was unsure on what to do.  Feedback and classmate ideas also gave me so many more ideas, so that by the time I had presented to my site supervisor/principal, he really didn’t have much to be said as improvements.  The dialogue with classmates made me look really good at that meeting!

The assignments that were completed over the course were very helpful.  The assignments broke down the process of creating the action plan, which can seem very daunting at first.  I feel that it was really great to have it broken down so much, as it gave time for reflection and further study.  This is a great model as to how we should also address the research throughout this school year.  I found that first creating the research plan template and then reading the steps to action research outline by Harris, et al (included in the Week 3 Assignment – Part 3) caused great thinking and analysis to make the plan more fluid and comprehensive. 

I am incredibly excited to begin the school year with this action plan in mind, more excited than I have been in the past 7 years of my career.  Action research will now be a part of what I do in education, whether I am a teacher or school leader as it keeps me motivated and creates an environment of innovation on my campus. I am looking forward to what results I do discover as a result of the research project and I hope that my work this year will make a positive impact on my campus. 

Week 4 Blog Post

Based on the responses to the previous posting of my action plan and input from my site supervisor, I made some changes to my action research plan. This is what I have come up with:

OUTCOMES	ACTIVITIES	RESOURCES/ RESEARCH TOOLS NEEDED	RESPONSIBILITY TO ADDRESS ACTIVITIES	TIME LINE	Benchmarks/ Assessment	Revisions to SIP/PIP based on monitoring and assessments
Determine if placement in ISS positively impacts student behavior	Monitor ISS student grades	Access to TEAMS and interview student’s teachers	Ashley Bonilla	August- September 2012	Record data on student grades.  Discuss grades with the student’s advisory teacher.	If grades are maintained of increased need to focus on another area of student achievement.
	Monitor ISS student attendance	Access to TEAMS via Attendance clerk Kim Matlock	Ashley Bonilla	August- September 2012	Record data on student attendance.  Discuss grades with the student’s advisory teacher.	If attendance is maintained of increased need to focus on another area of student achievement.
	Monitor ISS student behavior	Access to student files to view violation reports	Ashley Bonilla	August- September 2012	Record data on student behavior.  Discuss grades with the student’s advisory teacher.	If behavior improves maintained of increased need to focus on another area of student achievement.
	Hold informal meetings with middle school and high school teachers to discuss student progress and ideas for improvement.	Conference time	Ashley Bonilla and Middle and High School Teachers	September 2012
	Conference with ISS teacher and social worker to discuss findings	Conference time	Ashley Bonilla, James Ross, and Kim Connally-Rangel	September 2012
	Share findings with school principal	Conference time	Ashley Bonilla and Pat Hester	September 2012
Research innovative programs to improve ISS classroom	Read educational journals to research ideas to apply to the ISS classroom	Educational journals and books	Ashley Bonilla	September 2012	List out ideas that result from research.
	Conference with ISS teacher and social worker to discuss findings	Conference time	Ashley Bonilla, James Ross, and Kim Connally-Rangel	October 2012
	Reflection	Time to journal	Ashley Bonilla	October 2012
	Share findings with school principal and include findings and changes in Campus Improvement Plan	Conference time	Ashley Bonilla  and Pat Hester	October 2012	After research and conference with others, present findings to principal.	Based on his approval, implement the chosen program and add to the campus improvement plan.
Implement new strategies/program found as a result of research	Plan with ISS teacher about implementation of plan	Conference time	Ashley Bonilla and James Ross	November 2012
	Monitor student data (attendance, grades, and violation reports) during the implementation	Access to TEAMS and student files	Ashley Bonilla	December 2012 - May 2013		During implementation, document what is successful.  If something new implemented is not working, then be open to change.