Ahead of the Game

As I reflect on this week's assignment and this class, I am encouraged to find, that even though we didn't call it "Action Research," this is exactly what I participated in at my last district.

We had weekly (sometimes twice a monthly) planned reflection times with other teachers. We brought other ideas (of other teachers) to the table. We discussed what could work, what would not work, and why, why, why. Then we sought more ideas. The process repeated over and over throughout the school year, and the entire time the teachers were using their own ideas and strategies to improve curriculum, student learning, and scores.

After practicing this Action Research philosophy for three years, our school achieved recognized status.