Wes Akers

How did your participation in course activities this month contribute to your understanding of action research (specifically) and the role of research in educational technology (generally)?

I have gained the most clarity around action research by reading and writing about the peer reviewed articles.  By reading the articles from an action researcher perspective, I have been able to identify steps other action researchers have completed in their process and recognize the implications my observations have on my group’s project.  

1. While researching, I will continue to observe components of adolescent identity positively impacted by art.  If I continue to make these observations, I think I will be better able to craft questions for individual or small group interviews.
2. When planning data collection methods, I want to design the tools within the context that participants will complete a survey or questionnaire before and after an exercise.  I have noticed many researchers comparing pre and post data to observe changes in participants.  Although I think this might be difficult for me since I’m not currently teaching the public art / graffiti unit, I will be able to acquire a data set from my current sixth graders that can act as “pre” data and a data set from seventh and eighth graders that can act as “post” data.  
3. When analyzing data, I need to use a framework to categorize data to assist in finding common themes and trends.  Using a framework will provide me with the mindset I need when reading, evaluating, and organizing data.  Without a specified framework, I feel like I will be sifting through data aimlessly.

What preconceptions about research have you changed because of your learning this month?

Before beginning the course, I had the perception that research started with a problem and a hypothesis and end with a report.  Now, I realize meaningful research involves action and collaboration.  For research to be meaningful, it needs to evaluate a problem in a way that incites change and impacts stakeholders and participants.  I have also realized participants must be active in creating and interacting with data.  Most importantly, however, I have learned action research gets messy and takes a variety of forms.  

How have you relied upon networks – with peers, via social media – to advance your learning this month?

Twitter and Google have been the networks I have relied upon the most to advance my learning with my peers.  Twitter has been a great way to share resources and access my classmates’ blogs.  It has been easy to stay connected because I get alerts on my iPhone.  This convenience allows me to connect with my classmates while I am at work.  My group has been using Google Docs and Hangout to collaborate.  This has been helpful because are able to work on our team document at the same time.  The live chats have also helped us develop a more personal relationship.  We are able to bounce ideas off one another freely and reach consensus about our understanding and direction of our project.

Ask yourself a question about your research activities, and provide a meaningful answer.

How can I become a more active learner in Canvas?

I have struggled to stay up-to-date with the conversations on Canvas; I often feel late to the party without much to add.  It is largely because I feel behind in the reading the textbook and lack meaningful contribution.  I also feel overwhelmed by the questions.  To start, I think it will be helpful to establish a better schedule for logging into Canvas to participate in the discussion.  My plan is to log in before work to comment on my classmates’ ideas because I will have enough time before work to accomplish that goal.  During the first few days of the cycle, I will login to Canvas the first few evenings of a cycle to add my responses to questions.  I think this will give me the time to consult my thinking with the textbook.  If I can make adjusts in my schedule to be a better participant throughout the week, I will be able to use my large chunks of time during the weekends to focus on my research project and scholarly critiques.

What are your enduring curiosities about (action) research, and how might you pursue these interests?

I continue to be curious about data collection, analysis, and synthesis, specifically the different frameworks researchers use to organize and categorize data.  I will keep exploring this interest in my scholarly critiques by observing how other researchers interact with their data.  By observing other researchers actions, I feel I will interact with my data more efficiently and I will be better equipped to help my group identify the common themes or trends across all our data.