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Saturday, March 16, 2013

Action Research Plan Blueprint

For my action research plan, I will be determining what factors contribute to low reading levels.  After analyzing data, self-reflecting, and collaborating with the teachers who this action research project will be affecting, I will propose a solution to the problem and we will implement the solution at the beginning of the next school year.  Below is the blueprint for my action research project as of March 16, 2013.  Please let me know if you have any suggestions for me!

Action Planning Template
Goal: Determine the factors that contribute to the low reading levels of the current first grade students?  What can teachers do to help improve the low reading levels?
Action Steps(s):
Person(s) Responsible:
Timeline: Start/End
Needed Resources
Evaluation
Step 1: Gather the EOY reading kindergarten levels for all of the students that are now in the first grade and determine the percentage of students that entered first grade below reading level.







Laura Littleton-first grade teacher
Start: April 1st. 2013

End: April 3rd, 2013
EOY DRA levels for all of the first grade students, excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 2: Gather all of the first grade BOY reading levels for all of the first grade students and determine which students scored below reading levels at the beginning of the year.







Laura Littleton-first grade teacher
Start: April 3rd. 2013

End: April 5th, 2013
BOY DRA levels for all of the first grade students, excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 3:  Gather all of the first grade MOY (middle of the year) reading levels for all of the first grade students and determine the percentage of students that scored below reading level.







Laura Littleton-First grade teacher
Start: April 8th, 2013

End: April 12th, 2013
MOY DRA levels for all of the first grade students, excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 4: Gather all of the EOY (end of the year) first grade reading levels for all of the first grade students and determine the percentage of students that scored below reading level.








Laura Littleton- First grade teacher
Start: June 3rd,  2013

End: June 5th, 2013
EOY DRA levels for all of the first grade students, excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 5: Create an excel spread sheet and determine who the kindergarten teacher was for all of the current first grade students and determine the percentages of low reading levels for each kindergarten class.
Laura Littleton- First grade teacher/ Secretary
Start: March 20th, 2013

End:  March 20th, 2013
A list of all of the current first grade students kindergartens teachers from the secretary.
Analyze the data
Step 6: Look at the discipline referrals for the first graders and determine the percentage of students that have discipline referrals that have low reading levels for the beginning, middle, and end of the year. 
Assistant Principal and Laura Littleton- First grade teacher
Start: March 27th, 2013

End: March 27th, 2013
Review all of the first grade discipline referrals for the school year of 2012-2013 from the assistant principal. Excel spreadsheet.
Analyze the data
Step 7: Look at all of the first graders birthdates and determine the percentage of students that have a late birthday that contribute to the low reading levels in first grade at the beginning, middle, and end of the year.
Laura Littleton- First grade teacher and the secretary
Start: April 17th, 2013

End: April 19th, 2013
Birthdates of all first grade students from the secretary, and an excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 8: Determine the percentage of students that are ESL that contribute to the low reading levels in first grade at the beginning, middle, and end of the year.
Laura Littleton- First grade teacher and the ESL teacher
Start: April 17th, 2013

End: April 19th, 2013
The number of ESL students there are in the first grade and which ones are below grade level, ESL teacher, excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 9:  Determine the percentages of low reading levels for different ethnic groups at the beginning, middle, and end of the year.
Laura Littleton- First grade teacher and the secretary
Start: April 24th, 2013

End: April 26th, 2013
Different ethnicities for the first grade students from the secretary and an excel spreadsheet.
Analyze the data
Step 10: Gather data from the Pearson’s Waterford program to see if the students who are using Waterford throughout the year as an intervention are improving with their reading.
Principal and Laura Littleton- First grade teacher
Start: April 24th, 2013

End: April 26th, 2013
Waterford data from Pearson, principal, and an excel spreadsheet
Analyze the data
Step 11:  Determine which students received interventions in kindergarten and the percentages of those students that still receive interventions in first grade at the end of the year.  Determine which interventions are successful and which ones are not.
Laura Littleton- first grade teacher and the counselor
Start: April 24th, 2013
End: April 26th, 2013
The students that received interventions when they were in kindergarten as well as the students who receive interventions in first grade, the counselor, and an excel spreadsheet.
Analyze the data
Step 12: Interview key Stakeholders (First grade teachers) to discuss their possible solutions to the low reading levels in the first grade
First Grade teachers
Start: March 18th, 2012

End:  March 20th, 2013
Interview questions made by me and an excel spreadsheet
Interview Questions
Step 13: Self-reflect on the interventions that I am using in class and determine which ones commonly seem to work and which ones do not.  Determine what interventions I should continue in my plan.
Laura Littleton (myself-first grade teacher)
Start:  March 18th, 2013

End: May 2013
Journal with self-reflection questions
Self-reflection questions answered
Step 14: Exploring Programmatic Patterns- Begin to determine a reasonable solution and meet with the site-supervisor to discuss this.
First Grade Teachers and the principal
Start: June, 2013

End: June, 2013
All of the data, self-reflection questions, interview questions from the other teachers effected, possible solutions
Analyze the data
Step 15: To determine direction of my action research plan, I will analyze all of the data collected, interviews given, self-reflections, meetings with site-supervisor and determine what teachers in kindergarten and first grade need to do differently in order to help the issue of low reading levels.
Laura Littleton- First grade teacher, the principal, the first grade team (teachers)
Start: June 2013

End: July 2013
All of the data that I have collected and entered into an excel spreadsheet, the principal, the first grade team, and the final report document
All of the data that I have collected over all of the different topics, the interviews that I have done, my own self-reflections,
Step 16:  Implement the action research plan that is approved by my site-supervisor and the first grade team.
First grade teachers
Start: August 2013

End:  October 2013
Interview questions, plan design
Interview Questions for all of the teachers to determine if the plan is working
Step 17: Share my results of my action research plan with the principals and all of the first grade and kindergarten  teachers.
Principals. First grade and kindergarten teachers
Start: November 2013

End: November 2013
Power Point presentation/oral presentation
Power Point

4 comments:

  1. Wow, you were very specific and detailed. I took note of some things that I need to add to mine. Nice job!

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  2. Laura, I honestly believe your action research plan is unique and beneficial. Your are using your own findings to solve a problem, that is great. The data from interviewing teachers is powerful too. It is a big task, but it is great that you are going to find your own solution because you are looking at your own factors. I will be one of your followers. I look forward to your findings, specially at the intervention or solution. Wish you the best on your action research.

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  3. Thank you Rebecca! I just added quite a few more things to it after meeting with my site-supervisor. I think it will be a big challenge, but I know that it will be very beneficial to the teachers and the students in the long run.

    Gloria,
    I agree. I think that interviewing and collaborating with teachers is very powerful as well. Since we are on a team, I can share my findings and we can all come up with a solution that we think will work best. I am ready to start collecting data!

    Laura

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  4. Laura you have an outstanding plan in place and one that is beneficial to all school districts. One idea I had for you is to maybe look at any reading programs that are currently being used. For example my elementary principal told me they were exploring a new reading program for basically the same reason for your action research. Are your kindergarten kids on a different program from the 1st graders and so on or are they all on the same??? If it is the same program, is there a deficiency within in it that is preventing reading growth???

    Just some thoughts for you. Good luck!!!

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