Lynn Hartle, Ph.D. Professor of Education

1. Teacher Research: The beginnings……November 11, 2010…of a full inquiry on teaching & learning:It’s just great research-based teaching with “infrared goggles”, a camera, & observation forms!Recently presented at the NAEYC 2010 Annual Conference & Expo November 5, 2010 Anaheim, CA Lynn Hartle, Ph.D. Professor of Education

2. Where Can I Access the Session Information? All handouts, Power Point, Course syllabi, etc are posted for download from the WIKI that I created. • Go to http://teacherresearch-naeyc-nov10-lhartle.wikispaces.com/ lch1@psu.edu with questions.

3. What is Teacher Research? • Teacher research is the disciplined inquiry undertaken by educators and other practitioners in order that they may improve their own practices in their own classrooms. • It is a systematic, reflective and collaborative process used to examine practices and individuals for the purposes of planning change (Calhoun, 2002; Hopkins, 2002; Hubbard & Power, 1993; Jarvis, 1998). • Teacher research is a personal journey, the inspiration, the tools for collecting data and steps for collecting data must also be crafted to the teacher’s study. Every great teacher is a researcher, and can be a GREAT researcher…. …if he/she has to have the skills to be able systematically collect and analyze data

4. Where Education Majors could be in their final internship… In November, Mr. Redfeather realized that ……children in his first grade at Eagle Ridge Elementary had the widest range of math skills he had ever noticed during his three years of teaching. The other two first grade teachers also commented on students' wide range of skills and knowledge. Some children were still working on making sets of numbers 1- 10, while others understood and could perform some simple multiplication problems. Still others were somewhere in between in this continuum of development and could perform simple addition problems by using manipulative materials. That year, Mr. Redfeather had a University intern, Ms. Black, who had an assignment to conduct action research. He considered the intern's project an excellent opportunity to study some changes he had planned to make in his teaching to accommodate children's diverse needs. When Mr. Redfeather told the other two first grade teachers at Eagle Ridge about action research, they wanted to be a part of the project, too.

5. Where we have to start… What is research? …and what is a familiar research activity that is somewhat talked about in the mainstream society / newspapers ? And what research results are (perhaps) used by influential leaders to make decisions? What is relevant to future teachers (education majors)? What’s (relatively) easy to read and understand? What is also (somewhat) controversial to peak some dialogue? ….. GALLUP POLLS….especially the Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools

6. A Time for Change:… …The 42nd Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools BY WILLIAM J. BUSHAW AND SHANE J. LOPEZ (June, 2010) Was NOT: • …someone standing with Microphone on the street corner interviewing randomly • …given to every American, but just a sample of the population • …taken by a lot of college age students - 77% of respondents were Over 40! Was: • …systematic and the same questions were asked of each participant/respondant • …easy to ask the questions and easy to tally responses • …models of how to organize the responses into tables / graphs/ charts..

7. What Freshman Education Majors were asked to do… Not just conducting library research! Adapted from the activity created by Pat VanLeuvan for a previous semester. …after each read the Highlights of the 42nd PDK/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schoolhttp://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/poll.htm. …they were to: --Sign up for one of the EIGHT Sections (based on the key issues this year) of the Gallup Poll Highlights that most interests, joining a group of 2-3 other classmates --Not just replicating… but were to use the same questions to interview PSU Brandywine students …..to compare and contrast their results to the National results. --

8. Eight Sections (key issues) of the … …..of the The 42nd Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools • The federal role in public education • School quality • Teacher salaries and teacher evaluation • Teacher quality and perceptions of the teaching profession • Student learning and rewards • The importance of a college education • Charter schools and parental choice The parents’ perspective about their child’s learning and their child’s future --

9. Example of one of the Questions/related table of finding in One Section of the … …..of the The 42nd Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools The federal role in public education (the first section/key issue) TABLE 1. Let’s say there is a consistently poor-per- forming school in your community. What do you believe would be the best solution? Close the school and reopen with a new principal? Close the school and reopen as a public charter school? Close the school and send the students to other higher per- forming nearby schools? Or, keep the school open with existing teachers and principal and provide comprehensive outside support? National Gallup Poll 2010 Close the school and reopen with new principal. 17% Close the school and reopen as a public charter school. 13% Close the school and send the students to other higher performing nearby schools. 11% Keep the school open with existing teachers and principal and provide comprehensive outside support. 54% Don’t know. 5% --

10. A Survey / Poll… ….is a great place to start since you can gather some quantitative and qualitative data! Quantitative: Tally/Counting/ Ordering-sequencing QualitativeData Qualitative  data  is  information  gathered  in  a  nonnumeric  form.   Interview  transcript*  Field  notes  (notes  taken  in  the  field  being  studied]*  Video    Audio  recordings    Images    [  Work  samples  of  children]  Documents  (reports,  meeting  minutes,  e-­mails] These are the kinds of things you should “notice” then carefully observe and record: • •How many times this happened • •How many times a word or phrase was recorded in your notes • Use the same likert scale as the Gallop pole did… & tally responses

11. Implement systematic and intentional.. Study of your peers (college students) and compare/contrast the results to the Gallop Poll results… ….Plan of Inquiry Supports and steps provided: • Overview /PowerPoint of the Gallop Poll Highlights • Small group work in-class to plan for conducting poll, questions to ask, how to tally responses, etc. • Clear description of each step of the project (linear) with scaffolding, including a rubric to guide/score the final project • Workshop in-class of how to take their college student poll responses and make into tables comparing Gallop Poll data • Examples of different ways they can make their tables/ charts • Examples of how to write the narrative that compares/contrasts their findings

12. Finally… the day for each of the Eight groups to present… • There were a range of kinds of tables/charts from very simple to very complex and differentiated • BUT all groups completed the assignment as described… with at least two columns of data – the Gallup poll and the Penn State student data • One group’s project stands out – Kayla and Dave