Action Research Project Progess

     My action research project is “Will Implementing New Classroom Management Techniques Improve Our Staff’s Morale?”  I attended the training this summer in Denver along with my principal and a colleague.  We learned a great deal in three days and were very invigorated to get this ball rolling!  My colleague and I presented the first module of the program during an hour-long after school workshop.  We then invited teachers to sign up for the next training session in October.  As of today, we have 27 people signed up!  I am really surprised at the positive feedback I’m hearing.  Our teachers are actually using some of the techniques in their classrooms and are experiencing success. 

     I have gathered last year’s discipline referrals and counted them.  Currently, we have seen a lower amount of referrals compared to this time last year.  Our assistant principal seems pleased with the time he has for other things now.

     My principal decided against forming a new discipline committee, so I will have to delete that from my action plan.  We are using the people who have volunteered to attend further training as a PLC, rather than a committee.  We feel that this will serve our staff and students much better.  I liked this idea because these teachers are part of this professional learning community on a volunteer basis, not a mandate.  Sometimes when one is asked to serve on a committee it may be considered as a waste of time.  However, this way, having the option to attend training or not, makes the PLC a more positive learning experience. 

     I have scheduled one workshop per month to teach the classroom management techniques, as suggested by the program’s authors, Jim Fay and Dr. Charles Fay.  I am really feeling good about this action research project and the increase in our staff’s morale already.  It’s off to a great start!

Review of Web Conferences

I'm supposed to comment on how the web conferences helped during this class.  I found them to be frustrating.  The topics addressed were about taking the ILD, getting certification, etc.  I thought the conferences were supposed to help with the weekly assignment.  I would ask a question and get ignored.  I typed one question 3 times during the last web conference.  Nobody answered.  Finally, another classmate had the same question, he asked and got an answer!  I didn't even log in to the last web conference this Sunday.  What was the point?  

4th class, 8 to go

I'm almost finished with my 4th class.  It's getting harder to balance going to work, completing my school work, going to the gym, spending time with family and sleeping!  Plus I'm on the Relay for Life committee and on the activities committee for my HOA.  We are hosting a "National Night Out" event next week.  And it's still 94 degrees in Texas!  What?!   

Other than that, everything is peachy.  My husband is awesome, my daughter makes me proud everyday and my health is good at the present time.  (Scans scheduled for November for those of you who were wondering.)  Until next time...h

Tweaking the plan

It's Week 5 of my action research class.  I participated in a web conference with my mentor who is the superintendent for a district in Texas.  She gave me some valuable advice about my project and my plan to share my ideas with my peers.  I've decided to take her advice about changing the title and focus of my project.  My new title is "Will the implementation of new classroom management techniques improve our staff's morale?"  Earlier, I had included "and increase student achievement" to that title.  It's really two different projects.  My mentor stated the obvious that if the staff's morale does improve, student achievement will likely increase.  With the STAAR data not released, there's no benchmark to use for the students' success rate in 2012.  I'm excited that I've narrowed my focus to see how classroom management impacts staff morale at our campus!

5 Followers!

Hello Followers!  Thank you for reading and commenting on my blog.  I will return the favor if I'm not already following your progress.  Have a safe & Happy 4th of July!

Week 4 Revised Action Plan

Action Planning Template

Goal: Implementation of classroom management techniques to improve staff morale and increase student achievement

Action steps	Persons Responsible	Timeline	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Gather and study 2011-2012’s discipline referrals	Helen Wilt, Amy Locker	July 2012	Discipline reports	Chart number of incidents per grade level/per student/per teacher
Conduct staff development to implement classroom management techniques	Helen Wilt, Lori Meek, Amy Locker	August 2012	Love & Logic DVDs and literature; NEU literature	Studying the amount of discipline referrals; teacher surveys
Continue staff development on classroom management	Helen Wilt, Lori Meek, Amy Locker	September 2012-May 2013	Love & Logic DVDs and literature; NEU literature	Studying the amount of discipline referrals; teacher surveys; classroom observations
Form new discipline committee.  I will suggest a teacher from every grade who are the movers and shakers in the building.	Helen Wilt, Amy Locker	August-September 2012	Information gathered from discipline referrals; results from surveys	This committee will be formed at the beginning of the year and continue to meet throughout the year.  I will suggest the members but my principal has the final word.
Review results from district benchmarks	Helen Wilt	November 2012 and January 2013	Data from DMAC program	I will follow the progress of my 3rd -5th graders in math and reading.
Review results from STAAR test	Helen Wilt	May 2013	Data from the state	I will finalize progress of my 3rd-5th graders in math and reading.
EOY survey on staff morale	Helen Wilt	May 2013	Create survey on morale/school climate	Evaluate results from surveys
Share results with staff during a faculty meeting or team meetings.	Helen Wilt	May-August 2013	Surveys; STAAR data; discipline report for 2012-2013 school year	I will share the results of my project.  Did morale increase? Did our students reach the state’s expectations?

Week 3: My Action Research Project Template

Action Planning Template

Goal: Implementation of classroom management techniques to improve staff morale and increase student achievement

Action steps	Persons Responsible	Timeline	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Gather and study 2011-2012’s discipline referrals	Helen Wilt, Amy Locker	July 2012	Discipline reports	Chart number of incidents per grade level/per student/per teacher
Conduct staff development to implement classroom management techniques	Helen Wilt, Lori Meek, Amy Locker	August 2012	Love & Logic DVDs and literature; NEU literature	Studying the amount of discipline referrals; teacher surveys
Continue staff development on classroom management	Helen Wilt, Lori Meek, Amy Locker	September 2012-May 2013	Love & Logic DVDs and literature; NEU literature	Studying the amount of discipline referrals; teacher surveys; classroom observations
Form new discipline committee	Helen Wilt, Amy Locker	August-September 2012	Information gathered from discipline referrals; results from surveys	This committee will be formed at the beginning of the year and continue to meet throughout the year
Review results from district benchmarks	Helen Wilt	November 2012 and January 2013	Data from DMAC program	I will follow the progress of my 3rd -5th graders in math and reading.
Review results from STAAR test	Helen Wilt	May 2013	Data from the state	I will finalize progress of my 3rd-5th graders in math and reading.
EOY survey on staff morale	Helen Wilt	May 2013	Create survey on morale/school climate	Evaluate results from surveys
Share results with staff	Helen Wilt	May-August 2013	Surveys; STAAR data; discipline report for 2012-2013 school year	I will share the results of my project.  Did morale increase? Did our students reach the state’s expectations?

What I learned in Week 2

I'm really enjoying these classes.  I haven't taken classes since 1991, so I was a bit apprehensive.  What have I learned this week?  I read about the 9 areas for conducting action research in Leading with Passion and Knowledge by Nancy Fichtman Dana.  The 9 areas of passions are: staff development, curriculum development, individual teachers, individual students, school culture, leadership, management, school performance and social justice.  I was surprised by all of the different examples the author wrote about.  I started to think about other topics and wavered on my decision to research about classroom management and school morale.  Am I getting into something that's too big to delve into?
   

Cancer Sucks!

I had to go for my monthly port flush at MD Anderson yesterday.  My oncologist wants me to keep the port in "just in case".  Just in case what?  The cancer comes back?  Something to look forward to.  Note the sarcasm here.  I've been through this twice before.  Third time is not a charm, ok?  But what I was thinking was I sometimes forget that I have cancer.  The day will be going along just great, I'm having fun, singing along with the radio, then it hits me: I have cancer.  I feel the port in my chest.  It's a constant reminder.  In a way, it, the port, helped save my life.  The port is this thing that the chemo flowed through to get into my veins.  It is implanted underneath my skin in my chest. It's a pretty awesome little device actually.

I'm 2 years out from my last treatment.  My hair is still thin but getting longer.  Eyebrows do not want to come back.  After going through chemotherapy twice, my hair is tired!  :)  I look different now.  They say it's my "new normal".  I'll never look or feel the way I did before.  I'm okay with that. In total, it's been 5 years since the diagnosis.  My last scans, x-rays and blood tests show no evidence of cancer cells.  I'm considered terminal though, Stage 4.  There is no stage 5. I'm only 42 and want to squeeze many more years outta this life! I am so happy to be here, present in the moment.  Enjoy every day.  Every single hour.  Those are just my thoughts today.

First Time!

Hi everyone!  I've created a blog.  I've never blogged before so it's my first time.  I'll introduce myself.  My name is Helen and I'm the math specialist for an elementary school in Magnolia, Texas.  I've been in education for 21 years.  Yikes-that makes me sound old!  I'm working on a degree in administration.  I'm a huge Steelers fan, originally from the great city of Pittsburgh.  Ok, going to check out how this looks.  Hey, it worked!  Now I can post my assignment.

 I'm writing this blog as part of my action research.  Action research is slightly different from traditional research in that it involves the people of the institution- the insiders, not the outsiders.  It is also a cyclical process, not a linear one.  In action research or inquiry, as it's sometimes called, we will be posing a question or wondering, collecting data, making a change, evaluating the change and repeating the process.  So we are continuing to reflect on our work.  Is the new program or process efficient?  Is it in the best interest of our students?  I was thinking of using my action research to help me with a project in my internship plan.  One of my projects is implementing new discipline techniques learned from the Love & Logic institute.  I am collecting data, such as our discipline reports from last year and developing a plan with my principal and another colleague.  I will probably survey teachers more formally about their concerns with our current discipline issues.  As the math specialist, I meet with all grade levels a regular basis.  Throughout the year a common complaint was the discipline, or lack of, in our school.  This prompted me to read about different programs and techniques to help with classroom management.  I attended a Love & Logic workshop and was very interested in the authors' techniques to deal with students who are disruptive and disrespectful.  I can see this blog as a way to get more ideas from other educators around the country.  Has anyone used Love & Logic and found it successful?  What other programs or techniques does your school use to help manage those difficult students? 

I think educational leaders would use blogs in the same way I described above.  They could pose a question to other leaders and gain some insight or knowledge from people around the country.  They could also share a successful program or technique their school uses. 

I'm looking forward to learning and blogging with the rest of you!  Don't be a Bump on a Blog-follow me!