Using action research to initiate school-based teacher development activities: insights from Northern Sindh, Pakistan

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Ali Nawab
2020 ◽  
Vol 83 (6) ◽  
pp. 375-386
Author(s):  
Debbie Kramer-Roy ◽  
Denise Hashim ◽  
Nighat Tahir ◽  
Areeba Khan ◽  
Asma Khalid ◽  
...  

Introduction Occupational therapists around the world increasingly seek to support the participation of children with disabilities and special educational needs in mainstream education. Contemporary school-based occupational therapy practice is progressing from an individual, impairment focus towards collaborative, universal interventions at the whole class and whole school level. Participation-focused practice and collaboration is particularly important, but uncommon, in low-resource contexts such as Pakistan. Methods This article reports on collaborative action research that developed the role of occupational therapy in inclusive education in Karachi, Pakistan. A research team consisting of occupational therapists and teachers worked with five local primary schools, using the action research cycles of plan–implement–observe–reflect to develop practical strategies, materials and inclusive lesson plans to facilitate the participation of all children in all school-based occupations. Findings Support from school management and interdisciplinary collaboration were crucial for implementing change. In addition, strategies like inclusive lesson planning were found to benefit all children in class. Collaborative action research led to increased professional confidence in the teachers and occupational therapists, and skill development through developing a resource guide, running workshops and presenting at (inter)national conferences. Conclusion Collaborative action research was an effective means to develop the occupational therapy role in inclusive education practices in Pakistan, develop culturally appropriate educational resources, and upskill local therapists and teachers.


2005 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 147-150

05–334Angelides, Panayiotis, Maria Evangelou & James Leigh (Intercollege, Cyprus), Implementing a collaborative model of action research for teacher development. Educational Action Research (Oxford, UK), 13.2 (2005), 275–290.05–335Brock, Cynthia, Lori Helman & Chitlada Patchen (U of Nevada, USA), Learning to conduct teacher research: exploring the development of mediated understandings. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice (Abingdon, UK) 11.1 (2005), 73–94.05–336Burdelski, Matthew (California U, USA; [email protected]), Close- and open-ended narratives of personal experience: weekly meetings among a supervisor and teaching assistants of a ‘Japanese language education practicum’. Linguistics and Education (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) 15.1–2 (2004), 3–32.05–337Dooly, Melinda (U of Barcelona, Spain), How aware are they? Research into teachers' attitudes about linguistic diversity. Language Awareness (Clevedon, UK) 14.2/3 (2005), 97–112.05–338Ezer, Hanna (Levinsky College of Education, Tel-Aviv, Israel; [email protected]) & Tamar Sivan, ‘Good’ academic writing in Hebrew: the perceptions of pre-service teachers and their instructors. Assessing Writing (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) 10.2 (2005), 117–133.05–339Hayes, David (U of Birmingham, UK), Exploring the lives of non-native speaking English educators in Sri Lanka. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice (Abingdon, UK) 11.2 (2005), 169–194.05–340Korthagen, Fred (Utrecht U, the Netherlands) & Angelo Vasalos, Levels in reflection: core reflection as a means to enhance professional growth. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice (Abingdon, UK) 11.1 (2005), 47–71.05–341Lynch, Brian (Portland State U, USA; [email protected]) & Peter Shaw, Portfolios, power, and ethics. TESOL Quarterly (Alexandria, VA, USA) 39.2, 263–298.05–342Roulston, Kathryn, Roy Legette, Monica DeLoach & Celeste Buckhalter Pittman (U of Georgia, USA), What is ‘research’ for teacher-researchers?Educational Action Research (Oxford, UK) 13.2 (2005), 169–190.05–343Santagata, Rossella (California U, USA; [email protected]), ‘Are you joking or are you sleeping?’: cultural beliefs and practices in Italian and U.S. teachers' mistake-handling strategies. Linguistics and Education (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) 15.1–2 (2004), 141–164.05–344Waters, Alan (Lancaster U, UK; [email protected]), Ma. Luz. C. Vilcheseo, Managing innovation in language education: a course for ELT change agents. RELC Journal (Thousand Oaks, CA, USA) 36.2 (2005), 117–136.


2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-72
Author(s):  
Darío Luis Banegas

This paper investigates the conceptions of research held by English as a foreign language teachers in Argentina. Quantitative data from 622 participants from an online questionnaire were followed by qualitative data from online interviews with 40 of those participants. Results show that the teachers conceptualised research through conventional notions closer to a quantitative paradigm. They felt research was not part of their job, and a lack of time was the main reason for not engaging in/with research. Teacher development, agency, empowerment, and autonomy could be sought by engaging teachers with forms of research which are meaningful to them, such as action research.


Author(s):  
Ines K. Miller ◽  
Maria Isabel A. Cunha

This chapter is constructed as a reflective professional narrative coming from the context of public and private continuing professional development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The authors start the text by making explicit their involvement and alignment with the rationale of Exploratory Practice, within the broader horizon of language Teacher Development (Allwright, 2001). The text establishes a theoretical dialogue with Reflective Practice, Action Research and Exploratory Action Research, considering them as recent trends in teacher education and other possible modes of Practitioner Research (Allwright & Hanks, 2009). The authors expand on Exploratory Practice as a paradigm that foregrounds inclusivity, ethics and criticality. Examples of Potentially Exploitable Pedagogic/Professional Activities (PEPAs) and Potentially Exploitable Reflexive Activities (PERAs) will be shared by showing that they result from integrating the ‘work for understanding' with regular pedagogic activities or broader educational practice.


2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 144
Author(s):  
Juvenale Patinvoh Agbayahoun

<p>Using a survey, this study examines EFL teachers’ views on professional development, the models of teacher development they are familiar with, and their experiences in the area. The study also inquires into the teachers’ knowledge and opinions about inquiry-based teaching. The results indicate that though the EFL teachers often have the opportunity to participate in teacher development activities, these activities do not enable them to develop the skill of reflection and action on practice as they are patterned on top-down models of teacher development and happen in a one-shot workshop-style. Other teacher development activities such as action-research, reading research findings in the field, peer observation, mentoring, or teacher networking are unfamiliar to them. While the participant EFL teachers acknowledged that the top-down teacher development activities give them exposure to informative input, they also reported that such activities, paradoxically, have little impact on their teaching and students’ learning. Most of them acknowledged having very little knowledge of teacher development activities that involve self-intiative and autonomy, and they expressed interest in learning about and trying action-research in their classrooms.</p>


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