Teachers as Researchers: Exploring Action Research and Lesson Study

1. Teachers as Researchers: Exploring Action Research and Lesson Study Presented at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Annual Conference April 22, 2007 David S. Allen Ed.D Melisa J. Hancock, T.I.R.D Jennifer Malcolm, Junction City, KS Amy Marts, Junction City, KS Jennifer Stuck, Junction City, KS Annette Tinney, Manhattan, KS Electronic copies of presentations martial are available here: http://www.educ.ksu.edu/allen/Math/Presentations/ProfDev.html

2. Teacher Empowerment Through Research Funded Grant Projects IMPACT CAPSULE ACUMEN IMP Course Offerings EDCI 795 Problems in C & I EDCI 760 Teachers as Researches

3. Lesson Study Goals of CAPSULE Project Deepen Content Knowledge Develop a research-based lesson Strengthen Pedagogy

4. Action ResearchExamining Practice Action research has evolved into an ongoing process of systematic study in which teachers examine their own teaching and students� learning through descriptive reporting, purposeful conversations, collegial sharing, and reflection for the purpose of improving classroom practice. (Miller & Pine, 1990)

5. Action Research as Professional Development Action research is a major form of professional development, and is central to the restructuring of schools.

6. OUTCOMES  Innovations in Action and Action Research Projects Teacher as Leaders New teaching strategies and risk-taking Pilot testing and field testing research-based curriculum Expanded learning opportunities for students Increased student achievement

7. Jennifer Stuck Personal Goals for Project To deepen my math content, and improve my teaching (encompassing teaching math and classroom management) *No risk involved since I was a first year teacher still learning the �ropes.�

8. My expectations� Viewed this experience as an extension of student teaching�I had strong support from my Clinical and University Supervisor. During student teaching, supervisors critiqued the lesson and did not �pick apart� the teaching. This expectation carried over for the lesson study process.

9. Team Dynamics Mrs. Marts-in her 7th year of teaching�offered advice about the present and the future Mrs. Malcolm-2nd year of teaching�was able to tell me what to expect month by month with the development of my students (�Don�t worry�my students last year had the same problems with counting money.�)

10. Lesson #1 Created an estimation lesson Not addressed in curriculum but is a state standard Length of lesson � 30 minutes Focused on the process of estimation Results -- � of my students identified a reasonable estimate for their final guess. Questioning Video Clip

11. Debriefing Personal Reaction I am my own worst critic Debriefing � A Learning Process Observers reactions-Content Expert, Teacher in Residence, Colleagues, Administrators

12. My final reflections� I grew throughout the process by strengthening my content knowledge, as well as pedagogy, classroom management ideas, and thoughts for asking deeper questions during my math teaching.

13. I became more confident in my teaching after seeing that Jenny and Amy both had kids who had the same �wiggles� as I did, and that my class looked more like a �typical� first grade class. My final reflections�

14. Biggest change was during my math lessons�I realized that I didn�t have to directly teach out of the textbook; instead, I could create an engaging lesson that focused on the content. I also became aware of needing to use more math vocabulary in my everyday teaching. My final reflections�

15. Jennifer Malcolm Personal Perspective 5th year teacher Recently obtained Master�s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction No previous experience with 6 year olds By the end of my first year I had developed some ideas about how 1st grade children act and how to manage them. Behavior How they learn Do they get it? Question: Is my room the only one like this?

16. Changes to lesson (2nd) Management Issues Students wanted to erase their first estimations. Students used counting as an estimation strategy. Changes to resource management. Pedagogical Issues More comparisons needed between five cubes and full containers. Compare again after telling that there are 15 . Prompt students to identify changes and provide reasoning for change. Demonstrate more and less on the number line. Talk about the change in estimation on their guess sheet.

17. Changes to lesson (2nd) Questioning What similarities and differences can we see on the number line with our estimations? Ask �do you think all the bottles have the same amount of cubes? Why or why not?� Miscellaneous Changes Compare the size of the cubes and the gum after they make their guess. Talk about the size comparison. Reward System: Gum **We needed to incorporate more math terms into this lesson. We also modeled more �think aloud� as we explained our thought process during estimation.

18. Lesson Implementation Strengths Students: understood main idea had fun multiple opportunities for cooperative learning increased vocabulary and developed a stronger understanding of number sense good mathematical dialogue Lesson: well developed lesson �Aha! Moment� with respect to how my students learn and react to each other

19. Lesson Implementation Weaknesses Students: not all students �got it� not enough exposure to vocabulary difficulty communicating thought process did not transfer to other lessons Lesson: not enough practice prompting for explanations holes in lesson (see changes for #3) what to do with �outliers� frustration with the depth of students� explanations not enough use/familiarity with vocabulary

20. Debriefing Debriefing Excellent opportunity to dialogue related to positive and negative issues related to the lesson Team members had great suggestions and ideas We all saw the holes and wanted to make changes Very comfortable and easy to talk about the lesson and focused on student learning, rather than the teacher I recognized how strong our 1st grade team was Very natural to talk about the lesson�this is what teachers should do all the time..reflect and share what worked and what did not work�the sounding board was great. Debriefing Video Segment

21. Personal Reflection Personal Reflection Increased mathematical content knowledge Became a better teacher (strengthened pedagogical knowledge) Increased self efficacy Increased expectations Desire to do the Lesson Study format with other lessons AFFIRMATION that my students are not that different in their behavior, understanding, background knowledge, or at being 6-7 year olds Bonded our teaching team in immeasurable ways I/we were able to transfer pieces of the Lesson Study to almost every part of the school day!

22. Amy Marts Biography Teaching has been my chosen profession for 11 years. Having spent most of those years in 1st grade has taught me a lot about teaching children. Participating in the lesson study was one of the best pedagogical experiences in my career. This lesson study provided my colleagues and I with an open forum in which to enhance a particular lesson.

23. The Lesson Study New Experiences Lesson Plan format (The 5-E) The 5-E format allowed us to integrate many quality components into the estimation lesson. Concerns About Observations At first we were worried about teaching and being judged on our teaching qualities. Lesson study allows for a discussion of the actual lesson, not the teaching style. It was great to be able to see how each of us handled our respective classrooms.

24. Third Lesson Presentation Difficulties teaching the third lesson After the first lesson, we removed some of the components of the lesson. However, following the 2nd teaching cycle we decided, as a team, that some of the these items were necessary, so we inserted them back into the lesson. That caused some confusion on my part, as it was difficult to remember what changes had been made. Amy�s Part

25. Some changes made for the 3rd session include Increasing math vocabulary. We included estimate, reasonable answer, predict, more, less, greater, fewer, half, full (whole), empty, if�.then statement, explain, frame of reference, compare Compare the size of the items in terms of �space� between the cubes and �no space� between the gum Bigger bottle Time frame went from 30 minutes to an hour and a half Lesson Video Segment Changes for the Third Lesson

26. Final Reflections Going in I saw this as an opportunity to work closely with my colleagues and learn from them since they were �new� to the profession Sharing my �expertise� with them in terms of classroom management and lesson content I became more aware of the need to use more mathematical vocabulary in every lesson. We are all great educators with a passion for learning and growing with our students as well as each other.

27. Annette Tinney Every research project begins with a question What bothers you the most in your classroom? What drives you up the wall the most? My Question(s): I see students really try hard, study, do homework, etc. but they still fail (c or below) my class. Why? What is their problem? What am I doing wrong?

28. What did I do? Selected student for study Worked with student on organization, note taking, study skills, and homework One-on-one attention (support) Did I get my question answered? YES! Some students just need more time Some students just needed the praise and support I gave to them Some students needed to know how to take notes and study for a math test

29. What did this do for... School Created a class solely around this project Great success this year therefore it will be offered as an elective next year all day long Myself Empowered Me! Gave me strength & confidence Students Grades were raised Gained self confidence in math Skills were gained

30. What does this mean for you? Every research project begins with a question What is your question? What bothers you the most in your classroom? What would you like to fix? Write down your question. You never know what you, your students, and/or your district will gain from the experience.

31. Questions & Answers David Allen dallen@ksu.edu Melisa J. Hancock melisa@ksu.edu Jennifer Malcolm Jennifermalcolm@usd475.org Amy Marts Amymarts@usd475.org Jennifer Stuck Jenniferstuck@usd475.org Annette Tinney annettet@manhattan.k12.ks.us

32. Teachers as Researchers: Exploring Action Research and Lesson Study Presented at the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Annual Conference April 22, 2007 David S. Allen Ed.D Melisa J. Hancock, T.I.R.D Jennifer Malcolm, Junction City, KS Amy Marts, Junction City, KS Jennifer Stuck, Junction City, KS Annette Tinney, Manhattan, KS Electronic copies of presentations marital are available here: http://www.educ.ksu.edu/allen/Math/Presentations/ProfDev.html