web conference reflection

I recently read the week 5 web conference from my Lamar Class.  I could not attend any of the sessions, because I am in the middle of football season.  I am currently working 90-100 hours a week, and trying to complete this course.  I really wanted to attend at least one of the conferences, but I was not able to attend. 

What I noticed from week 5 is that we have people from all over the state of Texas.  I think that’s a really unique aspect of our program.  I also noticed that I have a lot of the same concerns as other people in my class.  This web conference was helpful because I actually got answers to questions.  Another thing I noticed is that it is really hard to read through all the conversations.  I must attend a conference in my next class, but I’m thankful that our webinars are available as resource.

AR Project Reflection

I have laid the groundwork for the completion of my action research project.  I have met with my site mentor, and one of the lead counselors about application for our school to become part of the “No Place for Hate Anti-Defamation League.  We have formed a committee in order to begin developing our shared vision for the project, as well as, the activities we will need in order to complete my project.  We have decided that we will complete all the activities needed for my action research plan after the conclusion of football season, because of my personal time constraints during this time.  I have completed approximately 10 hours towards the completion of my AR Project. 

A big part of becoming a NPFHADL School is planning out three activities that,” celebrate diversity and promotes respect amongst all students “(www.adl.org).  We have at least two of these types of activities already in place.  One example of this is our Mix it Up Day and the other is our Culture Carnival.  Both are great ways that our school celebrates its’ diverse students.

The next step for us as a committee is to plan our “Resolution of Respect” (www.adl.org).  The toughest part about planning this pep rally type event is the constraints state and benchmark testing put on scheduling school events.  I truly believe that this project is something that our administration believes strongly in, so we will find a way to complete it.  Overall, I have had outstanding support from my administration, and I am enjoying the process  of planning such an important research project.  

reflection

The most memorable and helpful part of this course would have to be the discussion boards.  I was able to gain lots of insight from other student’s posts.  It was also encouraging to see that other students were having the same problems that I had throughout the course.  I am kind of shy when it comes to meeting new people, so having to participate in a discussion board was a great way for me to get to know new people in the educational world.  I was pleasantly surprised at how many students responded to my posts.  Because they weren’t all positive comments, I was able to improve my overall research plan, and solve several problems that I had when developing my plan.  

Action Research Plan

Joel Fontenot-Amedee

EDLD 5301

8-2-12

Action Planning Template

Goal: To successfully implement the needed steps for our school to become a campus that is part of the No Place for Hate Anti-Defamation League.

Step 1: Create a list of what needs to be done in order to achieve No Place for Hate Anti- Defamation League Status for our campus.

Person Responsible: Myself, and  the STUCO Leader.

Timeline: August 27, 2012-August 30, 2012

Needed Resources:  Internet access.

Evaluation:  Meeting the criteria set through this list

Step 2: Form a committee to oversee and help inform our advisory teachers how to    implement the five steps needed to become NPFHADL member

Person Responsible:  Myself, STUCO Leader, vice principals, and counselors.

Timeline: August 20^th2012-August 24^th 2012

Needed Resources:  School schedules, and teacher/administrator availability

Evaluation:  Create minutes for the meeting to highlight discussion items, and a survey will be submitted following the completion of the project to show the group’s effectiveness. 

Step 3: Organize “A presentation of the Resolution of Respect”  either during advisory or at a pep rally (No Place for Hate, 2006)

Person Responsible:  Myself, STUCO Leader, principals, administrators and the NOFDHADL committee

Timeline:  September 3^rd, 2012-September 21^st, 2012

Needed Resources:  Advisor and pep rally schedule, as well as an actual “Resolution of Respect” document (No Place for Hate, 2006)

Evaluation: Whether or not we have full participation will be evaluated, after the presentation, by staff members visiting the classroom

Step 4:  Choose and complete, within the year, three or more activities that celebrate diversity and promote respect (No Place for Hate, 2006)

Person Responsible:  Myself, STUCO Leader, principals, administrators, and the NOFHADL committee.

Timeline:  September 24, 2012-April 1, 2013

Needed Resources:  Benchmark testing scheduled dates, state testing dates, school extracurricular activity schedules, advisory schedule, and use of a facility (i.e. a gym, or field)

Evaluation:  Student participation, and student/teacher surveys regarding the effectiveness of the three activities

Step 5:  Gather data from both the previous and current year regarding incidents of hate on campus

Person Responsible:  Myself

Timeline:  May 1, 2013-June 1^st 2013

Needed Resources:Campus incident reports from the 2011-2012 school year and the 2012-2013 year

Evaluation:  Compare the data of the incidents of hate for the current year to the previous year in order to determine the success of the program.

25 or more word analysis of how an administrator might use blogs

There are many ways in which an administrator could use blogs.  First an administrator could use blogs in order to express new ideas the he or she wants to "bounce off" of their staff.  An administrator could use blogs to celebrate student achievement at their campus no matter how big or small.  An athletic administrator could use blogs to update the status of his or her extracurricular team.  Overall, blogs are a great way to communicate fresh ideas to a staff, and get feedback from all stakeholders.

200 word reflection

Before this course, I had never heard of action research.  In fact, just the thought of research kind of turned my stomach.  However, I’ve changed my tune about research.  I’ve learned so much about action research.  I've learned that an action research is research that is chosen and created by someone who is considered an inside source.  By this, I mean that action research is created by someone who is inside the everyday operations of the school, so they have a good understanding of the problem being considered for research.  I've learned that the topic being considered for research should be one that the researcher is curious about, or believes there is an issue within the topic that needs to be resolved. 

One very important thing that I've learned about action research is that it is not your traditional research. What is interesting about action research is that the person doing the research gets to actually choose the topic they would like to research.  This gives the researcher an invaluable opportunity to have more buy-in during their individual researching process.  Traditionally, this was not the case.

In traditional research, the topic and the research has already been done, so it is spoon fed to the intended professional.  The teacher, for example, would be told both what the problem is and the answer to the problem.  In traditional research, this answer would be universal for all schools.  We now know that all schools are not the same. 

There should be no doubt that traditional research has positive benefits. However, it should be recognized that, in some cases, action research is a more personal and valuable mechanism for individual growth and the promotion of change within our schools.  
I am excited to have the opportunity to possibly use action research to analyze how my high school locks down our campus on a daily basis.  Another way I could possibly use action research would be to research the increase or decrease of theft within our sub-varsity football team's locker room.  Theft has been a problem for us in the past, so I think it would be invaluable to complete an action research project on the theft in our locker rooms in order to collaborate with my fellow coaches in developing a solution for the problem.