Blog Use

Educational leaders can use blogs as an effective learning tool to share and discuss leadership strategies. Blogs can be easily accessed and give leaders an opportunity to share reflections and gain valuable insights from colleagues in the same field. Educational leaders are able to collaborate with other professionals within a learning community.

Action Research Reflection

This week I learned that effective and successful leaders continually use action research in their everyday professional lives to achieve school improvement. Action research is a process of self-study that involves posing questions/wonderings, collecting data, data analysis, reading relevant literature, and sharing results with others. This process is a powerful tool that leads to change based on the results of the inquiry. Administrators are able to evaluate the concerns and problems on a campus, reflect and seek change through inquiry. Principals are able to take charge of their own professional development and become “head learners” of their campus. The constant cycle of reflection, analysis, and evaluation lead to school-wide improvement. Action research can be conducted through university coursework, superintendent/district meetings, leadership teams, and professional learning communities. Through the educational settings where inquiry is occurring, concerns are able to be addressed and best practices are able to flourish at the school.

 Action research could be used to help a school grow from an unacceptable rating to a recognized rating and from a recognized rating to an exemplary rating. At my school, an action research plan is currently in place and is extremely effective. During the last eight years, our school has made tremendous growth after action research was conducted. Our school is a professional development learning school and we practice best practices that research provides. Our school has moved from an unacceptable rating to a recognized rating. I am provided, first-hand, with being involved in action research and how it contributes to a successful campus. I would continue to use action research as an administrator.