It encourages a focus on active student learning, encourages reflective practice, acknowledges individual classroom contexts and the individual learning needs of teachers, and promotes collegiality and feelings of professionalism. The teacher is often the primary researcher in CAR, although she or he may receive support from others. CAR is particularly useful for teachers because of the focus on specific teaching and teaming situations, rather than on general knowledge. By its very nature, classroom action research focuses teacher attention on student teaming outcomes. Research design is less formal in CAR than in traditional research and may range from a case study to a comparison of several classrooms.
Teachers use data from classroom tests, standardized tests, and classroom observations.
Context The Elkhart Community School system is a public school system in north central Indiana with 765 teachers serving over 12,000 students in an urban environment. Elkhart, which has a diverse manufacturing base, has a minority population which mirrors that of the nation at large. The experience was so successful that Elkhart school administrators wanted to extend the opportunity to all teachers. State funding was secured the following year for a district-wide action research initiative. The grant was renewed for the second year with a similar profile, and that year 62 teachers completed 18 projects.