Action Research Benefits

Benefits of Action Research in Curriculum Development

Field (1998, p.49, cited in Brown, 2012), advocating classroom research in English teaching, highlights two points as important reasons for classroom based action research benefiting curriculum change, especially in the ELT field. Firstly, he mentions that although there are universal similarities between classes, in reality each one is unique due to such factors as the different mix of levels, student backgrounds, nationalities and personalities as well as of the motivations leading the students to be there. Centralized research, in the same way as the class textbook is used, needs to be adapted for each particular situation. Curriculum change is a fact of life and action research can be

Nunan (1990, p.64) advocates the potential of action research to contribute to professional development, particularly in encouraging self-directed teachers, who are capable, through action research, of furthering their own professional self-development. Nunan further claims that the self directed teacher as classroom researcher is acceptable within present trends in teacher development and mentions the issue of reflection as a key factor in furthering this self-development.

Carr and Kemmis (1986, p.189.) also write about the benefits of reflection in action research claiming “while practical experience can be gained through unsystematic reflection on action, a rational understanding of practice can only be gained through systematic reflection on action by the actor involved. The knowledge developed by action researchers about their own practices is of this kind.”Participating in action research impacts teachers’ daily and future instructional practices. According to Parsons and Brown (2002), action research leads to improvements in educational

Many times, for personal and professional growth to occur, being pushed out of a comfort zone is challenging. These challenges are necessary, particularly related to classroom practice, in order to lead to positive change. Action research puts the teacher in many new roles, teacher as researcher, teacher as decision maker, and teacher as change agent (Mertler, 2006). Implementing the action research process has helped inform daily instruction, and has transformed, changed, and expanded teachers’ curriculum perspectives, choices, and