Action Research Rationale and Target Population

Action Research Project:
Rationale:
One problem at my school that is of critical importance is our reading remediation program. In years past, we've administered a mock TAKS test and used the results to recommend students for after school tutorials. Last year, only one student attended tutorials though 30 were recommended to attend. Our program was not working. In 8th grade, where SSI is an issue, we have addressed remediation of those students that are unsuccessful first administration by regrouping them into "remedial" classes between first and second administration. It has been fairly successful, but because it requires the changing of schedules, it is exceptionally disruptive for students, teachers, and the office administration, such as our counselor in charge of scheduling. This year we have built in an answer to these remediation problems. We created a class for TAKS remediation. It will act as a reading lab of sorts. Students that are unsuccessful on the TAKS in 6th grade will be given this additional reading lab type class. The same is true for 7th graders that are unsuccessful on TAKS. They'll be placed in the remediation class in 8th grade. The remaining problem is what materials will be used to teach remediation. Because eighth grade classes will now be blocked, we are afraid that all resources will be used during the regular class periods. We are also concerned that teachers may accidentally use remedial resources that currently exist within their regular classrooms, making them repetitive or unusable in the remediation classrooms. Therefore, as the English department head, I will conduct an action research project to investigate the needs of this remediation class.

Setting/Context:The setting of my action research project will be our new reading remediation class, at Jasper Junior High School, for middle school students that have been unsuccessful on the state standardized assessment or who need tier 2 remediation in reading.

Operational Definition of my Target Population/Sample Selection/Sample Size: My target population will be those students entering the seventh grade that were unsuccessful on the sixth grade reading TAKS and those students for whom modifications in the regular reading classroom have not been sufficient to improve their performance. Therefore, my target population will also include students recommended for tier 2 in the Response to Intervention program, as deemed by the RTI committee. My sample size will be the students enrolled in the TAKS remediation class, which is approximately 40 students. Each individual section will be a set of 10 or less students because a low student to teacher ratio is crucial for the remediation process. The closer to one-on-one instruction in the remediation setting, the better.

Description of Project:As the English department head, I will conduct an action research project to investigate the needs of this remediation class by analyzing TAKS data, diagnostic testing, requesting feedback from past teachers, surveying current students, and interviewing reading specialists and reading teachers. I will review materials seemingly fitting those needs. Through evaluation of materials, and collaboration with the others in the department, I will order those resources that prove to meet our needs. I will also evaluate materials used by other districts in their remediation programs. Next, I will create a plan for using these resources (basic curriculum guide). Through training of staff and practice with new materials we will work as a department to implement the new remediation curriculum and monitor its effectiveness throughout the year.