Explanation of Peer Comment Revisions

I posted my Action Research Template on my blog to gather feedback from my peers.

I received nine comments from my peers that included positive praise, unclear action steps, and questions regarding my research. After I read each comment, I reflected on how I could implement their advice. Below are two comments I used to revise my plan.

Ryan B. wrote:

Danelle, looks like you've got a pretty solid plan. I think that this research could be a huge asset to your school. One thing that confused me a bit though. On the very last step you have presenting data to the church congregation. I didn't see anything about your church before that last step or in your goal so I didn't really understand. Are you presenting your data to them as well as your school? Regardless, it looks like you've got your plan pretty well laid out. Good luck!

From Ryan’s comment I edited my plan to say “interview church program leader” instead of “interview program leader”. I understood that I needed to be more specific on who I was interviewing. Interviewing the church program leader will assist me with setting the foundation and gathering data. In addition, I added the Big Brother Big Sister Program and the school staff to my oral presentation. Initially, I was only going to present my findings to the church to recruit more mentors. However, based on Ryan’s comments I reflected on the importance of involving everyone. I hope that my staff presentation encourages a student/teacher mentoring program for next year.

Jamie Anderson-Hushaw wrote:

How are the mentors going to work with the students? How are they selected to mentor particular students? I look forward to seeing you research. Many of my student’s need that extra person to care and show concern over them and I feel would certainly benefit from having a mentor.

From Jamie’s comment I realized I needed to gather data to answers her questions. I added interviews with the Big Brother Big Sister Program Coordinator and my school counselor. From these interviews, I will accumulate more data to analyze and develop a deeper understanding on the purpose of the mentor program.

Revised Action Research Template

I made a few revisions to my Action Research Plan from part 2. In part 2, I had six action steps and I realized I had some gaps in my initial draft. I reviewed the Harris text to determine where I needed more information. I revised my part 3 plan to include eight action steps. I added interviews with the Big Brother Big Sister Program Coordinator and with my school counselor. Conducting these interviews will provide me with more data to analyze and to gain a deeper understanding. At the conclusion of my research, I’ve added to make a presentation with my findings to the church, Big Brother Big Sister Program, and with the staff at my campus. Speaking to these three groups will allow me to take action and to share the information to sustain campus improvement. 

Format based on Tool 7.1 from Examining What We Do to Improve Our Schools

(Harris, Edmonson, and Combs, 2010

Action Planning Template- Part 3 with Revisions
Research Question: What effects do adult mentors have on elementary students? Goal: To evaluate the effectiveness of our adult mentoring program. To determine if adult mentors improve a student’s grades and/or emotional well-being. To make a presentation regarding my findings to recruit more mentors.
Action Steps(s):	Person(s) Responsible:	Timeline: Start/End	Needed Resources	Evaluation
Gather data from other schools with mentoring programs	§   D. Gerold	April 2013 - October 2013 (ongoing)	§   Internet §   Articles, Journals, and/or Books §   Laptop	Collect data from other schools to determine the effectiveness of  mentoring programs
Interview Church Program Leader-Jack	§   D. Gerold	April 2013	§   Laptop §   Interview Questions	Determine how our campus was selected and the purpose of the mentor program
Interview Big Brother Big Sister (BBBS) Program Coordinator-Donna	§   D. Gerold	May 2013	§   Laptop §   Interview Questions	Determine the purpose of BBBS and determine how students are matched with their mentor (matching process)
Interview the School Counselor-Marie	§   D. Gerold	May 2013	§   Laptop §   Interview Questions	Determine the qualifications for students to participate and how the students are monitored in the program
Create a survey for students, parents, teachers, and mentors	§   D. Gerold §   M. Quintero §   C. Hakanson	May 2013	§   Surveys (Survey Monkey) §   Names of involved parties (Skyward)	Analyze data from the surveys to determine the effects on students
Select a controlled group of students to survey (not involved in the program and with similar demographics to the students involved in the program)	§   D. Gerold §   M. Quintero §   C. Hakanson	May 2013 -October 2013	§   Surveys (Survey Monkey) §   Names of students with similarities (Skyward)	Analyze data from the surveys to determine if the mentor program could benefit other students
Monitor students throughout the research to   determine any grade and/or emotional changes	§   D. Gerold §   M. Quintero §   C. Hakanson	April 2013 -October 2013 (on going)	§   Laptop §   Skyward (grades)	Review data from Skyward for grade changes and conduct informal discussions with all involved parties
Accumulate data and create a report to present to the church, BBBS Program, and to the school staff	§   D. Gerold	October 2013	§   All relevant data (surveys, discussions, interviews, grades, etc.)	Completion of action research report and blog postings