Standards+Question+9


 * Read the Case Study regarding Research-Based on page 21 of the NSDC Standards text handed out in class. In your PLC discuss Discussion Questions 1-5. Have a record keeper in your group synthesize your group's responses to these questions. If your group needed more information, describe what you need to know and how you would go about discovering this information.**

1. What kinds of decisions do educators regularly make that require a more thorough examination of research? Educators regularly make decisions that require a more thorough examination of research when selecting both the content and professional learning processes of staff development efforts. Educators also require a more thorough examination of research when the research supports the claims made by advocates of a particlar approach to instructional improvement or whole-school reform. (NSDC's Standards for Staff Development, p. 20)

2. What kinds of challenges in your school and/or district could benefit from an action research effort? At our schools, when teachers and administrators seek improvement in areas in which there is no or little research or contradictory findings, it is imperative that the school and/or district uses a pilot study. For example, at New Manchester High School they have a BYOT(Bring your own technology) policy in which they are serving as a pilot for the entire county because there is little or limited research to support the decision.

3. What does the phrase "critical consumer of research" mean to you? A "critical consumer of research" is a person that questions published research studies to determine whether the reported findings match the evidence. Furthermore, a thorough research critic looks into the details of research to determine whether the study performed provides an unbiased look into what was being researched.

4. What are various application of the information in the standard for the school and/or district?
 * Professional Learning
 * Data Analysis/ evaluating evidence of student learning
 * Examining Scholarly Research
 * Instructional design
 * Assessment

5. What are options to consider when a program proposal lacks an adequate research base to support its adoption? The options include:
 * Pilot studies
 * Clearly stipulate the programs goals, methods and types of evidence that is accepted as success indicators