Action research is a process used by teachers and educational practitioners to examine and improve their pedagogy and practice. It is a form of investigation designed for use by teachers to attempt to solve problems and improve professional practices in their own classrooms. Action research is focused on solving specific classroom or school problems, improving practice, and helping to make decisions at local sites. It involves systematic observations and data collection, which can be used by the practitioner-researcher in reflection, decision-making, and the development of more effective classroom strategies.

Action research is a natural part of teaching, as teachers are continually observing students, collecting data, and changing practices to improve student learning and the classroom and school environment. The process of action research involves five phases: selecting an area or focus, collecting data, analyzing and interpreting data, developing an action plan, and implementing and evaluating the plan.

Some key features of action research in education include:

• Practicality: Action research is focused on solving problems or informing individual and community-based knowledge in a way that impacts teaching, learning, and other related processes. It is less focused on contributing theoretical input.

• Participatory nature: Action research emphasizes that participants should be members of the community being studied, empowering those directly affected by outcomes of said research. In this method, participants are effectively co-researchers, with their lived experiences considered formative to the research process.

• Iterative and flexible style: Action research is highly adaptable, allowing researchers to mold their analysis to their individual needs and implement practical individual-level changes. Action research provides an immediate and actionable path forward for solving entrenched issues, rather than suggesting complicated, longer-term solutions rooted in complex data.

Action research is a method of systematic inquiry that teachers undertake as researchers of their own practice. The general goal is to create a simple, practical, repeatable process of iterative learning, evaluation, and improvement that leads to increasingly better results for schools, teachers, or programs.