Running Head: ACTION RESEARCH 1

Jose G Montalvo

Action Research: Purpose, Problem Statement, Research Questions, and Literature Review

RES5153 – Research Methods – Module 1 Analysis

January 14, 2019

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Introduction

Pertaining to language instruction, an Action Research places the instructor in an

investigative role to explore personal teaching situations by collecting data to establish rational,

deliberate, and systematic inquiries as a means to identify and intervene complex problems

within the confines of their classroom and learning institution. Reflective practices allow for an

instructor to design solutions within their own teaching contexts either individually or

collaboratively. Though an Action Research may be deemed as informal, qualitative, and

subjective, this plan is centered on creating future platforms for positive educational changes

where these changes can have significant impact on how an instructor teaches. The school’s

culture may also be affected. Even though an Action Research is personal in nature and a critical

reflection of one’s teaching practices, as an investigative process an Action Research promotes

collaboration between other teachers, administration, and parents. Action Research may not be

exactly quantitative and hypothesis focused but it does incorporate action with research to

emphasize school improvement by creating a research design, collecting and analyzing data,

identifying problems, conducting a literature review, rationalizing various approaches through

inductive reasoning, and solidifying a future action plan and force field analysis. Documenting

the Action Research is imperative as one will revisit and alter decisions as the process is in effect

for new data can appear once a strategy is implemented.

Purpose

San Pancho, Mexico is a small, poor beach community and most of the children who

graduate La Escuela Secondario Junior High School never make it past the first year of high

school (10th grade). San Pancho’s main economic source is tourism, but some learners have

voiced that they do not see the value of learning English. When the students see that their
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parents do not speak English yet they still are able to work and support their families, the attitude

of learning English is deemed as unimportant when compared to Spanish and Math. Those who

chose not to graduate have already become part of the workforce and an economic source for

their families. Most parents here make the equivalent of $8.00 U.S. dollars a day and since most

learners at La Escuela Secundario live in poverty, losing a day’s wage can add to the stress of

living and meeting monthly expenses. For families coming from Mexico, the number-one

priority is family; education appears as number five on the list (Smutny & Danley, 2012;

Smutny, Haydon, Bolaños, & Danley, 2012). Once an instructor sees socioeconomic positions

as a factor, the cultural view of where education lay in terms of priority within the family unit,

and how the lack of opportunities after graduation shapes the mentality towards education, one

can empathize that it is not about the learners being insensible, but about the learners

experiencing no positive effects from the educational system here in San Pancho. Moreover,

parents are not called to engage in positive, collaborative learning activities with their children.

They are only called when there are extreme learner-behavior problems or poor academic

performance. However, teachers who learn about how their students live, what their aspirations

are, and how they are motivated to achieve in school are embracing sound pedagogical strategies

that yield high outcomes, both academically and socially as a bond of caring and respect is

forged (Borjian & Padilla, 2009, p. 4).

Problem Statement

The following is the problem that this research is addressing: Student motivation for

learning is minimal in all content areas, especially English. The English department,

unfortunately, has the highest absentee rate. Learners are not disciplined for skipping classes,

disrupting lessons, or failing grades. Keeping learners in detention means they would be unable

to work after school, and this would lead to parental complaint, which is a situation the
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administration does not want to face. Teachers are quickly blamed for low attendance and high

failure rates. Therefore, finding a way to motivate learners to not only attend classes but also

take an avid interest in learning English is a challenge that needs an immediate solution.

Unsafe and abhorrent environment conditions, poor government funding, ineffective

teaching pedagogies, an unobtrusive administration, and a lack of parental support are at the crux

of poor academic performance, low morale, and overall motivation for learning. The average

dropout rate for 9th graders before graduation at La Escuela Secundario is around 5% even

though administrative policy dictates that grade retention has a 0% rate, meaning every student

passes the grade level or graduates. Teachers are forced to revise summative examinations or

create projects so students can easily pass and move up grade levels. Special projects for failing

9th graders who do not graduate on time have a week after graduation to complete an assigned

project or they can opt for an easier, revised final exam. Learners know that they will be given

every chance to move up grade levels and no one student gets left back a grade. Through the use

of cooperative learning pedagogy to encourage oral fluency may influence student motivation so

they can see that learning targets are achievable when learning English as a second language.

Furthermore, this research may influence a restructuring of the school culture through all

stakeholders involved (administration, teachers, students, parents) to ensure learner academic

success in all content areas and validate English language education as a valuable asset for the

future.

Research Questions

Research questions narrow the scope of observed discrepancies within the educational

environment. These questions will help decipher uncertainties, problems, and bring forth the

rationale for an investigation. Research questions need to be deliberate and specific for

improving the learning situation at La Escuela Secundario. Though this research will be
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qualitative in nature, it is imperative these questions remain consistently relevant throughout the

study and set the foundation by which all findings, data, observation, analysis and so on are

attached. The following research questions for La Escuela Secundario are as follows:

1. What are the students’ personal reasons at La Escuela Secundario for

having little desire to learn English as a second language?

2. How can changing the current pedagogy of teacher-centered lecturing to a

full-time cooperative learning environment increase learner motivation to

attend classes on a consistent basis and see the intrinsic value of learning

English as a second language?

3. What types of pedagogy can the instructors implement to build confidence

and develop oral fluency to move beyond choral drilling and rote learning

in order to prepare the students for future speech projects?

Literature Review

Literature review for an action research is important as it provides historical support and

an avenue for the researcher to progress and gain new knowledge in specific subject matters.

Traditional reviews are often based on a personal selection of materials because the writer

believes the original authors have some important contribution to make to current knowledge

(Jesson, Matheson, & Lacey, 2011, p. 15) and they provide a synopsis of an existing framework

in which one’s research can refer to examine problems, questions, and answers in a particular

field of study. Literature reviews reemphasize one’s specific research, but more importantly

introduces relevant terminology and provides definitions to clarify how terms are being used in

the context of your own work as well as provides supporting evidence for a practical problem or

issue which your research is addressing, thereby underlining its significance (Ridley, 2008, pp.

16-17). Articles that have been peer reviewed have been through rigorous evaluation to
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determine validity and ensure no biases are present in the research conducted. When one is

implementing an Action Research it is imperative that all literature reviews parallel the same

scrutiny given by peer reviews. Arguing for or against a literature review for the sake of

legitimacy or progression in a field of study is acceptable so long as the nature of the research

attempts to remain as authentic as possible and eliminate an inherent biases that may discredit

the Action Research process.

Saeed & Zyngier’s (2012) descriptive research involved 5th and 6th graders by using

“Ryan and Deci’s (2000) Self-Determination Theory (SDT) to better understand how student

motivation and engagement are linked combined with Schlechty’s (2002) Student Engagement

Continuum to analyse the impact of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation on students’ different

engagement types” (p. 252). Saeed & Zyngier (2012) conducted the research using relativist

ontology and social constructivist epistemology to answer the question: What determines the

impact of student’s perceptions of their preferred motivation type on the students’ engagement

levels? (p. 253). In other words, if given the chance, will students reveal what motivates them to

learn and how their view on education entices them towards academic achievement and

engagement? Young adolescents have a difficult time concentrating and dealing with the social

and emotional development they are going through at the moment, and academics can be seen as

an interference with that growth. Therefore, the instructor’s job is to find various ways to lower

anxiety and affective filters by providing a balance between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

Understanding how to apply extrinsic motivation to encourage students to become intrinsic

learners is the key for academic success.

Saeed & Zyngier (2012) administered the The Patterns of Adaptive Learning Scales

(PALS) survey (Midgley, et al., 2000) in a revised form to “identify the students’ perception

about their own motivation type and were asked questions about their motivation; engagement
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and use of various intrinsic and extrinsic methods used by their teacher” (p. 258). Survey

responses proved difficult to say whether the students were more inclined towards intrinsic or

extrinsic motivation as a preferred way of learning (Saeed & Zyngier, 2012). Results showed

showed that the students exhibited elements of introjection, integrated regulation and intrinsic

motivation (Saeed & Zyngier, 2012, p. 258; Ryan & Deci, 2000). It is clear from this study that

what motivates students cannot be clearly defined and that “different levels of engagement as

proposed by Schlechty (2002) could vary from student to student and sometimes in the responses

of same student” (Saeed & Zyngier, 2012, pp. 258-259). This will present a challenge to the

instructor and teacher-mentor when the survey is conducted at La Escuela Secundario to truly

find out what are the learners’ motivation or lack thereof in learning English.

Cooperative learning is not merely about separating learners into levels or placing

students in groups for the sake group work, but utilizing the many advantages cooperative

learning encompasses for language acquisition. Placing learners in groups according to their

strengths rather than their weaknesses (putting lower-level learners with advanced students, for

example) will increase a motivation for learning. Conducting an experimental research study

using eight teachers and approximately 520 Form-3 male and female students from three local

secondary schools, Sachs, Candlin, Rose, & Shum (2003) basic premise studies “the acquisition

and development of pupils' communication strategies, exploring in particular the relationships

between learner behaviors (interpretive and accommodating strategies), language data and

learning outcomes, in a view of language learning and teaching as social action, and where

classrooms are seen as sites of particular texts, social practices and discursive practices” (p. 179).

Traditional teacher-centered instruction with students sitting in rows facing the instructor may be

the norm at La Escuela Secundario, but it is not conducive for second language acquisition for

these particular learners. Though the teacher-mentor has been more lenient in setting up classes
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in cooperative settings particularly for this study, this pedagogy needs to be implemented on a

consistent basis. Language learning is about communication, not about busy work, constant

drilling, and only explicit instruction. Students need to feel as if they have a choice in how they

learn, and cooperative learning opens the door for academic ownership.

This Cooperative Learning study included “120 students (approximately 20%) who were

randomly selected from a total of 15 classes (eight experimental classes and seven control

classes) in the three project schools as subjects of the students' assessment” (Sachs, Candlin,

Rose, & Shum, 2003, p. 198). Results from Sachs, Candlin, Rose, & Shum’s (2003) research

“indicated that while learners in both groups made statistically significant gains on the posttest

(that is, there were clear within-subjects effects), between-subjects comparisons did not yield

proficiency over the course of the project, but it was not the case that the group which received

exposure to cooperative learning outperformed the group which did not” (p. 203). In other

words, the results of the study cannot take a definitive stance that exposure to cooperative

environments has a greater effect than those students who were not placed in cooperative

learning environments. However, student feedback from the experiment was positive as the

learners felt relaxed, freer, and genuinely more interested in learning English in the cooperative

learning format.

Herrmann’s (2013) quasi-experimental research mirrors the results found in Sachs,

Candlin, Rose, & Shum’s (2003) experimental research. Herrman’s (2013) ten week study

placed learners in cooperative groups to answer the questions of to “what extent does cooperative

learning increase student engagement in tutorials and how do undergraduates perceive

cooperative learning” (p. 178). The results showed that while students “increased their in-class

participation” and “cooperative learning groups can offer potentially valuable learning

opportunities, teachers need to be aware that simply adopting one of the cooperative learning
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structures does not necessarily promote deep engagement” (Herrmann, 2013, pp. 182, 184).

Even though these two studies reflect the same prognosis, the teacher-mentor and instructor

believe that cooperative learning environments will still be most beneficial for the learners at La

Escuela Secundario.

Learning a new language can be stressful and depending on the type of lesson or activity

instituted by an instructor, a learner may be quick to refuse an interaction which requires them to

speak in an open forum. This is the case for many of the students at La Escuela Secundario.

Though the learners have an avid interest in American movies, television shows, comic books,

and culture, almost all view these mediums in Spanish. Therefore, no mimicking or

pronunciation is practiced outside the classroom arena. The unusual fear of speaking English as

a second language is quite surprising and presents a significant challenge for the instructors.

Mas Darul Ihsan’s (2016) study sets to exam how “motivation is the extent to which a

communicator is drawn towards or pushed away from communicating competently in a given

context then performed” (p. 31). Motivating students to speak who do not want to during class

exercises and activities is the sign of a master teacher. One can be an excellent grammar,

reading, writing, and listening teacher, but if the learner does not orally produce what is learned,

language learning become fruitless at that point. After all, the entire rationale behind learning a

new language, or any language for that matter, is communication.

Ihasan’s (2016) descriptive quantitative research aimed to answer “1) the students’

motivation in practicing speaking English through this local based content, Easy-Speaking; and

2) The students’ behavior or effort, attitudes, interest and values or desire in practicing speaking

English through this local based content, Easy-Speaking” (p. 38). Data was obtained through a

four questionnaires and answers from 35 students in the tenth (X-1 grade students) in

Muhammadiyah 1 Senior High School of Gresik (Ihsan, 2016, p. 38). Overall results concluded
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that 74% of the learners were motivated to speak English when (1) media was incorporated in

lessons, (2) varying teaching pedagogies such as cooperative environments were utilized, (3)

rewarding students when they spoke correctly, and (4) when there was a safe, comfortable

atmosphere created in the classroom (Ihsan, 2016). This study brings forth the interesting

concept of rewarding learners for speaking correctly. Learners at La Escuela Secundario are

used to constantly being reprimanded, but never rewarded. Perhaps, if the teacher-mentor and

instructor were to implement a reward-based system and do away with the penalizing classroom

system currently in place, then the learners would lower affective filters and be motivated to

speak more during lessons. More importantly, however, is finding out the true reasons why

learners are not motivate to speak in class, and this information can only be obtained from the

learners themselves.

Mahdi’s (2015) analytical research paper concurs with Ihasan’s (2016) descriptive

quantitative research that students who are willing to invest in a classroom want to do so to gain

something in return (Mahdi, 2015; Jackson, 2011). Moreover, “mastering the art of teaching and

learning is always dependent on the progress of students and the way students are influenced by

the effectiveness of every positive attitude regarding their education” (Mahdi, 2015, p. 1703), but

some major reasons for learners not speaking in class are due to “lack of confidence in speaking

and the fear of making errors in language while speaking” (Mahdi, 2015, p. 1704). Ensuring that

learners will not be punished for making errors, creating a reward-based system for participating,

and creating cooperative environments in which the learners will feel safe amongst their peers

may help the learners at La Escuela Secundario lower affective filters overcome their fears of

speaking English.
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Instituting this research has revealed an amalgamation of findings centered on the

evidence shown. Saeed & Zyngier (2012), Sachs, Candlin, Rose, & Shum (2003), and Ihasan’s

(2016) articles reveal related ideas when compiled together:

• Different types of motivation incorporated by instructors is crucial to the learners’

incentive for taking ownership of their academia

• Motivation and action are essential for comprehensive student education

• Learners need constant encouragement and positive reinforcement in a supportive safe

classroom environment

• Placing learners in cooperative settings does not necessarily always raise learner

motivation for speaking English but it does keep them engaged in lessons

The articles also suggested a few approaches and concepts to build learner motivation through

cooperative settings to build oral proficiency skills and lower affective filters. These approaches

incorporate:

• Varying instructional techniques to maintain student engagement through cooperative

environments, activities, and student to student interaction

• Students slowly become intrinsic learners and will eventually take ownership over their

academia when learning with peers, teacher guidance is readily available, and praise is

often given

• Both intrinsic and extrinsic students’ motivation for speaking or overall learning

decreases dramatically when they find activities unauthentic, unconvincing, or

insignificant
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• Rewarding students for speaking during activities with extra points that the students can

choose to disseminate to either weekly quizzes, monthly tests, or projects raises

participation and engagement

There are two major common themes among the articles: Praise and reward. Setting up learners

in cooperative environments and incorporating engaging activities are not enough. The

instructor must never remain unobtrusive during cooperative activities, never use punishment or

threats as a motivating tool, and never leave the learner feeling denigrated for incorrect answers

when speaking. One can surmise that praising and rewarding learners for their efforts will lead

to greater academic outcomes and increase motivation for learning English as second language.

Another important aspect is building social skills. Encouraging student-to-student relationships

rather than establishing a culture of competition in the classroom establishes a safe learning

environment where all learners aid each other in reaching overall learning target goals. The

connection of rewards and praises along with stimulating peer to peer interaction will provide the

learners at La Escuela Secundario with a greater chance to academically succeed as well as see

value in developing their English skills for the future.

To reiterate, this Action Plan for La Escuela Secundario focuses on the concepts of why

there is an extreme lack of student motivation for learning English, how can changing the current

pedagogy to cooperative learning guide learners to take ownership over their academia, and

through cooperative learning what types of activities can build confidence and oral fluency.

From these articles one can gather that first, lack of student motivation may occur because they

see nothing pertinent about learning English that is relatable to their lives, see English as a forced

and unnecessary skill, or see English as a skill that is too difficult to learn when compared to

other subject areas such as math, science, Spanish, and so on. Constant praising and rewarding

as well as teachers assuming the role as facilitator rather than lecturer will help learners see the
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value in learning English as second language, especially when they are doing so with friends in

cooperative environments. Cooperative settings alone do not equate to academic achievement

but providing teacher and peer-to-peer support may help so long as learners feel safe as well as

being rewarded when they show higher levels of participation and engagement. Support and

cooperative settings are also not enough as activities must be relatable in an authentic manner

and interesting. Students will be more confident and inclined to engage in lessons if they can

relate activities to their lives and see how what is being learned can be utilized outside school

boundaries.

Addressing the lack of student motivation for learning English as second language is the

first major step in the process of this research. Attributing poor school conditions, detached

administration, or insufficient parental support do not entirely justify the true rationale behind the

learners’ intent in having little desire to learn English. If one observes deeply enough, one can

see that these traits are only surface-level features. This research needs to find the root cause for

this lack of motivation of learning English, especially for a school that is in the middle of a small

town whose economy immensely depends on tourists from English-speaking countries. To find

out the answer to this problem, the teacher-mentor and instructor must go directly to the source:

The students. Conducting a school-wide survey, pulling random students from each grade level

to conduct interviews, and using the 9th graders as a control group to observe the efficiency of

cooperative learning may provide a clearer picture as to the main problem noted in this Action

Research. However, more research will be needed later in the future and conducted on a

quantitative level and school-wide scale to truly find the underlying problems and provide

solutions for those motivational issues. Teachers from other content areas should be included in

future investigations so administration can begin to restructure school culture according to the

learners’ needs, ways of acquiring knowledge, and their desire for learning.
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Research Methodology

For this study, the descriptive research method will be employed, not to make any kind of

accurate prediction or conclude any solid factual cause and effect, but to collect information

about the learners at La Escuela Secundario Junior High School through school-wide surveys

and interviews, and also through observation of the 9th graders as a control group to see how they

respond to cooperative learning. This research will not be quantitative in nature nor will it try to

pass off as such. The numbers and data will be used to describe the situations rather than attempt

any accurate calculations or predictions. Conducting surveys, interviews, and making

observations in the learners’ natural school environment may help in maintaining validity to the

Action Research. However, Mexican society is very much about ‘saving face’, so the teacher-

mentor and instructor need to tread very cautiously so the learners feel safe knowing they will

not be scrutinized for their answers by administration, parents, or the English department when

filling out the surveys or during interviews. To answer the research questions posed in this

paper, data collection will derive from surveys that will contain a combination of frequency and

opinion questions for all grade levels, interviews with random learners selected from each grade

level, and a one-week observational study of the 9th graders in cooperative settings who will also

take a survey after the week is concluded.

This research addresses one of the main issues as to what are the students’ personal

reasons at La Escuela Secundario for having little desire to learn English as a second language.

Although the literature review examines what motivates students for learning with a focus on the

acquisition of the English language, there may be aspects that are unique to the situation for the

learners at La Escuela Secundario not mentioned in the above research. English language

acquisition may not be the only academic content area where students are not succeeding or

motivated to learn. There may also be other reasons why the learners are not scholastically
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achieving standards set by Nayarit Board of Education or doing poorly on standardized tests.

These reasons can include poor studying habits, lack of parental encouragement in the home,

observed patterns of behavior and attitude regarding education from family members,

socioeconomic factors, personal issues, and so on. Therefore, finding the root cause must come

from the learners and the first step in this research must be done through the school-wide survey

to give the teacher-mentor and instructor a picture of what the mitigating factors and attitudes

towards English language education may be. Data collected from the survey will be

quantitatively grouped in pie graphs though in no way are these graphs representative of

scientific, predictive, or direct cause and effect. The pie graphs may contain quantitative data,

but overall data is only for recorded observations to be categorized and interpreted by the

teacher-mentor and instructor to be given to the administration who may eventually decide

whether or not another qualitative study should be done, or a true quantitative study must be

conducted in the future.

Though administrative approval has been granted, they have expressed that no additional

resources be allocated for this Action Research such as man power (secretaries, colleagues,

school volunteers, and so on), keeping students after school hours, or use of office supplies such

as printers, computers, or paper. The teacher-mentor and instructor must supply all and any

materials as well as use personal laptops for this process. Moreover, the teacher-mentor and

instructor must split duties between teaching and conducting this research to maintain curriculum

schedules as well as make sure there is no interference with student course objectives.

Administration, however, has granted approval to set aside one hour and a half for each grade

level to fill out the surveys. The interviews must be done during the two recess periods

throughout the day. Interviews are not be conducted during class time. Incentives such as giving

extra points or allowing students to be class leaders for the day will be granted. Class leaders are
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able to leave class five minutes before the 2nd recess period begins and manage other students

during ‘cleaning time’ in the last period of the day. Finally, administration has guaranteed that

all students will be told that filling out the survey and doing the interview is mandatory. The

teacher-mentor and instructor have asked the administration that no disciplinary action should be

taken if a learner does not want to participate in the survey or interview process. Though

learners will not be told directly, any unanswered questions from the survey or interview will be

part of the collected data.

The teacher-mentor and instructor will collect the data and hand it over to administration

as well as list of ideas, suggestions, potential solutions, and varying approaches to teaching

English as second language for possible future studies. Problems or conflicting circumstances

not first proposed but discovered as a result of this Action Research will be made known in its

conclusion. Though not scientific in nature, the surveys, interviews, and observational control-

study will provide insight throughout the Action Research process and bring to light other factors

or issues that are overlooked or have become the cultural norm at La Escuela Secundario.

Data Collection

A pre-study was conducted prior to the implementation of the Action Research. This pre-

study (see Figures 1 &2) consisted of only gathering statistics to provide the teacher-mentor and

instructor an organized overview of summative examination results for the Fall semester of 2018

for speaking scores and overall scores for discipline areas such as reading, writing, and listening.

The Fall semester and current student population is included as well and broken down by gender.

Gender-specific answers for the surveys and interview as well as academic performance during

the control study will not be recorded. The breaking down of gender is merely to show

administration that all students were involved in this study. The aim for this research is not to

calculate whether girls are more motivated to learn English than the boys, and vice-versa.
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Figure 1. Demographic portrait for La Escuela Secondario Junior High School.

Figure 2. La Escuela Secondario examination results.

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The following is a summation from the school-wide surveys and interviews as well as

teacher observations of the 9th grade control group. (Results from the surveys, interviews, and

observations will be collected in the following week). For the surveys and interviews, pie graphs

were created to the show student answers by grade levels as well as an overview of population

responses. Survey questions were written in both English and Spanish as well as having

emoticons to lower affective filters and be geared towards the maturity level of the learners,

respectively. Learners had the choice of answering questions during the interview in Spanish or

English—again, to lower affective filters. The surveys, interviews, and teacher observations of

the 9th grade control group presented data aimed at answering the Action Research questions.

Survey

The survey (see Figure 3 & 4) consisted of 10 questions in two sections. Collected data

from the survey was broken down into pie graphs to show the percentages of the total student

population answers and show a simple visualization of student answers. Questions 1 thru five

asked the learners to determine frequency and questions 6 thru 10 asked the learners to measure

their opinion. This survey is in no way quantitative in nature. The survey was broken down by:

• Questions 1-5:

o Simplicity of language

o Questions do not require deep thought and self-reflection

o Questions are mostly focused on the individual student

• Questions 6-10

o Language is more complex

o Questions require more self-reflection and deep thought

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o Questions are mostly focused on the class, instructor, and specific sentiment about

learning English

Figure 3. Survey questions 1 -5.

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Figure 4. Survey questions 6-10.

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Pie Chart 1: Student Survey Question 1 (total student population)

Pie Chart 2: Student Survey Question 2 (total student population)

Pie Chart 3: Student Survey Question 3 (total student population)

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Pie Chart 4: Student Survey Question 4 (total student population)

Pie Chart 5: Student Survey Question 5 (total student population)

Pie Chart 6: Student Survey Question 6 (total student population)

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Pie Chart 7: Student Survey Question 7 (total student population)

Pie Chart 8: Student Survey Question 8 (total student population)

Pie Chart 9: Student Survey Question 9 (total student population)

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Pie Chart 10: Student Survey Question 10 (total student population)

Interview

The classes at La Escuela Secundario comprise of two classes each for every level of 7th,

8th, and 9th grades. Learners were randomly selected from each class and grade level.

Conducting a true quantitative research would require a sample size of interviewing 137 students

with a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of 4%. However, because of the nature of

the Action Research and time constraints, a total of twelve learners, 6 boys and 6 girls, or two

from each class, were interviewed. In regard to education surveys, “if you’re planning on just

receiving feedback from students for the sake of seeing what they think—and not necessarily

making a change in the system—a statistically significant sample size might not be as important”

(SurveyMonkey, 2019).

Individually, students were asked four open-ended questions in English first, and if

requested by the student, the questions were then repeated in Spanish. Learners could either

answer the interview questions in Spanish or English. These statistics of answers spoken in

Spanish or English were not recorded. Answers recorded below show blue for the 7th graders,

white for the 8th graders, and green for the 9th graders. Time constraint regulated the interviews

to only four questions which were conducted during the recesses over a five-day period.
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Open-Ended Question #1: What area of English (grammar, reading, writing, listening,

speaking) do you feel is the most important to learn and why?

7th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

8th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

9th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

Open-Ended Question #2: What would make you feel more comfortable learning English: In

groups or on your own? Why?

7th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

8th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

9th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

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Open-Ended Question #3: What kinds of activities do you want to see in class that will help

you speak more during lessons?

7th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

8th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

9th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

Open-Ended Question #4: How do you feel about your overall English learning experience

here at La Escuela Secundario Junior High School?

7th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

8th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

9th Grade (Data to be filled in at a later date)

This data will provide the teacher-mentor and instructor a better idea of what is the students’

motivation or lack thereof for learning English as well as pinpoint whether “speaking” is a

priority for learning the language. Moreover, this information will show a clear picture of how

the leaners see value in learning English or if its pertinent to their lives in any way. Answers

gathered from the survey and interview as well as the observations from the 9th grade control
ACTION RESEARCH 27

group will garner enough information to formulate suggestions. The data analysis will then

show any discrepancies or consistencies from the information gathered. A valid attempt will be

taken to generate answers to the Action Research questions and lay a potential foundation for

conducting future English classes after this Action Research has been fully implement and

surmised.

Control Study

The teacher-observation checklist has not been created yet as this control study will begin

next week. 9th grade classes A and B will be placed in cooperative learning environments to

analyze a text and break down those features that contribute to the development of theme,

setting, and characterization. Students will also create graphic organizers in their groups using

concept maps, matrices, timelines, and tree diagrams. Observations of student behavior will be

recorded to understand not only learner motivation but how teacher instruction parallels student

behavior. After the control study is finished, learners will fill out a rubric about their learning

experience in cooperative settings and how this compares to the regular teacher-centered,

lectured instruction that is the norm at La Escuela Secundario.

Conclusion

More data still needs to be collected as this Action Research is still in progress.

However, there has been a strong foundation for the teacher-mentor and instructor to continue

working towards the common goal of answering the Action Research questions. Though

administration has given approval for this research, they have distanced themselves from the

process. However, the teacher-mentor and instructor are taking excellent strides in their

organization of gathering and inputting data. This collected data will be utilized later in the data

analysis portion of this Action Research as well as help in implementing a future plan and force

field analysis in the weeks to come.

ACTION RESEARCH 28

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