A handbook for Exploratory Action Research

 
What shall I explore – and what are my questions? | 
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4.3 From topic to exploratory questions
In the previous chapter, we presented Exploratory Action 
Research (EAR) to you as a way to explore, understand and 
potentially change your practice.
A good way to start your EAR project is to take your topic / 
area of focus and to ‘unpack’ it. By this we mean, exploring 
inside it further. To use another analogy, this process can 
be compared to peeling an onion. 
Before we start peeling an onion, what we see is the outer 
layer – what is evident to our eyes. After that, layer after 
layer is uncovered as we peel the onion.
If we apply this process to our possible research topic, the 
result will be a series of questions that can help us get to 
our main question or questions and then help us ‘see’ what 
is not immediately evident. Sometimes, because we are
so immersed in a situation, it is hard to think of ways to 
uncover the issue. Here, the help of a critical friend is
highly useful and recommended. A critical friend can be a 
colleague you trust or a mentor (an experienced colleague 
that you can go to for guidance). In the previous chapter 
you read Andrea’s account of her research into ending 
lessons. Andrea had a mentor who supported her during 
her research. 
Below, you will find an extract from the conversation 
Andrea had with her mentor when she started. You will see 
how, in this dialogue, the mentor helped Andrea ‘peel the 
onion’ and start to establish research questions:
If you are still not sure about a possible topic, keep a journal 
for a week, using the following format to guide your thinking.
1. Something I liked about my class today …… 
2. Something I am unsure about from my class today ….. 
3. Something that didn’t work well in my class today …. 
After one week, go back to your journal and read your ideas. 
You may find a potential topic there. If you don’t, do not 
despair, it is better to take your time and continue writing 
in your journal until you feel good about the area you will 
research. It is also advisable to talk to your colleagues about 
situations that are puzzling or disturbing you. This can help 
you choose a good area to focus on.