A handbook for Exploratory Action Research

Exploratory Action Research step
What did Lorena do?
A
Plan to explore 
She noticed a problem with listening activities and decided on 
four questions to work with.
B
Explore 
C
Analyse and reflect
1
Plan (to change)
2
Act
3
Observe 
4
Reflect 

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4. What shall I explore
– and what are my
 questions?
By now you should have a reasonably clear picture of what Exploratory Action 
Research looks like – in theory, and in the practice of several teachers whose 
stories you’ve been introduced to. If you want to get an even better idea, you 
could read more of the stories about teachers in the Chilean Champion Teachers 
project, in the companion book we’ve been referring to a lot, and will continue
to refer to throughout this handbook, Champion Teachers: Stories of Exploratory 
Research (
http://bit.ly/champion-teachers
). When you’re ready, read on to find out 
how to get started with your own research!

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29 
| What shall I explore – and what are my questions?
4.1 Motivations for doing research
In the last chapter, you read how Andrea’s research topic 
did not come from what she had read or from someone 
else’s suggestions but started from a concern that she had 
about her own teaching. In Chapter Two we also discussed 
how teacher-research is primarily for teachers (and their 
learners) themselves, and so should be carried out in ways 
that are manageable for them, not being an added burden.
It is only logical then that the main motivation for your 
research will come from you, from your own experience, 
purposes and needs, and not from the outside. 
You are possibly thinking; “But, how do I start? There are
so many things going on in my classes – so many issues to 
address, so many problems to solve, so many puzzles to 
resolve. First, it is important to keep in mind that your 
research can originate from a) a success story, b) a puzzle
or c) a challenging situation:
A. A success story: Something that worked and you would 
like to explore further.
For example: 
You noticed that using short stories to develop reading 
comprehension improved your students reading skills.
You may now want to know what aspects of your
students’ skills improved or what kind of stories were
more successful. You may also want to explore whether 
other narrative genres (such as comics) can have the 
same desired effect. 
B. A puzzle: Doubts or questions you have about your 
students and their learning.
For example: 
Your students have expressed to you on a number of 
occasions that they get bored in class. You observe them 
for a while and you notice they are not engaged during 
your lessons even when you plan more active activities. 
You would like to know what they think about the class and 
how lessons could become more engaging for them. 
C. A challenging situation: Something that didn’t work –
you would like to know why.
For example: 
You began to use role-play in class to help your students 
become more confident speaking the language. However, 
they didn’t respond well to the activity and they tell you 
they still feel embarrassed and anxious when speaking in 
front of people. You want to know why this happens. 
Most teachers have many issues they would like to address 
and a useful way to start narrowing down your focus is by 
thinking of different areas or categories of classroom life. 
We have adapted some categories originally suggested
by Michael Wallace
1
in the following list: