The Action Research Podcast

In this episode, the AR Pod Team welcomes Dr. Alfredo Ortiz Aragón, an Action-Researcher and Associate Professor in the Graduate Program at the Dreeben School of Education, University of the Incarnate Word San Antonio, Texas, and co-author of Action Research (Fifth Edition) with Ernie Stringer. What does rigor mean in Action Research? Is this term even appropriate for what action researchers do? To discuss these important questions the AR Pod team has a “critically casual” conversation with Alfredo about issues of rigor, quality and what makes good action research. The conversation starts with a quote by Alfredo about the problem with using the term rigor in action research (2:00), which raises a lot of hard-hitting questions, such as: “How might narrow understandings of rigor negatively affect Action Research practice?” and “Should action research be rigorous, or should it simply be responsible? (18:34) Our trio gets critical on the rigid nature of the term rigor to make the point that one needs to be mindful of the moments in action research processes where they should be rigorous and when they should not. Join us in this conversation!  SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: If you are interested in Action Research, be sure to sign up for the 2021 Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA) Annual Conference to be held (Virtually) on the 3, 10 and 17 of June. For more details you can go to their website: https://arnawebsite.org/Also, if you are interested in learning more about Community-Based Participatory Action Research, check out this mini-course at the University of Kentucky that will be co-facilitated by Joe! https://education.uky.edu/learning-series/ ReferencesCHECKLAND, P. & HOLWELL, S. 1998. Action Research: Its Nature and Validity Systemic Practice and Action Research, 11, 12.Ortiz Aragón, A., & Giles Macedo, J. C. (2015). Radical epistemology as caffeine for social change. In H. Bradbury (Ed.), The SAGE handbook of action research (3rd ed. pp. 681–690). SAGE.Melrose, M. J. (2001). Maximizing the Rigor of Action Research: Why Would You Want To? How Could You? Field Methods, 13(2), 160–180. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X0101300203 **If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.** 

In this episode, the AR Pod Team welcomes Dr. Patricia Maguire, Professor Emeritus of Education and Counselling at Western New Mexico University’s Gallup Graduate Studies Center, and author of the seminal book Doing Participatory Research: A Feminist Approach. Hear about the role and influence of feminisms on action research, and hear about Pat’s experiences engaging in feminist activism, teaching, and researching for social justice.The conversation starts with Patricia’s intro (3:20) followed by our classic lightning round (6:30). Then, Adam and Joe get deeper into the conversation discussing tricky questions like the absence and marginalization of women and feminisms in AR and its implications for the social construction of knowledge (14:03), the role of reflexivity (16:23), the constructive critiques feminist theories offer in AR paradigms (18:48), how feminist themes can inform research for social change (30:03). Is reflexivity enough to ensure that Action Researchers are doing good work (32:11)? Find out the answers to these questions and more by tuning in!If you are interested in learning more about Dr. Patricia Maguire’s work, her website is an excellent resource, you can find more resources at https://www.patriciamaguire.net/!SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: If you are interested in Action Research, be sure to sign up for the 2021 Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA) Annual Conference to be held (Virtually) on the 3, 10 and 17 of June. For more details you can go to their website: https://arnawebsite.org/ ReferencesMaguire, P. (2003). Kinsey Dialogue Series #5: Radicalizing the Everyday. 32.Maguire, P., & Berge, B.-M. (2009). Elbows Out, Arms Linked: Claiming Spaces for Feminisms and Gender Equity in Educational Action Research. In S. Noffke & B. Somekh, The SAGE Handbook of Educational Action Research (pp. 399–408). SAGE Publications Ltd. https://doi.org/10.4135/9780857021021.n37Maguire, P. (1996). Proposing a more Feminist Participatory Research: Knowing and Being Embraced Openly. (p 27-39). In Korrie de Koning & M. Martin (Eds). Participatory research in health: Issues and experiences. London: Zed Books. Also published in Southern Africa by National Progressive Primary Health Care Network (NPPHCN) Johannesburg, South Africa. Maguire, P. (2001) Uneven ground: Feminisms and action research. In P. Reason & H. Bradbury (EDs). Handbook of Action Research (p 59-69) London: SageMaguire, P. (1987). Doing Participatory Research: A Feminist Approach. UMass Center for Int'l Education/School of Education. **If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**

Sometimes, it’s just important to define ideas. In this episode, Adam, and Joe talk about some of the key definitions, principles, and differences between Community Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR) and other types of Action Research. The conversation opens with a “mini-lecture” from Joe where he talks about action research, participatory action research and CBPAR (1:55). Talking about these concepts theoretically shows some interesting and important differences between these different kinds of action research. However, when Adam and Joe start talking about the practicality of these paradigms they uncover the messiness that action researchers face. The conversation gets deeper as Adam and Joe discuss their experiences in the field and how to overcome the complexity of Action Research in action (and CBPAR in particular) (14:52). The conversation wraps up with some hard-hitting questions such as, what makes for quality action research or participatory action research or community-based participatory action research? (44:56). Who is that knowledge being disseminated to and why? (49:32). These are just the highlights, tune-in to know more!SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: If you are interested in Action Research, be sure to sign up for the 2021 Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA) Annual Conference to be held (Virtually) on the 3, 10 and 17 of June. For more details you can go to their website: https://arnawebsite.org/ ReferencesBrydon‐Miller, M. (1997). Participatory action research: Psychology and social change. Journal of Social Issues, 53(4), 657-666.Collins, S. E., Clifasefi, S. L., Stanton, J., Straits, K. J., Gil-Kashiwabara, E., Rodriguez Espinosa, P., ... & Wallerstein, N. (2018). Community-based participatory research (CBPR): Towards equitable involvement of community in psychology research. American Psychologist, 73(7), 884.Gullion, J. S., & Tilton, A. (2020). Researching with: A decolonizing approach to community-based action research. Brill Sense.Israel, B. A., Schulz, A. J., Parker, E. A., & Becker, A. B. (1998). Review of community-based research: assessing partnership approaches to improve public health. Annual review of public health, 19(1), 173-202.Johnson, K. M., & Levitan, J. (2020). Identity, culture, and iterative curriculum development: Collaborating with girls from Indigenous communities to Improve education. International Journal of Student Voice, 7.Kelly, P. J. (2005). Practical suggestions for community interventions using participatory action research. Public Health Nursing, 22(1), 65-73.Levitan, J., Carr-Chellman, D., & Carr-Chellman, A. (2020). Accidental ethnography: A method for practitioner-based education research. Action Research, 18(3), 336-352.Levitan, J., & Johnson, K. M. (2020). Salir adelante: Collaboratively developing culturally grounded curriculum with marginalized communities. American Journal of Education, 126(2), 195-230.MacDonald, C. (2012). Understanding participatory action research: A qualitative research methodology option. The Canadian Journal of Action Research, 13(2), 34-50.Maguire, P. (2006). Uneven ground: Feminisms and action research. Handbook of action research: Concise paperback edition, 60-70.McIntyre, J. (2002). Critical systemic praxis for social and environmental justice: a case study of management, governance, and policy. Systemic Practice and Action Research, 15(1), 3-35.McTaggart, R., Nixon, R., & Kemmis, S. (2017). Critical participatory action research. In The Palgrave international handbook of action research (pp. 21-35). Palgrave Macmillan, New York.Stanton, C. R. (2014). Crossing methodological borders: Decolonizing community-based participatory research. Qualitative Inquiry, 20(5), 573-583.Peltier, C. (2018). An application of two-eyed seeing: Indigenous research methods with participatory action research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 17(1), 1609406918812346.Rowell, L. L., Bruce, C. D., Shosh, J. M., & Riel, M. M. (Eds.). (2017). The Palgrave international handbook of action research. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.Stringer, E. T., & Aragón, A. O. (2020). Action research. Sage publications.**If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**

In this episode, we invited Dr. Mary Brydon-Miller, professor in the Educational Leadership, Evaluation and Organizational Development program at the University of Louisville, to come on the podcast and talk with Joe and Adam about ethics in action research. Her current research focuses on research ethics in educational and community settings, and transforming higher education institutions through action research. The conversation opens with introductions and getting to know who Mary Brydon-Miller is as an action researcher. (4:36) SPOILER ALERT: Hear how spending time with Paulo Freire influenced Mary’s identity as an action researcher! Then, the conversation gets deeper as Adam, Joe, and Mary discuss the tricky issues of ethics and quality within action research. (10:48). Here, topics of discussion include navigating power differentials as an action researcher; conventional versus covenantal ethics; challenges within IRB and the human subject review system; ethical imperialism; and why we need a new system to evaluate ethics in action research. The conversation wraps up with a practical discussion about ways an action researcher can establish their own ethical approach in the field (39:18), such as using the structured ethical reflection process and aligning with one’s own moral compass. This episode is a must listen for anybody interested in action research or participatory methodology! SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: If you are interested in Action Research, be sure to sign up for the 2021 Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA) Annual Conference to be held (Virtually) on the 3, 10 and 17th of June. For more details, you can go to their website: https://arnawebsite.org/ ReferencesBrydon-Miller, M. (2007). Ethics and Action Research: Deepening our Commitment to Principles of Social Justice and Redefining Systems of Democratic Practice. 12.Brydon-Miller, M. (2009). Covenantal Ethics and Action Research: Exploring a Common Foundation for Social Research. In D. Mertens & P. Ginsberg, The Handbook of Social Research Ethics (pp. 243–258). SAGE Publications, Inc. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483348971.n16Brydon-Miller, M., Greenwood, D., & Maguire, P. (2003). Why Action Research? Action Research, 1(1), 9–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/14767503030011002**If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**

In this episode, Adam and Joe have a conversation with Dr. Deborah L. Schussler about research methods, and how different methodological approaches relate to action research. Dr. Schussler is an Associate Professor in the Educational Policy Studies Department at The Pennsylvania State University. The conversation starts with two important questions: What are quantitative, qualitative and mixed methodologies? And, how does a researcher decide on or choose a methodology? To which Deb responds, “we have done ourselves a disservice as academics in creating these binaries of qualitative and quantitative…” (2:50) Deb explains that quantitative work can compliment qualitative work to offer certain statistical information, and qualitative work is needed to contextualize what those statistics mean and how that meaning can inform decision-making. Adam and Joe then explore how action research, as a paradigm that necessities action/reflection, collaboration, participation, inclusivity, and change processes, can use these different methodologies to engage in action research projects, They then ask: how do collaboration or participation work in a mixed methods study? (9:20) Later in the episode, our trio reflect on what makes rigorous research? At some point, we all wonder what do our studies mean and how are people going to use them? Is our work going to be published and/or what kind of publication is best for our research? So, what does useful, justifiable, and rigorous research looks like? (16:16) To which Deborah responds, “definitely being very clear about the methods that were selected; the steps that went into that, how those decisions were made…” (19:27) being clear about the “why” of the decision, and reflexively discussing the researchers’ positionality are all essential for communicating one’s work in a way that allows the reader to think through the information and arguments researchers present. In action research, that's especially important because action research is all about using the information in a project to make decisions and to change things. So, what are the ways of bridging these paradigms and providing information and evidence for decision-making? (23:19)Tune in to dive deeper into this conversation with our trio. SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: If you are interested in Action Research, be sure to sign up for the 2021 Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA) Annual Conference to be held (Virtually) on the 3, 10 and 17th of June. For more details you can go to their website: https://arnawebsite.org/ ReferencesSchussler, D. L. (2020). ‘Mindful teaching’: A construct for developing awareness and compassion. Reflective Practice, 21(5), 646–658. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623943.2020.1798918Schussler, D. L., DeWeese, A., Rasheed, D., DeMauro, A., Brown, J., Greenberg, M., & Jennings, P. A. (2018). Stress and Release: Case Studies of Teacher Resilience Following a Mindfulness-Based Intervention. American Journal of Education, 125(1), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1086/699808Schussler, D. L., Oh, Y., Mahfouz, J., Levitan, J., Frank, J. L., Broderick, P. C., Mitra, J. L., Berrena, E., Kohler, K., & Greenberg, M. T. (2021). Stress and Well-Being: A Systematic Case Study of Adolescents’ Experiences in a Mindfulness-Based Program. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 30(2), 431–446. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-020-01864-5**If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.** 

In this episode, Adam and Joe have a conversation with Dr. Lonnie Rowell, who is one of the founding figures of the Action Research movement. He is a co-founder and president of the Social Publishers Foundation (socialpublishersfoundation.org), and a retired professor at the University of San Diego, School of Leadership and Education Sciences. He is also a co-founder and lead organizer in establishing the Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA).Starting with the lightning round, Joe and Adam ask Lonnie simple yet deep questions to explore the “what”, “who” and “how” of Action Research (2:23). To dig deeper into some of these concepts, Joe asks about the differences between the many of action research paradigms (7:34) to which Lonnie responds by discussing the tension between academic-based action research and community-based work, and how we situate knowledge democratization and knowledge production in these tensions. Later in the episode, Adam raises a significant question about how we acknowledge the tension between urban migration and communities disappearing- “…I have been seeing over the years that these communities are starting to disappear, and why is that? It's because of urban migration and it's because in the education system there's a message being shared that there is no value in being a farmer…they're not teaching Quechua; they're learning in Spanish and English…. And you're seeing these communities disappear.” (26:18) Adam’s question brings us back to knowledge democratisation and the question of “who” is the holder of knowledge. The conversation does not end here. Tune in to know how our trio weaves their discussion to address this issue!ResourcesCheck out the Social Publishers Foundation: socialpublishersfoundation.orgAnd the Action Research Network of the Americas: arnawebsite.orgReferencesRowell, L. & Call-Cummings, M. (2020). Knowledge Democracy, Action Research, the Internet and the Epistemic Crisis. Journal of Futures Studies, 24(4). https://doi.org/10.6531/JFS.202006_24(4).0007Hong, E., & Rowell, L. (2019). Challenging knowledge monopoly in education in the U.S. through democratizing knowledge production and dissemination. Educational Action Research, 27(1), 125–143. https://doi.org/10.1080/09650792.2018.1534694Rowell, L. (2018). A brief update from across the big pond’s troubled waters: Beliefs, science, politics, and action research. Educational Action Research, 26(1), 4–8. https://doi.org/10.1080/09650792.2017.1417773Beck, C. (2017). Informal action research: The nature and contribution of everyday classroom inquiry. In the Palgrave international handbook of action research (pp. 37-48). Palgrave Macmillan, New York. Boyer, E. L. (1996). The scholarship of engagement. Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 49(7), 18-33. Del Pino, M., & Ferrada, D. (2019). Construction of educational knowledge with the Mapuche community through dialogical-kishu kimkelay ta che research. Educational Action Research, 27(3), 414-434. Freire, P. (2018). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Bloomsbury publishing USA. Horton, M., & Freire, P. (1990). We make the road by walking: Conversations on education and social change. Temple University Press. Neill, A. S. (1960). Summerhill: A radical approach to child rearing. Pine, G. J. (2008). Teacher action research: Building knowledge democracies. Sage. Rappaport, J. (2020). Cowards Don't Make History: Orlando Fals Borda and the Origins of Participatory Action Research. Duke University Press. **If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**   

Part 2 of this special crossover event is hosted on Linnea’s podcast: Action Research: Global Conversations. Hit the link to continue listening to this important conversation on action research. Here's the URL in case you want to copy and paste: https://anchor.fm/linnea-rademakerReferencesRademaker, L. L. (2019). Action Research and Popular Education: Implications for Twenty-First Century Leadership and Research Practices. In C. A. Mertler (Ed.), The Wiley Handbook of Action Research in Education (pp. 343–369). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119399490.ch16Baldwin, J. (n.d.). The blind men and the elephant. Retrieved February 08, 2021, from https://americanliterature.com/author/james-baldwin/short-story/the-blind-men-and-the-elephant**If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**

What do Action Research Leadership and Population Education have in common? Tune in to find out! In this episode, Adam and Joe have a conversation with Dr. Linnea Rademaker, a professor at Abilene Christian University in the Department of Educational Leadership. She is the chair of the America Educational Research Association (AREA) Special Interest Group on action research, as well as the host of two podcasts- DOC 101 and Action Research: Global Conversations.Words of wisdom- knowledge creation is done collaboratively- is the essence of this episode. Our hosts, Adam and Joe, discuss Linnea’s chapter- Action Research and Popular Education: Implication for Twenty-first Century Leadership and Research Practices and explore facets of Action Research. They discuss questions such as: Do you see popular education and action research as a foundation for leadership? (2:43) Do you think that popular education is a grassroots effort to solve a problem (10:20)? Do you agree that collaborative efforts are going to lead us to sustainable change? (13:12) Tune-in to listen!Our conversation does not end here. In a special “crossover event, part 2 of this podcast is hosted on Linnea’s podcast: --Action Research: Global Conversations--https://anchor.fm/linnea-rademaker. Hit this link to continue listening to this important conversation on action research.  ReferencesRademaker, L. L. (2019). Action Research and Popular Education: Implications for Twenty-First Century Leadership and Research Practices. In C. A. Mertler (Ed.), The Wiley Handbook of Action Research in Education (pp. 343–369). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119399490.ch16Baldwin, J. (n.d.). The blind men and the elephant. Retrieved February 08, 2021, from https://americanliterature.com/author/james-baldwin/short-story/the-blind-men-and-the-elephant**If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**

It is always great to hear from listeners of the Action Research Podcast! In this “mailbag” episode, Adam, Joe and Dr. Lisa Starr answer questions from the audience about reflexivity in action research (tune-in to episode 6, with Lisa, to learn about reflexivity). Lisa is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Integrated Studies in Education at McGill University, as well as the Director of Internships and Student Affairs for the faculty.Hear Adam, Joe and Lisa discuss deep questions from researchers about how to responsibly engage in the research process as well as in activism in action research. (1:45). Later in the episode, the trio discuss important questions about positionality such as, “Once you know your positionality, what is next?”, “Does our positionality limit our perceptions and thoughts?”, “is it ok to let our positionality guide our framework?” (23:50). To hear the responses, tune-in!**If you have your own questions about Action Research or want to share any feedback, contact us on Twitter @The_ARpod or write to us at ActionResearchPod@gmail.com.**

Meagan Call-Cummings, Assistant Professor at George Mason University specializing in critical, participatory, and feminist methods. She explains photovoice and its roots, warns how it can be co-opted in schools, and describes building trustful, long-term participatory projects with students. She also reflects on positionality, ethical tensions, and creative ways to share participatory research.