Peer Review Final Project-Part Two: The Narrative

Peer Review Final Project-Part Two-The Narrative

Ashford University: EDU 694

The Narrative: Relevancy to My Profession

My goal as a current and future educator is to support my students in their social-emotional and academic success. I encourage my students to become lifelong learners, which is something I believe a good educator strives to accomplish. According to Holland and Riley (2017), “The average age of ADHD diagnosis is 7 years old. They continue to say, “The Symptoms of ADHD typically first appear between the ages of 3 and 6” (A.D.D resource). Of the 6.1 million school-aged children diagnosed with ADD/ADHD in 2016, 388,000 were within my student age group (CDC). As a preschool teacher, I must understand how I can support my students on their journey, both mentally and physically. 

Working with students 3 to 5 years of age is a fun experience in itself. However, preschool is the beginning of their journey academically. These students are coming into the education system from their homes, most of them for the first time. My job is to understand the type of learners they will become. Some students will be able to sit still through the duration of a story. The students that cannot sit still might have a disability or need a physical break. There are many variables in off-task behavior it is my job to know my students and find a strategy. Preschool is a prerequisite to the entry levels of elementary classes. It is my job to get my students ready for the next level. Ask yourself, can you sit still for six hours and concentrate while someone talks to you?

As a preschool teacher, my students will be younger and most likely more off-task (excited) than the kindergarten age students did. The challenge to get an entire classroom of three and 4-year-olds to sit still for prolonged periods at the beginning of the school year will be a strategy. Some of my students may have disabilities, and the parents nor I may not know they have them. According to the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “In 2011, 11% of children/adolescents aged 4 to 17 years had ever received an ADHD diagnosis” (2014). As an educator, I am considering all my students taking into account those who do not have disabilities as well. I will include my students as a whole inclusively.

I continue to do qualitative research on different strategies to help my current and future students. The students in the Wiebelhaus (2016) study, were self-aware capably answering questions about their experiences in the classroom before, during, and after the gross motor stations. In my preschool classroom, I may not be able to get answers as clear as the participants in the study may. However, the study gave me a perception of how I can support the cognitive growth of my students by implementing physical activity in their daily routines. According to Frischenschlager (2012), “Regular physical activity also leads to better circulation and oxygen supply to the brain, an increase in bone and muscle density, and greater tolerance of stress” (active learning). I want to implement physical activity in my classroom to help support my student’s cognitive growth and decrease their off-task behavior. In the Wiebelhaus 2016 study, there are three validated participants very near the ages of preschool students. With the qualitative data, preschool teachers can have a better understanding of the student’s perception of physical activity and the effects on off-task behavior.

Reflect

           In today’s society, technology is everywhere. I recall the thick binding of encyclopedias that lined my family’s bookshelf. They were full of quantitative data with accurate, validated information labeled by the large letter of the alphabet. I would bury my eyes deep in the print, knowing the information was reliable. Today the ink has turned to text, and the paper is now digital, so easily published. Today, the knowledge you seek is much harder to find. I struggled to find my action research resource, as the internet has now flooded the world with text and lost its validity. The truth and credible resources are worth the time and effort to research. 

   As an educator, I want to take the time to support my students and find the best way to help them meet their goals. Action research is a strategy that will help me do that right thing for all of my students and myself. As I read the Kindergarten case study, I was able to understand the strategy in which action research can help in any given situation in the classroom. By following the study and the chapter on action research, I can implement the research in my future needs through the action research steps below:

Specify the topic about which a concern exists.

Clarify the specific problem on which the research will focus.

Formulate research questions and/or hypotheses concerning the main problem.

Carry out procedures by which data (a more appropriate term for “information”) are collected, analyzed, and interpreted.

State the findings determined as a result of the data analysis.

Draw conclusions related to the original research questions and/or hypotheses (Mertler & Charles, 2011).

   According to Mills (2011, as cited in Mertler, 2017), “Action research is defined as any systematic inquiry conducted by teachers, administrators, counselors, or others with a vested interest in the teaching and learning process or environment for the purpose of gathering information about how their particular schools operate, how they teach, and how their students learn”(chap. 1.1). By reviewing the study of off-tsk behavior and the effects of physical activity, the author/teacher studied their own classroom. To gain a better understanding of her student’s off-task behaviors the team collaborates hypotheses of implementing the need for physical activity. The team takes into account the possible student needs of ADHD and those who are in need of physical stimulation. The study is ethically cautious when choosing their participants, keeping past, present, and future members, colleges, and readers in mind. With less than 17% of the class available to them, the study was able to gain a student perspective and create a working strategy. The team included the entire class as a collaborative group and created a working method to support all members in the class. The action research is validated through the verbal and non-verbal responses in the participants that attend the classroom through several validated means of qualitative sources.

After reviewing the Wiebelhaus study of 2016, and Mertler’s 2017, chapters on action research, I am confident in my future endeavors. I feel the time spent on searching for validated resources are worth the success of my students, and myself in all academic respects. The Wiebelhaus study of 2016 did not have a sufficient amount of participants to transfer to another school year. However, I feel confident with the data provided to implement physical activity in my classroom to help the social-emotional, and cognitive growth of my students for their academic goals, and my own.

References

Centers for Disease and Prevention. (2019, October 15). Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Retrieved April 20, 2020, from The A.D.D Resource Center. Retrieved from https://www.addrc.org/privacy-statement/

Frischenschlager, E., & Gosch, J. (2012). Active Learning-Leichter lernen durch Bewegung. na.

Gapin, J. I., Labban, J. D., & Etnier, J. L. (2011). The effects of physical activity on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms: The evidence. Preventive Medicine, 52, S70-S74.

Mertler, C. A. (2017). Action research: Improving schools and empowering educators (5th ed.) [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/

Thomas, J. Y., & Brady, K. P. (2005). Chapter 3: The Elementary and Secondary Education Act at 40: Equity, Accountability, and the Evolving Federal Role in Public Education. Review of Research in Education, 29(1), 51–67. https://doi.org/10.3102/0091732X029001051

Visser, S. N., Danielson, M. L., Bitsko, R. H., Holbrook, J. R., Kogan, M. D., Ghandour, R. M., … & Blumberg, S. J. (2014). Trends in the parent-report of health care provider-diagnosed and medicated attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: United States, 2003–2011. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 53(1), 34-46.

Wiebelhaus, S. E., & Hanson, M. F. (2016). Effects of classroom-based physical activities on off-task behaviors and attention: Kindergarten case study. The Qualitative Report, 21(8), 1380-1393. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/docview/1813537829?accountid=32521