"You didn't tell us what to do"

Teacher Perceptions
of
Action Research

Julie Arthur,
Bob Bingham, Peter Ireland
Colleen McQueen, Nora Swain












Paper presented at the
AARE Conference
Newcastle 
Nov.27thİDec 1st 1994

Abstract

The traditional expert delivery model of provision for inservice
training with teachers has been shown to have limitations for long
term understanding and professional growth. As an alternative, a
facilitated action research program offers the opportunity for teachers
to identify areas of interest and their associated individual 
professional
development needs. Such a program has been implemented throughout
1994 by Australian Catholic University personnel with a cohort of
teachers (Kİ12) from six Catholic Schools in a provincial town.

Teachers worked on research projects as follows:

* academic motivation

* pastoral care

* parent teacher partnerships
The perceptions of teachers are reported. It was found that after 
initial
reservations and uncertainty with the action research process, teachers 
found
their involvement to be of great benefit both professionally and 
personally. 
This paper reports on the process of action research as undertaken 
in this
project and on the findings of research on teacher thinking.


You didn't tell us what to do. Teacher Perception of Action 
Research 

Arthur, et al
Š
Paper presented at AARE Conference, 1994

Introduction

Recent attention has been paid to the nature and extent of the 
professionalisation of
teaching and the need for lifeİlong teacher education (KremerİHayon, 
1987; Meere, 1992).
According to Korthagen (1993), this has resulted in an increased focus 
on reflection and reflective
teaching. There is a growing demand for teachers at both preİservice 
and inİservice levels in
education to develop reflective capacities in order to complement 
knowledge and technical
capacities (Valli, 1992; Zeichner & Liston, 1987). Valli (1992) found 
teacher comfort with
reflective activities to be influenced by their perceptions of the 
function, value, and nature of the
process. Schon (1983) similarly supports the notion that reflection is 
the process by which the
knowledge base of effective professional practice is constructed and 
refined.
Professional development education has a fundamental aim to improve 
practice not just to
produce knowledge "by developing the practitioner's capacity for 
discrimination and judgement in
particular, complex human situations" (Elliott, 1991, p. 52). Inservice 
training of school based
teachers traditionally has occurred through the transmission of 
preselected content to largely
passive recipients. Adult learning principles suggest that education is 
a good deal more than mere
learning. It requires the active involvement of the educand in the 
process of learning, with the
concept of active learning as the crucial element of this theory. When 
applied to professional
development such principles result in an emphasis on learners being 
actively engaged with the
content and processes of his/her learning in such a way that 
professional development does in fact
occur. A facilitated action research program is one approach which 
meets this challenge.

Kİ12 Professional Development Program: 
Parent Teacher Partnerships through Personal Development Education

The pilot project ran from April to November, 1994, with teachers 
from Catholic schools
in a provincial New South Wales town. With a focus on professional 
development and reflective
practices, the challenge presented in the Kİ12 Professional 
Development Program was to involve
classroom teachers in an action research process through which they 
could identify ways to work
towards partnerships with parents.
The action research approach of the project encouraged collaborative 
reflection and
provided opportunities for investigating a problem of professional 
practice. (Appendix A is an
outline of the process of the Kİ12 Professional Development 
Program). Action research is a form
Šof professional development to which teachers are unaccustomed and with 

which they may be
uncomfortable. This research aims to report on teacher perceptions of 
involvement in the action
learning process, attitudes towards the content of the project and the 
nature of the process itself.

Methodology

A qualitative research approach was adopted to reveal the experiences 
of participants as
these are expressed through diaries and interviews. Qualitative 
techniques recognise the reflective
character of educational research. Such research also seeks to 
understand the persons involved,
their behaviour and perceptions, and the influence of the physical and 
psychological environment
or context on them. Such is the focus in this research: to understand 
the perceptions of teachers as
they undertake action research in the area of parent teacher 
partnerships. This paper reports on
one section of the research.

Participants

Teachers from six Catholic parish schools three primary and three 
campuses of the
secondary school were invited to volunteer to be involved in the 
project facilitated by two
lecturers from the Australian Catholic University. The first Twilight 
Seminar was held in May to
introduce the project. Of the 33 teachers who initially attended the 
introductory seminar, 24 expressed a willingness to continue 
the process with 14 teachers completing the project, seven
from primary schools, four from the regional high school 7İ10, two from 
the senior secondary
school and one from the vocational college. Of the participants, six 
were male and eight female.
The teaching experiences ranged from two years to over twenty years 
experience across diverse
settings in Australia and overseas.

Data Collection.

Data were collected from journals, journal 
interviews and followİup interviews. The
analysis of the data followed a grounded theory approach (Strauss & 
Corbin, 1990) in which data
collection, analysis and theory stand in a reciprocal relationship with 
each other. Journals were
maintained by the participants throughout the process. Following an 
initial handout to the teachers
about journal writing, journals were collected, photocopied and 
responded to three times through
the project. Interviews were audio taped and subsequently transcribed. 
The journal entries and
typed transcripts were analysed for content and style. The data were 
read again to identify specific
themes following Benjamin (1990, p.14) who has described a theme as 
"any set of words, phrases
or sentences which coherently reflected a specific underlying meaning, 
feeling or activity." 
Š
Findings

The information yielded by analysis of the data highlighted emergent 
issues and themes.
These related to initial reactions to the process, perceptions of the 
role of triads, teacher image,
perceptions of parents. In reporting the findings, attention has been 
given to relating perceptions
to specific sections of the process. For the most part participant's 
words have been used to
illustrate the findings. These are written in italics.

Introductory Session: He told us he'd like us all togo.

Participants attended the introductory twilight seminar in response 
to an invitation to all
teachers in the parish. The initial motivation for partaking in the 
pilot project was found to vary
widely. For some it was seen as a chance for personal and professional 
renewal with other
colleagues in an area of their choosing and interest. 

The cream of the parish teaching profession is here. If for 
no other reason, this is
a great idea. A chance to exchange ideas with people I have been 
meaning to catch up with for a long time.

For others the reasons were pragmatic. 
I am on a contract and this may help me get a full time job.

Some teachers reported a reluctance at first, but attended because of 
perceived pressure fromschool administration.
On this campus it was almost a case of, you know you see 
it in the movies, that
they call for volunteers and everyone else steps back so far and 
one is left.

Whereas for some of the teachers attending the seminar there was 
personal choice and motivation,
for others it was an obligation to their principal. All arrived without 
a clear idea of either the
process of action research or of the exact nature of the inservice 
content. 

Perceptions of Action Research: You didn't tell us what todo

The preliminary invitation identified parent teacher partnerships 
and personal development as key issues in an action research 
based inservice program. The initial session of
the program had a commonly identified response. Participants varyingly 
reported they were confused and unsure in relation to the 
process of the inservice project, in addition to the content of
the project. Typically these were either journal comments: 
Being a structured type of person I had hoped for clearer 
directions as to theclassroom teacher's role in this project.

I was left wondering if the expectations were relatively 
simple or if I had missed the point altogether.

or interview comments:
I felt confused
ŠAt first I was not quite sure. I like to know what the goal 

is. 
I thought it was going to be more of an inservice, straight 
into it, whereas it
wasn't.

A reİemergent concern of participants in the early stages of the 
project was the motivation of the
researchers İ what we would get out of it.  
Not sure what you want and what you are expecting

This uncertainty was linked to uncertainty of what researchers expected 
of the participants.
Ownership was identified by one participant when referring to his 
action plan. 
I want it to become my project within your scheme.

Identification of area for action plan: All at sea

The identification of a problem area on which to focus their action 
plans occurred at the
second twilight seminar. This was a difficult task for teachers as was 
coming to terms with the
process of a form of inservice which differed from their previous 
experiences. Repeatedly the
comment was made that teachers were unsure of what they were to do.

I'm still not quite sure about a specific objective for the 
action research plan.

The participants reported being used to attending inservice which would 
give them a list of
information, a recipe for them to follow and lots of good ideas for 
teaching. In this project,
teachers were offered control of their professional development through 
identification of a need
they had and planning how they could address this need. Teacher 
thinking about their problems
and action plans was facilitated through the interactions afforded them 
through the whole group
sessions conducted by the facilitators and subsequent triad meetings.

Through talking it seemed more like something I wanted todo.

Our first meeting was better than I thought, the other 
members helped me to clarify my
ideas and reshape them as well as offer other suggestions.

Casual conversations, it was just a couple of casual words, 
also were reported as significant in the
decision making associated with problem and action plan identification. 
A proforma for listening
to the ideas of others gave the listening teachers some prompts for 
areas in which to question their
colleagues as part of facilitating the communication process with 
people who were essentially
strangers. Teachers highlighted difficulties of communication, not only 
between teachers and parents but also among themselves.

Implementation

Having identified a problem and prepared a plan of action, teachers 
Šbegan to implement their

action plans. The following extracts from case studies highlight the 
individual nature of action
research based professional development.


Case Study 1.

I was interested in the ParentİTeacher Partnership project to 
enhance my own personal
development and to improve in an area of teaching I had neglected. I 
have always believed
parents are an integral part of the education process but have never 
given it the time, in
thought or action, that it deserves.

In choosing a project, I wanted it to be useful , workable and 
attainable. The idea of a
teacher initiated project was more appealing than being given an area 
of focus. I decided to
target my pastoral care class. In having established a good 
relationship with the students, I
decided involvement with the parents would be of benefit to everyone. I 
wanted the parents to
begin to see me as a link into the school.

I began with a letter to inform the parents of some of the activities 
Year 10 would be involved
with over the coming months (assessment tasks, subject selection for 
yr. 11, work experience
placements etc.). I invited their involvement in these decisions and 
suggested they contact me if
they had any questions or concerns about these happenings. A more 
personal contact by phone
was made to ensure an understanding of the above mentioned activities 
and to encourage
further communication. Finally a social evening was held with parents 
and students so that
face to face interaction could occur.

Opening Communication with Pastoral Care Class Parents:Yr 10


Case Study 2.

The initial gathering of teachers and facilitators was a walk 
into unchartered professional
territory. It was the catalyst for many questions. I was curious to 
know the format of "Action
Research" over the next eight months.
As a professional development experience I was used to knowing where I 
was going and what
steps had to be taken to get there. This had been my conditioned 
response in the past. But
unfortunately Action Research didn't provide similar immediate 
satisfaction to my curiosity.
Instead its structure was slow in emerging. This was a different model 
and I was finding that I
had no preconditioned mindset to assist my direction. Action research 
needed clarification at
our initial meeting. To me it appeared to rely on the "informal 
communication and reflection"
Šmuch more than the formal model I was used to. In the early stages this 

didn't sit comfortably
with someone who is task oriented. By the end it was achieving more 
than I had anticipated.
From my experiences as a teacher at a Senior College, I had become 
concerned at the 
apparent reluctance among most male students to get involved and 
participate in the school
based curricular and coİcurricular activities. The Action Research 
project offered me a vehicle
to address this problem. The opportunity for collaboration 
with selected parents and students
appealed to me. This would help foster the partnership of which we are 
part by engaging more
parents in the total education process. The second twilight meeting I 
attended gave me a focus
for the first time. It also gave me a strategy İ a self styled strategy 
İ not a text book one. It
allowed me to develop a timeİline in which to implement an action plan. 
It obliged me to
engage parents and students as well as other professionals (triad 
members) from which to gain
feedback and refine the process and strategy. 
My action plan focused on raising the profile of three year 11 male 
students through the
development of strategies and opportunities in collaboration with 
chosen students and theirparents.

Motivation of Boys in a Senior Secondary College


Case Study 3.

The focus of my research project was to provide opportunities 
which would aid in the
development of a sense of community amongst families, parents and 
children of my year one
class. 
I chose this focus because as a parent with 7 years of involvement in 
primary schooling, I felt
there were many parents that I didn't know or knew only briefly.
I believed that if parents were invited to meet socially on a class 
basis (with no other agenda
e.g. fundraising) from the initial years of their children's schooling, 
then they would feel more
at ease/familiar with each other, their children's friends and 
teachers. I felt that despite the
project being small it had the potential for many positive 
spinoffs.

Parent Teacher Partnerships in Primary School


Collaboration in Triads: Confidence to share

The third step in the action research process was the formation of 
triads/ action research
teams. Based on the notion that groups bonded together would have a 
responsibility not solely to
themselves to complete the project but also to others, action research 
teams were formed with
small groups of teachers. There was an implicit notion of motivation 
Šbased on collegiality. The

success of the triads varied. All groups reported that time was a 
difficulty in the regard to the
frequency of meetings. Teachers in groups which were on separate 
campuses reported difficulties
in meeting with triad members and related these specifically to being 
at different schools. Groups
that were based on common school levels, that is, all primary teachers 
reported a greater  feeling
of satisfaction with the groups than groups formed across school 
levels, secondary/primary,
secondary/senior college. Reasons offered for this included the 
availability of contact and
familiarity with, if not a sharing of, the context and the issues. 

Where teachers from the same campus were in the same triad group, as 
occurred at the
junior secondary school, teachers reported that frequency of contact 
increased outside of the triad
meetings. This is consistent with the notion of teaming on the 
run reported by O'Connor (1992),
whereby teachers discuss important issues as they think of them and in 
passing. The seemingly
transitory communications that occur as teachers wait for classes or 
walk to classes gained a new
focus for triad members. Instead of the weather, we now talk 
about our projects or issues related
to them. Having several teachers from the one school undertaking 
the inservice was also seen as
much more effective in that a few of us are doing it here so we 
can start thinking of the school
and the ideas applied to the school. The projects give you a 
starting point.

Creating networks started at a basic level of teachers getting to 
know other teachers. In
journal notes, one teacher had described, in an early entry, an 
interaction with another teacher at
the workshop session as working with another lady, she's in 
year 3. Later in the journal, after
triads had been formed, names became used. Familiarity had been 
established. From working
together teachers reported developing a confidence to share
and that they didn't feel so alone. The
aloneness of teaching is an important consideration in the provision of 
inservice. The sharing of
information became a focal point for some triad groups. Each time they 
met one or another would
report on articles they had read an recommend them to the others. One 
teacher recorded that triad
meetings encouraged members to make a more conscious effort to 
read different articles.
Kormanski and Mozenter (1987) have reported that commitment was an 
essential element of team
formation. This is evidenced throughout the study. 

Conclusion

Teacher reflection on the process of facilitated action research and 
on their own action
plans has been an inherent part of this pilot project. Thus far, data 
from research in progress
Šsuggests that the teachers who remained with the project, having 

initially found difficulties with a
lack of clearly identified end goals, made significant gains in their 
professional development. For
some participants this was in their understanding of parentİteacher 
relationships whereas others
gained skills in practices of communication with parents. Most teachers 
identified the collaboration
and support of action research team members and the outside consultants 
as pivotal to their
continuing with their plans. However the key issue remains the personal 
significance and control
offered teachers in the selection of issues of interest and 
concern to 
them. 


Case Study 1.

The project seems very simple but I believe it's a beginning for 
myself. Through the project I
have become more aware of parental involvement and the need for 
teachers to initiate and
encourage parental involvement. There were four of us on staff working 
on various projects
and I believe through our readings, triad meetings and individual 
projects we now have a
greater commitment to involve parents in a more meaningful way. We have 
discussed
possibilities of how parental partnership could be introduced at the 
beginning of a new school
year.

There will always be obstacles and the need to evaluate steps taken, 
but the concept of
partnership can only enhance the idea of a shared sense of purpose, 
respect and trust for one
another. The benefits will be forthcoming for the teacher, parent and 
particularly the student.

Opening Communication with Pastoral Care Class Parents:Yr 10

Participants overall reported feeling unsure and confused with 
their initial involvement in what
was for many their first experience with a nonİtraditional approach to 
inservice training. The
following excerpt from a case study serves to summarise such feelings.

The action research process is peppered by insecurities. 
Working against a
traditional background of formal professional development which is top 
down, it
challenged me to be more collaborative, made me interact regularly with 
parents
and students with a positive focus, but gave me no direction. However 
it promoted
autonomy in professional development, was eventually satisfying due to 
its
flexibility. It generated its content from parent, student and staff 
responses or
reactions. It evolved to serve specific individual circumstances and 
included
Šparents in an unthreatened scenario to support the strong partnerships 

towards which we are all working.

Bibliography

Benjamin, M. (1990). Freshman daily 
experience: Implications for policy, research and theory.
Student Development Monograph Series, Volume 4. Guelph, Canada: 
University of Guelph.

Elliot, J. (1991). Action research for 
educational change. Milton Keyes: Open UniversityPress.

Korthagen, F.A.J. (1993). Two models of 
reflection. Teacher and Teacher Education, 9(3), pp.317İ326.

KremerİHayon, L. (1987). Women teachers' 
professional development: General and personal
perspectives. Educational Review, 39 (1),pp.3İ13.

Meere, P.V. (1992). Learning to be a 
teacher wholistically. Paper presented at the 12th
Annual International Seminar for Teacher Education, Armidale,April.

Schon, D.A. (1983). The reflective 
practitioner: How professionals think in action. NewYork: Basic Books.

Strauss, A. & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics 
of qualitative research: Grounded theory,
procedures and techniques. Newbury Perk, CA.:Sage.

O'Connor, B. (1991). Interagency teamwork: 
realities and challenges. Paper presented at
the 15th National Conference of the Australian association of Special 
Education. Brisbane, University of Queensland. 28 September.

Valli, L. (Ed.) (1992). Reflective 
teacher education: Cases and critiques. New York: State 
University of New York Press.

Zeichner, K.M. & Liston, D.P. (1987). 
Teaching student teachers to reflect. Harvard
Educational Review. 57, 23İ48.


Appendix A

Action Research

There were three distinct strands to the Kİ12 Professional 
Development Program:

1. Teacher Twilight Seminars

2. Action Research by teachers

3. Action Research Teams
Each of these strands offered challenges to teachers as they engaged in 
the actionresearch process.

1. Twilight Seminars
Following an initial Twilight Seminar, subsequent seminars focused on 
Šaction research

methodology and the nature of parentİteacher partnerships. In addition 
to the process
development for their identified professional needs, teachers requested 
and were given
specific input about parent teacher communication. Folios of readings 
related to the
topics of the inservice were supplied to each school cohort.

2. Action Research
Steps in the action research process are as follows:
 1. Teachers identify a key issue they wish to address at the 
classroom level of decision making. 
 2. An action plan is formulated to address the issue and 
implemented by the teacher. 
 3. Teachers reflect on the implementation process and evaluate 
their plans, making changes where required.
 4. Revised plans are implemented.

Action plans in this project have been written in the following areas:
Motivation of Senior Students 
Parent Participation in Personal Development 
Student Evaluation and Parent Teacher Information 
Building Relationships with Parents: Breaking down the barriers 
Development of self esteem 

3. Action Research Teams/Triads
Action research teams were formed with small groups of teachers. The 
aim of the
teams was to provide collegial support with a timetable of support 
meetings arranged
by the participants. The initial action research session and the 
subsequent first team
meeting were facilitated by the researchers with following meetings 
alternating
between team self facilitation and support from the external 
facilitator.



DISCUSSION PAPER 
AND
CASE STUDY 
ON 
AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

Peter J. Ireland
Campus Principal

MacKILLOP SENIOR COLLEGE
PORT MACQUARIE NSW

December 1994

Abstract

This paper reports on an action research plan undertaken as part of 
the Kİ12 Professional Development Program: Parent Teacher 
Partnerships through Personal Development Education. The program was 
implemented
in Catholic schools, Kİ12, in Port Macquarie, NSW, from May to
November, 1994. The program involved twilight seminars, action research
Šand collaboration with teachers in action research teams. Professional
support was provided by Julie Arthur, from the Australian Catholic
University, McAuley Campus, (Brisbane), the project leader.


What about the Boys? A Discussion Paper
Peter Ireland

Introduction

Many recent reports allude to the theory that, in the postİcompulsory 
sector, adequate
masculine development among teenage boys fails without the specific 
application of positive
intervention from male role models. Young men heading toward 
collaborative workplace environments, meaningful relationships 
within marriage and families can no longer afford to be
emotionally expressive deserts. All this should be balanced by the 
realisation that young men
(teenagers) need relationships with other men in deep and significant 
ways which go far beyond
playing sports and having a beer together. So the challenge we have in 
schools is to broaden the
narrow stereotypic by which we force potentially generous and able 
young men to virtually ignore
or entomb their emotional and spiritual impulses. 
It is no longer sufficient for schools to address pastoral care in 
the narrow traditional
sense of wholistic development. Specific strategies are needed which 
focus on the specific needs of
adolescents, with regard to the particular gender based differences 
(Connell, 1989). It is time for
developmental needs to be considered within the area of pastoral care. 
It is also recognised that
such an approach cannot succeed without the development of partnerships 
between parents andteachers.
The outcome of such a focus will be that the boys will take up many 
more opportunities
for personal growth at school than they currently do. In other words 

the present situation is
inhibiting their participation in valuable learning experiences beyond 
the prescribed syllabus. If the
current focus on institutionalised maleness continues there will be 
continued denial of the optimum
development of the mental health and skill building of boys even more 
fundamentally than has
occurred with the self esteem and achievements of girls in Australian 
society.

The Study: "What about the Boys?"

Background

My experience in single sex and coİeducational schools particularly 
is that regardless of an
obvious reason, e.g. lack of appropriate male stereotypes, boys don't 
join in readily, miss out on
valuable learning and growing experiences and consequently short change 
their potential.
Anecdotal evidence from exİstudents suggests that female students 
reflect positively on their involvement in coİcurricular activities.
"I'm glad I had a go atthis and that while I was at
MacKillop because it's been so useful to me at University or at 
work". While a common trend among male exİstudents is to say "I 
wish I had been involved in this and that at school because I
could have really used it now".
This background provides not only a link, but also a good reason to 
raise the profile of
teenage boys in schools. It behoves us to work with parents and 
students to devise strategies
which bring about not only an attitudinal change but also a change in 
practices which will see
boys get the most out of all developmental opportunities available to 
them at MacKillop Senior
College: a true wholistic education.
The recent experience among the Year 11 and 12 male cohorts at 
MacKillop Senior
College clearly identifies a reluctance/hesitation among most male 
students to:
 
1. get involved and participate in school based curriculum and 
coİcurriculum activities

2. value education in the wholistic sense and all its 
associated dimensions in the senior
secondary years.

An assessment of the roles played by male and female students at 
MacKillop Senior College
reveals that on the whole the Senior girls are much more involved in 
skill building experiences within the curriculum and 
coİcurricular activities.

The pattern in recent years is that the senior girls are the 
`doers', the `givers' and the major
participants in an around the College with the possible exception of 
sport.

1. Young Achievers Australia Scheme (85% female)
2. School Council 50%, 50% but less male initiative
Š3. Fundraising for Charities 80% female

4. Mock Trial Representative Team 100% female
5. College Debating Team 100% female
6. Public Speaking Competitions 100% female
7. Literary Competitions 60% females
8. Choir Group 90% female
9. Use of library in lunch 70% female
10.Volunteers for Liturgies 80% female

In these areas the boys are happy to take an insignificant background 
role at best, with the
exception of just a few.  The boys are outnumbered when they do 
participate, but in many cases
show little interest in being involved at all. The irony is that the 
girls do it İ seize the opportunity
and grow by the experiences and the boys lose out.  In fact the 
majority of boys seem happy that
they are out of the limelight when it comes to these activities both in 
and out of the classroom.
A significant and measurable indicator of gender based achievement is 
the lower
performance by males at MacKillop Senior College relative to females in 
the Higher School
Certificate. This is a tangible indicator which can be supported with 
empirical evidence.
e.g. In 1993 females scored on average another 17 marks in Tertiary 
Entrance Ranks than males. 
There was a higher proportion of males clustered at the bottom end of 
the mark range.  Girls
outperformed boys in all 15 H.S.I.E. courses, in 4 Creative Arts 
courses, Languages, Biology and
English.
The issue of raising the male profile among the 16,17 and 18 year 
olds at MacKillop
Senior College and the esteem and skills which come from profile 
raising activities/experiences is
tied up more with:

 an attitudinal change, rather than a lack of ability

In fact it is my belief that until young males can be parented and 
nurtured more effectively by
their teachers and parents to effect a positive and willing attitudinal 
change İ their performance
across academic, social, vocational and life management areas will 
remain under the maximum
potential.
Progress in making the attitudinal change will involve a strong 
partnership between
teachers and parents provided they are rounded resourceful people 
equally in touch with their
emotionally accepting side as well as their assertive socially 
achieving side. Against this
background, an action plan was devised based on the provision of 
opportunities to effect
attitudinal change in selected boys with a resultant increase in skill 
building opportunities for
personal growth and development at MacKillop.

The Action Plan

The action research plan was devised 
Šwith a view to clarifying the current situation with

regard to male student involvement in coİcurricular activities and 
subsequently devising `workable
strategies' with parents which will raise the profile of boys in a 
positive way. 

I selected three Year 11 students who I know 
would be in my Year 12 Economics class in 1995.
This afforded me the chance to keep in regular daily contact with them 
if necessary and with small
numbers kept it simple and manageable for me. Strategies involved 
meetings with the boys, and
meetings with boys and their parents.

Timeİline

August Identify 3 male students, make contact with them and 
their parents

September Meet with parents and students

October Evaluate and reassess action plan

November Evaluation and planning for 1995

Implementation

Meetings with boys
The first meeting took place on 9th August on the courtyard lawn. At 
this meeting I asked
each of the students for their impressions of what we had begun as a 
Trial Project.  Their
reactions gave me enough evidence to form the opinion that although 
they were aware of the
possible embarrassment factor, or nervousness/self consciousness, they 
still enjoyed the prospect
that I was interested enough to choose them as trial candidates.  (This 
was a positive side effectalready).
Their comments reflected interest in the venture although one 
described the project as
"discovering more about what I'm not good at". Discussion focused on 
reasons for reluctance to
attempt things they were not good at. The following were identified by 
the boys:

1. lack of acceptable male role models

2. insecurity, low confidence and low self esteem

3. peer pressure within the male cohort working against 
involvement

4. physical and emotional immaturity relative to females at this 
age

5. It's too tempting to take the soft and lazy option

6. The male movement ("Male strategies") is still in its infancy 
and is not yet delivering asimilar outcome

7. the girls are even more focused these days at school and 
college because they know that in
Šmany cases they will have to look after their own financial futures.  

This may be a positive outcome working in favour of the senior 
girls on the back of 30 years of thefeminist movement.

The three boys left the meeting aware that they will be encouraged on 
future occasions to volunteer for activities or specific roles 
around the College which will:

* improve their profiles as individuals;

* provide confidence and learning through experience;

* perhaps lead to a greater male participation.

Subsequently meetings included:

1. discussion on boys strategies
2. comparison with girls level of involvement
3. reading articles
4. suggesting opportunities for skill building among each other
5. discussion for emotional readiness 
stages

Meetingswith parents

Before devising strategies or providing opportunities for the boys, a 
meeting was held with the
parents to clarify the benefits of greater involvement and 
participation. The following comments
were made by parents:

"This will be good for him because he is used to sitting on 
the sideline and letting
his sisters take the from stage in most things.  If he can gain more 
confidence he might show more of a lead and initiative", Student No.1 
(BW)

" This will be good for him because he tends to be shy and 
gets embarrassed easily if he has to do something which raises his 
profile". Student No.2 (HL)

"This might be good for him because although he has lots of 
ability, he only does what he has to İ the bare minimum". Student 
No.3 (MJ)

The reaction from the parents was for the most part interested and 
positive. There were
difficulties in arranging common times to meet with the result that 
contact was more often by
phone. Student No 3 is from a single parent family. Although supportive 
of the project, his
mother wishes to keep her distance from the school.

Evaluation

When the 3 boys began to volunteer I could really see a sign of 
progress. My subjective
assessment so far is that it appears to be leading the way for other 
boys to participate in further
skill building experiences. In other words, I think participation is 
gaining acceptance. Other staff,
particularly the Year 11 Coİordinator and Pastoral teachers have 
Šsupported the trial project

through providing extra opportunities for the selected students. 
Activities in which students have been involved include:

acting as Usher at the Year 12 Graduation Ball andPrizegiving,

chairing a full College Assembly,

leading the College in prayer

The active participation of the three boys in the coİcurricular 
activities of the school has
increased over the period of the action research. It could also be said 
that there has been a
corresponding change in attitude and motivation which has resulted in 
the increased participation.

Where to from here

The process will continue for the remainder of the year and into 
1995. It is planned to
extend the project to include a new cohort of boys from the incoming 
Year 11. Further contact
with parents will include a separate Seminar/Workshop for parents and 
sons next year. Parent
evaluation of the project will also be sought as a means to further 
understanding between parents
and teachers.
Raising the awareness of staff is also a priority area. The aim of this 
project is that through the
specific strategies applied in this process there will be a positive 
effect in changing male student
attitudes to involvement and success in the coİcurricular life of the 
school. If this is achieved there
will be strong evidence to suggest that provision of pastoral care for 
students in the PostŞCompulsory sector needs a redefinition if the 
needs of adolescent males are to be met.


Bibliography

Connell, R.W. (1989). Cool guys, swots and wimps. The interplay of 
masculinity and education. Oxford Education Review. 15(3), pp. 291İ303