What is Action Research?

Over the last week, I have been studying and learning what action research is and how to implement it in schools. Although I had heard of this type of research, I really didn’t know how to implement or go about conducting research of this nature.
Action research requires administrators and teachers to be active in the process and work together in professional development to have a plan in place to recognize the practices that need to be improved. By asking questions and collecting data a plan is created to follow for  a better understanding of  what needs to be done to make changes. This not only helps administrators recognize what changes need to be made on the administrative side, to deliver information to teachers, but it also helps teachers see how their method of delivering lessons to improve student achievement.
Although action research may take more time and more people involved, they are useful for many different topics. For example, one administrator might want to know what could be done to better the process of discipline and if the procedures in place are effective. While another administrator wants to know if the Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) are effectively delivering information to teachers and are they able to implement that information in the classroom.
Action research is very helpful for all stakeholders of the school. It offers questions to think about and the evidence of what needs to be changed to be more effective.