Comparing and Contrasting Action Research and Action Learning

Abstract

Action research is transformative social learning with a change agenda. It shapes the world with others in a more desired direction. For action researchers in education, the practice/inquiry combination at the heart of the work aims at making a situation such as a classroom or whole school system better by responding to the continuous need for development or change. The stakeholders of the school (i.e. the students and teachers of a classroom or others involved in the uses of a school, including parents, school board members, maintenance and administrative staff-the list is limited only for practical reasons) engage in cycles of inquiry and practice within their systems. We offer a generic orientation for getting started with action research, referred to as a simple recipe which may look entirely different depending on context. This is followed by examples in order to set a practical foundation for the more abstract discussion that proceeds to for application.

Wood, L. (2020). Participatory action learning and action research: Theory, practice and process. Routledge.

“…The author does not adequately explain the process within action learning and within action research, nor does she distinguish how the group back and forth from action learning to action research, and from action research to action learning are different (though they have some similarities). Bourner and Brook (2019) provide a fuller discussion of both the similarities and differences of action learning and action research. According to Bourner and Brook, both action learning and action research are action-based, produce actionable knowledge, are problem-centred, involve cycles of action and reflection, and offer solutions to the theory-practice gap.…”