ABSTRACT
Having to sift through a study’s worth of data can seem like a lot. But remember, teacher inquiry consists of cycles of action research, as indicated in Chapter 1 (and referred to elsewhere in the book). Teacher researchers analyze data as they go along in their study through a cycle of observing, interpreting, planning, and enacting. Teachers don’t wait until the “end” of their study to examine and interpret the information they have gathered, for they have to use their analysis of data to plan and act out changes in their practice. The immediate feedback on practice is one of the major benefits of teacher research. This chapter focuses on how to make sense of the data that have been gathered-namely, interpreting or analyzing those data in this recurring process of action. As you engage in these ongoing analysis experiences, you reaffirm or reframe your research question, sometimes changing the kinds of data to gather. To use the metaphor of a funnel (Bogdan & Biklen, 1998), you may start with a wide spectrum of what to collect, and then, as you see more clearly the topic of your inquiry and that certain data sources may not be as relevant or useful, you narrow the focus by selecting only data collection techniques that seem to be more pertinent. Another reason for analyzing during your inquiry is that you avoid having to wade through a mountain of data at the end of the study. Moreover, your ongoing interpretations and reflections help the process of inquiry become more satisfying, fostering your confidence in your research and its potential usefulness in transforming your practice. In a later part of this chapter, we discuss and illustrate the use of data summaries as a way of documenting your analysis during an inquiry.
