ABSTRACT
Action research and professional learning communities are both educational concepts and practices that have gained a great deal of momentum in our PK–12 schools and districts over the past ten years or so. On the surface, these might seem like isolated concepts, ones that might not see any sort of side-by-side implementation. For some educators, action research might be an unknown entity. For those who know a little something about action research, they might see it as an approach to conducting educational research in schools. Many educators believe that they are "doing" a professional learning community when they meet every Tuesday morning for an hour to discuss some common topic. Action research communities (ARCs) have the potential to help educators everywhere experience: a common and collective focus and vision; sustained collaborative inquiry; individualized, customizable-and meaningful-professional growth; and true empowerment that comes with this form of collaborative, inquiry-based, and reflective practice.
