Social Pragmatism of Action Research

Abstract

This study analyzed the impact of action research to the students, family members and community as part of the research and extension program in the public elementary and secondary schools in Metro Manila by the College of Education, Polytechnic University of the Philippines Manila. It examined the social pragmatism of action research  in school and in the community.

The community service program of the university through teaching the public school teachers how to make an action research is a best extension and research program that helps the school and the community. By means of action research, the public school teachers helped the students in improving their academic performance, enhanced teaching strategies and extend their knowledge and skills in reaching out the community. An action research makes the stakeholder act with moral and ethical responsibility to be pragmatic. Action research in practice is highly personal, built around the abilities, possibilities, experiences, and social commitments of the researchers who practice it. It is a real life commitment to social change, social justice, and social responsibility. The researcher used the Qualitative Descriptive Design as a research method which presented a comprehensive summarization of specific events experienced by individuals or groups of individuals. According to Sandelowski (2000) “qualitative descriptive research: should be seen as a categorical, as opposed to a non-categorical, alternative for inquiry; is less interpretive than an ‘interpretive description’ approach because it does not require the researcher to move as far from or into the data; and, does not require a conceptual or highly abstract rendering of the data, compared to other qualitative designs.”