[quoting Dalgarno, 27 Oct 96] I would like to read more about developmental and action research methods. Can anybody suggest a good starting point?
There's an excellent Australian book by Stephen Kemmis titled The Action Research Reader. I don't have it by me, but I believe it was published around 1990 by Deakin University Press.
Action Research is no more than trying out an idea and seeing what happens ("suck it and see" is a good Aussie expression which describes it well) then modifying what you do in the light of your observations. It's what good teachers are doing all the time--the total antithesis to laboratory research. Kemmis also sees collaboration as being an essential element.
What transforms "action" into "research" is the methodology and precision one uses to document what happens. In some cases, quantitative methods are appropriate to this documentation--in most cases however it will comprise interviews, observations, collections of work, etc.
An excellent computer tool (cognitive tool as well) to use for indexing and working with this type of material is NUD.IST (Non-numeric Unstructured Data--Indexing, Searching & Theorizing) developed at LaTrobe University by Tom and Lyn Richards, now marketed by Qualitative Solutions & Research Pty., Ltd., and is distributed internationally by Sage Publications, 6 Bonhill St, London EC2A 4PU, UK.