Only when the models are merely considered as graphical tools to help conceptualise the action research process can they prove useful. One of the clearest and most understandable model is given by Altrichter, Posch and Somekh. According to them, some typical broad stages can be found in any Action Research process:

The first stage of a research process involves finding out and outlining a feasible starting point. That is, individuating a very specific question regarding the classroom practice that needs urgent or prompt attention. This might be a practical problem (e.g. a class that is particularly disruptive) or a feeling, something that makes the teacher uneasy while performing a certain task in a classroom (e.g. assessing students’ oral presentations).

The best way to think of a starting point for action research is to conceive it as the first impression. Once the impression has been perceived and fixed, the teacher-researcher can go on investigating in order to go beyond the impression and reach a deeper understanding of the practical theories by which his/her actions are led.

One of the most helpful and useful tools since the beginning of the process outlined above is the diary. As well as representing a more familiar procedure compared to other research methods, diaries can contain data collected in other ways such as unstructured classroom observations or the context and conditions of an interview that has been performed. Moreover, the researcher can easily insert in a diary his/her own ideas and insights that may be useful in developing theoretical constructs that will, in turn, prove essential when interpreting the data collected.

There is (it goes without saying), a number of methods for collecting data; it will be up to the researcher to find out the most suitable for the situation he/she intends to analyse. For instance, a tape recorder may be the best way to collect data regarding oral presentations and verbal interactions in general, while a camera would be the best device to store data involving non-verbal codes and messages (such as the teacher’s gestures and the students’ unsaid reactions, for example).

One of the distinguishing features of Action Research is its collaborative dimension: being able to rely on other people’s help as observers is fundamental for the teacher who engages in an Action Research process.

If a group of people is available and willing to cooperate, they can carry out what is defined as ‘analytic discourse [E1] in a group’. This involves analysing a given issue (or problem) by asking questions to the teacher who proposed the issue. It is very important not to be judgemental and avoid reporting similar experiences at this stage. The aim of questioning the researcher is to help him/her focus on even the smallest and apparently insignificant detail of a given situation. Analytic discourse usually leads to a satisfactory in-depth understanding of a problem for the teacher reporting in particular and for the whole group on a general level.

When finding a group of co-workers turns out to be impossible, something close to analytic discourse can be carried out by means of a critical friend. This may be a fellow teacher or, even better if we are dealing for the first time with action research, an external expert. A critical friend should ask open or exemplifying questions in order to help the teacher report on a particular situation, but should never provide suggestions or be critical at this stage.

After having collected data and developed theories, an Action Research cycle calls for action. This means developing and, above all, putting into practice action strategies in order to bring about changes into everyday practice. Trying out new action strategies can be compared to field experimenting. As Schön puts it, “Since teaching is characterised by complexity, ambiguity and development, it is not possible to plan what will happen in a classroom with any certainty. As this is the case, teachers become researchers when they investigate their practice to evaluate its appropriateness in terms of their educational aims”.

It is fundamental, while classroom practice is being modified, to monitor the process carefully in order to draw proper conclusions, share them with fellow teachers and go on starting a brand new cycle of Action Research.

To sum up (quoting Altrichter, Posch and Somekh), Action Research makes an important contribution to:

the professional development of individual teachers who improve their practical theories and competence in action through reflection and action;

curriculum development and improvements in the practical situation under research by developing the quality of teaching and learning through new and successful action strategies;

the collective development of the profession by means of opening up individual practice to scrutiny and discussion and thus broadening the knowledge base of the profession;

the advancement of educational research.