Creative Research

I could not get the images posted within my paper so if anyone would like a complete research project please let me know and I will be glad to send it to you by e-mail.




Title of Action Research Project

Improving Instruction through Technology


Briefly State Your Hypothesis

This research project tests whether or not students better achieve the instructional objectives in visual arts when the lesson is presented through teacher-made instruction videos, rather than through live teacher presentation.


Briefly State the Type of Data You are Collecting and How You are Analyzing It

Two fifth grade groups were assigned the same objective of creating self-portrait drawings. Group A, the no technology group, was to view the procedure for creating a self-portrait by live teacher instruction. Group B, the technology group, was to view the procedure for creating a self-portrait by viewing a teacher-made video of the instructions.

The instructions included how to create the basic oval shape of the head, intersected with four straight lines that determine where to draw the eyes, nose, ears, and lips. Further instructions were given to show how to draw the facial features themselves - the eyes, ears, nose, lips, eyebrows, scalp, hair, neck, and shoulders - at their proper points. Students used mirrors as a further aid to draw these features.

The works of both groups were compared and analyzed as to how proficient they were at drawing a head, and in placing the features within it. The drawings were analyzed as to whether or not the head was an oval, and whether or not the lines were properly placed: a vertical line dividing the oval into equal halves; a horizontal line through the center of the oval (which designates the placement of the eyes and the tops of the ears); a horizontal line half-way between the bottom of the oval and the eyeline (which indicates where to draw the bottom of the nose and ears); and the horizontal line one-third of the way between the bottom of the oval and the nose-ears line (which tells where to draw the line showing the two lips touching).

The abilities of the two groups were also compared as to how well they drew, with the use of mirrors, their individual eyes, noses, lips and ears on the lines that designate their placement.

Both groups were also compared as to the proper placement of the hair, eyebrows, scalp, neck, and shoulders. I was looking for students who understood the lesson, and therefore drew all the basic lines and drew and placed the facial features correctly. Was there a predominance of work with the proper elements of how to draw self-portraits from Group A, the no technology group, or from Group B, the technology group?



The Problems

Through viewing hall displays of students’ self-portraits from other classrooms, I determined they were in need of instruction on the basic methods that go into creating self- portraits. As some of the hallway images below indicate, the students seemed to have very little knowledge of the basic head shape, how to place the facial features within it, or how to create these features.

Furthermore, in the traditional classroom setting, students’ ability to view the lesson could be hampered because of the seating arrangement. With the aid of a teacher-made video, this problem could be overcome by projecting the lesson on a large screen so that all students could easily see it no matter where they sit.













Collect and Organize the Data/Gather the Data

Two fifth grade classes were given different instructional presentations: Group A, the no technology group, was give a presentation without technology aids; and Group B, the technology group, was given a presentation with technology aids. The artwork from both groups was collected. The artwork within each group was then separated into two groups according to how well the basic oval and lines were created, and how well the facial features were drawn and placed.


Interpret the Data

Self-portraits that were properly created in each group were counted and numbered, as were the self-portraits that were not properly created.

Once the numbers were counted, the percentage of successful and unsuccessful self-portraits in each group was tallied. Group B, the technology group, had nine students who correctly met the objectives and twelve students who did not correctly meet the objectives. Group A, the no technology group, had six students who met the objectives and thirteen students who did not meet the objectives.

The percentage computation of these numbers means that 42.8% of the technology group correctly followed the instructions to create self-portraits, while 31.5% of the no technology group correctly followed the instructions to create self-portraits. Therefore, the use of technology enabled an increase in mastering the objectives of 11.3% of the technology group over the no technology group.


Action Based On the Data/Act on Evidence

The evidence shows that technology can contribute to the improvement of the quality of artwork created in the classroom. When the students observe a teacher-made video presentation of a lesson, they better grasp the lesson and better execute the objectives. In the future I will transform more of my lessons to videos with the expectation of having similar results. This will save instructional time, and the students will learn better from the presentation. Any student who misses the class, or part of the class, can simply watch the videotape at another time.


Reflection/Evaluate the Results

Unlike when I grew up, students today spend a great deal of time exposed to television, video games, computers, and the internet. These students are more attuned to technology, and therefore apt to give greater attention to lessons presented with the aid of technology. Also, not all students are able to observe a live lesson equally in a classroom setting, but with the aid of a instructional video projected on a large screen, every student can easily see the lesson. I think these factors are the reasons for the increase in student achievement of the technology group. The following images are examples of those students from both groups who successfully understood the objectives for creating self-portraits:


Group A: No Technology Group





Group B: Technology Group