On the Effect of Educational Action Research Training on Improving Teacher's the Teaching-learning Process in Tehran Primary Schools

The aim of the present study was to determine the impact of educational action research training on the teaching-learning process. The present causal-comparative research included all the elementary schools in Tehran. More precisely this study involved a sample of 120 untrained teachers selected randomly and another sample of trained teachers who attended action research training in the school year of 2007-8. The first sample was given a fifty-item questionnaire and two open-ended questions، whereas the second sample was administered only the same questionnaires without open-ended questions. In order to capture more accurate measures of the dependent variables، the participants of the second group also participated in an interview and the relevant documents were analyzed. At the end، their performance was analyzed and juxtaposed. Data analysis using both descriptive statistics (frequency، percentage، graphs، mean، and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (t-test، ANOVA and Scheffe test) were performed. Questionnaire data analysis، interviews، and documents indicated that the action research training had a significant impact on using instructional materials in teaching-learning process. The training appeared to have had no significant effect on other dependent variables of interest including teachers’ knowledge، teacher involvement، student involvement، use of effective education methods to solve training and educational problems. In other words، it did not have any significant impact on the teachers’ teaching-learning