Instructions: For this assignment, you will create a document that includes both the Early Action Research Plan and criteria for your area of focus. The plan you share is the same one posted in the Early Action Research Ideas discussion from this week. Please be sure to consider the feedback you received from peers and your instructor and make necessary changes before including this plan in your assignment submission. For the criteria part of the assignment, consider what you read in “Themes in Education: Action Research” and “Current Trends in Education.” What topics did you see and read about that lead you toward clarifying a general idea and establishing an area of focus for research? Please refer to the “Research in Action Checklist Three – One” (Mills, 2014, p. 44) to establish criteria for your area of focus. Note that writing in the first-person voice during the criteria section of this assignment is acceptable.

Content

The assignment needs to include the following areas of content.

• Plan – Area of Focus (1 point): In no more than two paragraphs, describe your early idea of what the purpose of your study may be.
• Plan – Explanation of Problem (1 point): In no more than two paragraphs, explain a statement of the problem or situation that led to this interest or why you want to pursue this topic.
• Plan – Population (.5 point): In no more than a paragraph, describe the population (age/grade, quantity of participants, students or adults).
• Plan – Population Choice (.5 point): In no more than a paragraph, explain why you have chosen your population for this study, including details about why this population is appropriate for this study.
• Plan – Research Questions (1 point): Develop two to three research questions that align with the area of focus and address what you hope to answer in this study. The questions need to be answerable and presented in list format, and they must appropriately represent the population/participants you identified.
• Idea – Teaching and Learning (.5 points): In at least one paragraph, evaluate whether your idea is an issue that involves teaching and learning. Use relevant literature to support the evaluation.
• Idea – Locus of Control (.5 points): In at least one paragraph, evaluate whether your idea is within your locus of control.
• Idea – Passion (.5 points): In at least one paragraph, describe whether your idea is something you feel passionate about and where this passion originates from for you (e.g., life experiences or professional practice).
• Idea – Inspiration (.5 points): In at least one paragraph, describe how your idea inspires you to implement change or improvement.

Written Communication

The assignment needs to adhere to the following areas for written communication.

• Page Requirement (.5 points): The assignment must be two to three pages, not including title and references pages.
• APA Formatting (.5 points): Use APA formatting consistently throughout.
• Syntax and Mechanics (.5 points): Display meticulous comprehension and organization of syntax and mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. Your written work should contain no errors and be very easy to understand.
• Source Requirement (.5 points): Use no less than two scholarly sources in addition to the course textbooks, providing compelling evidence to support ideas. All sources on the reference page need to be used and cited correctly within the body of the assignment.