This page puts NASH Reviewer’s guides to action research in the order you need them, from DepEd’s rules and the first idea to the final report and what happens after it. Each guide follows DepEd’s own documents: the Research Management Guidelines (DO 16, s. 2017), the Basic Education Research Agenda, and the Action Research Toolkit that DepEd published with the Basic Education Sector Transformation (BEST) Program. Most use real DepEd data, and every statistic is worked out in Excel.
It is written for teachers doing their first action research, for those applying for the Basic Education Research Fund (BERF), for school heads and LAC facilitators who guide them, and for teachers preparing for the National Assessment for School Heads (NASH).
Start here
If you are new to action research, read these five first, in this order:
- Action Research vs Basic Research vs Thesis: Differences: what action research is under DO 16, and the toolkit’s five stages.
- Action Research Titles by Subject, With Data and Scores: how to choose a topic with DepEd’s rubric.
- Action Research Questions and Hypotheses, With Examples: turning the problem into questions.
- DepEd Action Research Proposal Format, With a Sample: the template the research committee scores.
- Sample Action Research in DepEd Format: A Complete Example: a complete study, start to finish, with its data.
The five stages, and where each guide fits
DepEd’s Action Research Toolkit organizes action research into five stages, the “five A’s”:
| Stage | What you do | Guides |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Assess the situation | Find a problem in your class or school, with evidence | Topics, titles, surveys, documents, correlation, chi-square |
| 2. Ask a question | Turn the problem into research questions and hypotheses | Questions and hypotheses, literature review |
| 3. Act to seek answers | Choose an intervention and a design | Pretest-posttest designs, sample size, ethics |
| 4. Acquire information | Collect data | Questionnaires, interviews, observation, documents |
| 5. Analyze and reflect | Analyze, conclude, reflect, plan | Data cleaning, statistics, thematic analysis, report, dissemination |
1. DepEd’s rules for research
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| DepEd Research Management Guidelines: DO 16, s. 2017 | Research committees, the call for proposals, the 70% passing score, and the school head’s role |
| Basic Education Research Agenda (BERA): DO 39, s. 2016 | DepEd’s research themes and principles, and how to align a topic |
| BERF: How to Get DepEd Action Research Funded | Who can apply, grant ceilings, documents, tranches and timelines |
| DepEd Action Research Ethics: Consent, Assent and Privacy | Consent from parents, assent from learners, data privacy and AI rules |
| DepEd Learning Action Cell (LAC) Guidelines: DO 35, s. 2016 | The LAC as the setting for teachers’ collaborative research |
2. Choosing a topic and framing the question
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Action Research vs Basic Research vs Thesis: Differences | Definitions, DepEd’s two templates, and the five-stage framework |
| Action Research Titles by Subject, With Data and Scores | Twenty titles scored with the toolkit’s rubric, each with a data hook |
| Action Research and Thesis Topics on Reading (CRLA) | Reading topics built on the CRLA results |
| Action Research and Thesis Topics on Classroom Shortage | Topics on classrooms and class size, with the variables that answer them |
| Action Research Topics for Junior and Senior High School | Titles for every junior high learning area and senior high, with transition, crowding and access data |
| Action Research Questions and Hypotheses, With Examples | Writing questions and hypotheses, with a corrected toolkit answer key |
| Review of Related Literature for DepEd Action Research | Where to search for free, how to judge sources, and how much an action research needs |
3. Designing the study
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Pretest-Posttest Design and Regression to the Mean | Why one-group gains mislead, and stronger designs |
| Action Research Sample Size: Slovin, Power and Sampling | The toolkit’s rules of thumb, Slovin’s and Cochran’s formulas, and power |
| Survey Research With Google Forms for Action Research | Survey design, closed-ended items, Google Forms settings and response rates |
4. Collecting data
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Validity, Reliability and Cronbach’s Alpha in Excel | Checking a questionnaire before you use it |
| Interview and FGD Guide Questions for Action Research | Writing and running interviews and focus groups, with sample guides |
| Observation in Action Research: Checklists and Field Notes | Checklists, field notes, anecdotal records and observer agreement |
| Document Analysis in Action Research Using DepEd Records | School forms, LIS and CRLA results as data, and checking them |
5. Preparing and analyzing data
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Coding Guide and Data Cleaning in Excel for Action Research | The coding guide, encoding, and finding errors before analysis |
| Weighted Mean and Likert Scale Interpretation in Excel | Descriptive statistics and rating-scale results |
| Paired and Independent t-Test in Excel for Action Research | Comparing a pretest and posttest, or two groups |
| Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney Tests in Excel for Small Classes | Rank-based tests for small groups and skewed scores |
| One-Way ANOVA in Excel for Action Research | Comparing three or more groups, and two-way ANOVA |
| Chi-Square Test in Excel for Action Research | Comparing counts between groups |
| Pearson Correlation in Excel for Action Research | Relationships between two scores |
| Thematic Analysis for Action Research: Steps and Sample | Coding interviews and open-ended answers into themes |
Which test do I need?
| Your question | Data | Test |
|---|---|---|
| Did the same learners improve? | Scores, pretest and posttest | Paired t-test, or Wilcoxon for small or skewed groups |
| Do two groups differ? | Scores | Independent t-test, or Mann-Whitney |
| Do three or more groups differ? | Scores | One-way ANOVA |
| Do groups differ in how many have an outcome? | Counts | Chi-square test |
| Do two measures go together? | Two scores per learner or school | Pearson correlation |
| What do respondents think? | Rating scales | Weighted mean and Likert interpretation |
| What do learners or parents say? | Words | Thematic analysis |
6. Writing the proposal and the report
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| DepEd Action Research Proposal Format, With a Sample | DO 16’s Annex 2 template and how proposals are scored |
| DepEd Action Research Report Format, With a Sample | DO 16’s Annex 6 template for the completed report |
| How to Cite DepEd Orders in APA 7 and Write the Abstract | References for DepEd orders, memoranda, laws and AI tools; the abstract |
| Sample Action Research in DepEd Format: A Complete Example | A complete invented study in DepEd format, with its data |
7. Sharing results and leading research
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Action Research Dissemination and Utilization in DepEd | LAC sessions, research forums, E-Saliksik, research bulletins and the SIP |
| Action Research in LAC Sessions: A School Head’s Guide | Running the toolkit’s 21 LAC sessions across a school year |
A typical year
- Start of the school year: look at your class’s data and choose a topic; LAC sessions on the toolkit’s first sessions.
- First months: write the questions, read the literature, design the study and its instruments, and get permissions.
- Before the division’s deadline: submit the proposal, if you are applying for BERF; calls usually open early in the calendar year.
- During the intervention: collect data and keep records of what was done.
- After: analyze, write the report, share it in a LAC session, and bring the results to the school’s planning.
Frequently asked questions
What is action research in DepEd?
Under DO 16, s. 2017, action research is “a process of systematic, reflective inquiry to improve educational practices or resolve problems in any operating unit (i.e. school, classroom, office)”. In practice, a teacher or school head tests a solution to a problem in their own setting and reflects on the results.
What are the steps of action research in DepEd?
The Action Research Toolkit’s framework has five stages: assess the situation, ask a question, act to seek answers, acquire information, and analyze and reflect. The guides on this page follow that order.
What format does a DepEd action research follow?
The proposal follows Annex 2 (template B) and the completed report Annex 6 (template B) of DO 16, s. 2017. The report’s parts are the title page, abstract, acknowledgment, context and rationale, intervention, research questions, methods, results and reflection, action plan, references and financial report.
Is there a complete sample of a DepEd action research?
Yes: Sample Action Research in DepEd Format: A Complete Example is an invented Grade 3 reading study with every part of the report and the data to repeat its analysis.
Do these guides prepare me for the NASH?
The research guides with practice items, such as the ones on the Research Management Guidelines, ethics, the proposal and report formats, LAC sessions and dissemination, address the PPSSH strand on research and innovation (1.4). More items are in NASH Practice Questions With Answers.
Sources
- DepEd Order No. 16, s. 2017, Research Management Guidelines
- DepEd Order No. 39, s. 2016, Adoption of the Basic Education Research Agenda
- DepEd Order No. 014, s. 2022, Adoption of E-Saliksik: The DepEd Research Portal
- Department of Education and the Basic Education Sector Transformation (BEST) Program. (2019). Action Research Toolkit, Teacher’s Guide and Facilitator’s Guide, with support from the Australian Government.
Written by Mark Anthony Llego for NASH Reviewer. NASH Reviewer is not affiliated with DepEd.