Tis Translations article ofers an overview of how pK-12 art teachers can implement Action Research in their classrooms. Te word research may conjure up images of long hours in the library, surrounded by books, but it can also be a way of “living the questions” that emerge in the art classroom (Shagoury & Power, 1999). Schoen (2007) reminds classroom teachers that “Te fresh insights that are gleaned through a process of questioning, assessing, investigating, collaborating, analyzing, and refning instruction empower educators in their daily practice” (as cited in Keifer-Boyd, 2013, p. 246). Te methodology of Action Research is related to the philosophical traditions that ground the broader research methodologies of qualitative research. In the last 10-15 years, the feld of art education has relied on qualitative research methods to investigate the varied relationships between the Arts and education. Action Research conducted by art teachers has a more specifc focus: It investigates how teaching practice and student learning can be improved at a classroom level. What is Qualitative Research? Qualitative research is multimethod in focus, involving an interpretive, naturalistic approach to its subject matter. Tis means that qualitative researchers study things in their natural settings (not in laboratories), attempting to make sense of or interpret phenomena in terms of the meanings people bring to them (Creswell, 1998, p. 15). Tis qualitative meaning-making is distinct from quantitative meaning-making, which is statistically driven. What is Action Research? At the heart of Action Research is a teacher’s sustained and careful examination of questions concerning teaching and learning in the classroom for the purpose of changing and improving student learning. Chiseri-Strater and Sunstein (2006) claim that when we “speak as teachers informed by our own research, we can control the fres and inform the noisy public about what works in our classroom” (p. xvi). As Eisner (2002) stated, the profession needs research from those “closest to the situation who can make the sorts of adjustments that are needed to suit the local circumstances” (p. 149). Doing Action Research in the Art Classroom Amy Pfeiler-Wunder and Diane Jaquith Amy Pfeiler-Wunder is Associate Professor of Art Education at Kutztown University, Kutztown, Pennsylvania. Correspondence should be addressed to: wunder@kutztown.edu Diane Jaquith is K-5 Elementary Art Educator at Newton Public Schools Newton, Massachusetts. Correspondence should be addressed to: dbjaquith@gmail.com Send Translations submissions to to translations@arteducators.org For additional information, see www.arteducators.org/ translations National Art Education Association Trans lations Sharon Johnson, EDITOR SPRING 2015 | NO. 1 1806 Robert Fulton Drive, Suite, 300, Reston, VA 20191 | www.arteducators.org From Theory to Practice