Abstract:

The paper present participatory action research in educational institutions which was carried out in order to obtain in-depth knowledge of the reality of the educational process of the student with special education needs (SEN), of developed interactions with other participants of the educational process, to change it, encouraging positive behaviour supports and changes both in the activity of the participants and the institution. Research findings consist on presentation and analysis five students’ cases through participatory action research in actual educational spaces, actualizing the evidence-based teacher’s activity. Moreover, the efficiency of evidence-based teacher’s activity is defined as teacher’s learning-in-action.
The data of the study are being analyzed applying the principles of phenomenological analysis which consist on planning activities, assessments and reflections of individual speeches, observations, activity evaluations and teachers and pupils’ diaries.

Conclusions:
1. Involvement of the participants of education process (pupil, his/her family, specialists and teachers) as equal partners in participatory action research such as decision taking, planning, performing, assessing and reflecting of their activities not only constructed behaviour based on self-control, responsibility and maintaining of positive behaviour but also stimulated the processes of learning in action when everyone is learning together with the others and from each other.
2. The effectiveness results of evidence-based teacher’s activity, actualizing the teacher’s learning-in-action:
• Versatile analysis of the situation of the student with SEN expanded the conceptions of “evidence” and “awareness”.
• Activity planning, activities, their evaluation and reflections encompassed not only personal changes but also the conceptions of the whole context. The teacher’s reflective practice turned into a continuous and qualitatively changing process.
• The implementation of the participatory action research in the general education school encouraged the (self-) development of debatable environments, the manifestation of formation of evidence-based culture and policy at the educational institution, and of the development of the system of positive behaviour supports.
3. The research demonstrated that context factors are also significant for the effectiveness of evidence-based teacher’s activity while teaching students with SEN. These include: teacher’s openness to changes and new experiences while learning-in-action together with others and from each other; the experience of reflective practice; orientation of activities to positive behaviour supports; cooperation with the participants of the educational process; etc..

Keywords:

Evidence-based teacher activity, participatory action research, students with special education needs.