Instructors’ Utilization of Action Research to Enhance Instruction in Research Universities of Ethiopia

Abstract

The objective of the study was to examine the practice of using action research by instructors in research universities of Ethiopia as a means to enhance their instruction. To conduct the study, a concurrent embedded mixed research design was used. Data were collected from384 instructors’ selected using simple random sampling to fill the questionnaire. Furthermore, four department heads and one research coordinator were chosen for interviews using purposive sampling technique. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics including frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation and the qualitative data was analyzed thematically. The finding of the study reveals that instructors’ level of awareness concerning action research was good however; instructors’ use of action research to enhance instruction was very low. Among the challenges that hinder instructors engagement in action research to enhance instruction was Lack of time due to heavy load, Limited funding   and emphasizing teaching over research was ranked as 1st 2nd 3rd respectively. Finally, recommendations were proposed to enhance instructors' involvement in action research for the purpose of enhancing instruction.