Taken from Jean McNiff (2010) Action Research for Professional Development: concise advice for new (and experienced) action researchers. Poole, September Books

2. You articulate your values as your living criteria and standards of judgement (We believe all patients should enjoy a high quality of care);

3. You say how you gathered data to show the situation as it was and as it developed (We gathered data to show how we tried out new systems of patient care);

4. You say how you took action (We encouraged the patients to get out of bed in the morning if they were well enough and put on their day clothes);

5. You explain how you generated evidence from the data and ensured its authenticity. This involved showing how your data demonstrated the living out of your values. (We have authenticated statements from the patients to say that they feel better when sitting out of bed in their day clothes.)

6. You now show how your evidence backs up your claim (Our evidence leads us to think that we are justified in claiming that we are ensuring a high level of patient care.)

8. you are presenting yourself as authentic;

9. you explain things in a truthful way;

10. you write in a thoughtful way that shows your capacity for self-critique and your openness to the critique of others

12. said why this was a concern;

13. imagined a solution;

14. acted in the direction of the imagined solution;

15. gathered data on an ongoing basis to show what the situation was like to begin with and how it developed over time;

16. generated evidence from the data in order to ground the knowledge claim;

17. made the knowledge claim and tested its validity;

18. articulated the significance of the action research;

20. Why am I concerned?

21. How do I show the situation as it is and as it develops as I take action?

22. What can I do? What will I do?

23. How will I generate evidence from the data?

24. How will I check whether any conclusions I come to are reasonably fair and accurate?

25. How will I explain the significance of my action research?

27. you ensured that the evidence showed how your values were being lived in practice, and named your values as your living criteria;

29. Does my report demonstrate the key features of action research?

30. Have I given an account of at least one cycle of action reflection?

31. Do I show my understanding of the principles and practices of action research, and how I am living these in my practice?

32. Do I show how I have contributed to improving my situation? Do I explain my understanding of how and why I have done so?

33. SummaryThis section has outlined how to write an action research report. It has explained that action research reports are different from traditional research reports, and how they are different in content and form. It has also given an example of an action research report.Do I show how I can develop my action enquiry?We now turn to how to write different kinds of reports. From the many kinds possible, we have selected only a few: progress reports, writing proposals, academic reports, and compiling professional portfolios. You can read more in my Writing for Publication in Action Research. <br />