In-Service English Language Teachers as Designers of Action Research Protocols within a Dialogic Sphere of AI and Peer Scaffolding

Abstract

This study explores 10 in-service English teachers' perceptions, intentions, and recommendations, along with their views on the feedback mechanism, grounded in their experiences of designing and refining action research (AR) protocols in a dialogic setting through interacting with peers and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Expanding this multi-voice dialogue, they also presented their protocols in front of a live audience taking the undergraduate version of the course to ensure bidirectional learning experience, benefiting both in-service and pre-service teachers through an exchange of perspectives and insights. Lastly, they received personalized feedback in one-on-one meetings with the faculty mentor, i.e. the researcher, to finalize their designs for future classroom application. Data from final self-administered questionnaires, AR protocol documents alongside with reflective entries on the feedback mechanism, and researcher observation and field notes indicated increased understanding and engagement. Participants underlined the potential of AR to enhance professional development and reflective growth, problem-solving and inquiry-oriented mindset, and collaboration, innovation, and student-centered impact. Yet, they were concerned about practical and structural constraints, institutional and administrative barriers, teacher capacity and dispositions, and societal and cultural factors. It ends with recommendations to teacher training programs to promote sustainable AR practices balancing rigor and contextual realities.