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Abstract
This action research (AR) case study explored the community perceptions of a local school and sought to understand how teacher behaviors and school actions impacted the perception of education as a profession. The action research team wanted to use the qualitative data provided by parents and stakeholders to create interventions which would lead to a more positive perception of the school and increased partnerships with the community and stakeholder engagement. The AR team analyzed teacher responses to a questionnaire and parent surveys and interviews to understand the factors that impacted public perception of the local high school and the educators within it. The AR team used the following research questions to guide their work:1. What behaviors do teachers consider to be evidence of professionalism? 2. What are barriers to educators demonstrating evidence of professionalism? 3. What factors impact the public perception of educators and schools? Through the action research process, the team (composed of administrators, guidance counselors, and content department chairs) analyzed teacher questionnaires, parent surveys, and parent interviews to answer those questions. Based on the data, the team created an intervention based on Banduras social cognitive theory (1986) with the understanding that if appropriate reinforcements were in place educators would model desired behaviors and, through the success of those behaviors, other educators would follow in the implementation of the actions in the intervention plan. The team also used Durkheims theory of functionalism as a means of understanding community behaviors related to the school in order to guide the work that they hoped would result in increased faith in the school and educators and stronger community partnerships. The mixed methods used in the study provided findings that supported the theoretical lenses, and the team was able to answer the research questions that guided their work. The team found that positive perceptions of the school and educators increased and community disengagement and teacher frustrations related to this phenomenon decreased.