Action research can be an effective strategy to help school-based professionals build a knowledge base that connects classroom practice and classroom theory. Action research does not build theory and is generally not transferable; rather, it examines why something is happening or might happen in a particular setting and circumstances. Action research can be an excellent tool for inservice and preservice teachers to become not only effective practitioners but knowledgeable professionals. Efforts at four institutions to involve teacher education students in action research types of activities are described: Saginaw Valley State University (Michigan), SUNY Plattsburgh (New York), Central Washington University, and Jacksonville State University (Alabama). These examples illustrate that action research helps students in both undergraduate and graduate programs to (1) target an area of interest, (2) look closely at that area of interest by gathering and analyzing some data, and (3) draw conclusions and make recommendations based on the data analysis. (Contains 19 references.) (ND)