The following are links to seminal action research publications:
Lewin, K. (1946). Action research and minority problems. Journal of social issues, 2(4), 34-46. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-450/1946.tb02295.x
Elliott, J. (1987). Educational theory, practical philosophy, and action research. British Journal of Educational Studies, 25(2), 149-169. doi: 10.1080/00071005.1987.9973758
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3121442?seq=3 - page_scan_tab_contents
Elliott, J. (1990). Teachers as researchers: Implications for supervision and for teacher education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 6(1), 1-26. doi: 10.1016/0742-051X(90)90004-O
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED293831.pdf
Kenneth Zeichner has also been prolific in writing about action research and reflective practice in teacher preparation, educational reform, and professional development. Prominent examples of his work include:
Noffke, S. E., & Zeichner, K. M., (1987). Action Research and Teacher Thinking: The First Phase of the Action Research on Action Research Project at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED295939.pdf
Liston, D. P., & Zeichner, K. M. (1990). Reflective teaching and action research in preservice teacher education. British Journal of Teacher Education, 16(3), 235-254. doi: 10.1080/0260747900160304
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0260747900160304
Zeichner, K. M. (1993). Action Research: personal renewal and social reconstruction [1]. Educational action research, 1(2), 199-219. 10.1080/0965079930010202
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/0965079930010202
Zeichner, K. (1999). Action research and the preparation of reflective practitioners during the professional practicum. Practical Experiences in Professional Education, 3 (1), 1-26.
http://vcisrael.macam.ac.il/site/eng/show_file.asp?propid_key=2se
Somekh, B., & Zeichner, K. (2009). Action research for educational reform: Remodelling action research theories and practices in local contexts. Educational action research, 17(1), 5-21. doi: 10.1080/09650790802667402
Additional Action Research resources include:
In the 1960's Laurence Stenhouse was instrumental in animating the action research movement in the UK with his work in research based teaching through the Humanities Curriculum Project.
Stenhouse, L. (1975). An introduction to curriculum research and development. London: Heinemann.
The 1980's were witness to a surge of action research activity in Australia led by the following authors:
McTaggart, R. (1982). Action research planner. Victoria, Australia: Deakin Press,
Carr, W., & Kemmis, S. (1986). Becoming critical: Education, knowledge, and action research. Victoria, Australia: Deakin Press.
Kemmis, S., & McTaggart, R. (1988). The action research planner. Victoria, Australia: Deakin University Press.
John Elliott is often credited with revitalizing the use of action research in educational contexts throughout North America in the 1980's and 1990's. His writings include:
Elliott, J. (1980). Implications of classroom research for professional development. In E. Hoyle & J. Megarry (Eds.). Professional development of teachers: World yearbook of education. London, UK: Kogan.
Elliott, J. (1981). Action research: A framework for self-evaluation in schools. School Council.
Elliott, J. (1991). Action research for educational change. London, UK: Allen & Unwin.
Over the past decade, the use of action research continues to be documented as a durable process to explore leadership, curriculum development, and school improvement.
Adams, P. (2010). Action Research. In Salkind, N. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Research Design. Washington DC: Sage.
Costello, P. J. M. (2011). Reflective Action research: Developing Reflective Thinking and Practice. New York: NY: Continuum International Publishing Group.
Gordon, S. P., Stiegelbauer, S. M., & Diehl, K. (2008). Characteristics of More and Less Successful Action research Programs. In S. P. Gordon (Eds.), Collaboration Action research: Developing Professional Learning Communities (pp. 79-94). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Hendricks, C. (2009). Improving Schools Through Action research: A Comprehensive Guide for Educators (Second Ed. ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
McKernan, J. (1996). Curriculum action research: A handbook of methods and resources for the reflective practioner. London, UK: Kagan.
Mertler, C. A. (2008). Action research: Teachers as researchers in the classroom (Second ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.
Norton, L. S. (2009). Action research in teaching and learning: A practical guide to conducting pedagogical research in universities. New York, NY: Routledge.
Parsons, R. D., & Brown, K. S. (2002). Teacher as Reflective Practitioner and Action researcher. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
Schmuck, R. (1997). Practical action research. Arlington, VA: Skylight.
Spaulding, D. T., & Falco, J. (2013). Action research for School Leaders. New York, NY: Pearson Education.
Townsend, D. (2001). Action research: Facilitation and implementation. Edmonton, AB: Alberta Teachers Association.