Relating to
ideas from your educational research in the generation and testing of
educational theories
Notes for a seminar with Jack Whitehead
Context
As part of my
2002-2003 appraisal I agreed with Bill to give a talk about my research at a
research seminar in the Department. IÕll do this from 1.00-2.00 on Wednesday 8th
October in Room 1WN 3.17. What IÕd like to do is to explain how ideas from your
own research can be included in and influence the learning and theory
generation of educational researchers who are enquiring into the implications
of asking questions of the kind, ŌHow am I improving what I am doing?Õ in the
context of their educational relationships. As well as fulfilling an appraisal
agreement, IÕm curious about the role that educational theories can play in
large scale global changes in which values of humanity are lived more fully.
IÕm assuming that the educational theories we are generating and testing in our
research hold a possibility for contributing to personal and global transformations.
While we have shown what is possible in our research IÕd like to contribute to
conversations in which we are making the possible, probable Š (Joan WhiteheadÕs
latest influence on my thinking from her keynote to the SCETT conference to be
given this Saturday 4th Oct.).
IÕm thinking of
the probability that the quality of our educational theorising in our diverse
research, can become the most influential set of ideas about educational theory
in the world over the next three years. For this to happen I donÕt think we need to buy in anyone else, although
extensions to our staffing are always welcome. All I think we need to do is to
recognise the possibilities in what we have grown together at home and to make
the possible probable in our future global communications.
The Directory of
Expertise for our Department on the University Website contains the following
list:
Elias Avramidis, Keith
Bishop, Ray Bolam, Kate Bullock, James Calderhead, Jim Cambridge, Chris Cloke,
Paul Denley, Michael Fertig, John A. Fisher, S J Fletcher, Elaine S Freedman,
Stephen Gough, E C Barratt Hacking, K Hawkey, Mary C Hayden, I M Jamieson, Hugh
Lauder, John Lowe, Susan Martin, C L Morgan, Yolande M. Muschamp, Rajani
Naidoo, Louise Poulson, Alan Reid, Jen Russ, William Scott, David Skidmore,
Andrew W G Stables, Louise Stoll, J J Thompson, Mike Wallace, Jack Whitehead,
Felicity Wikeley. (An update would include Rita and Trevor and delete Jen John,
James & Elaine?)
IÕve been
through each contribution to see if IÕve understood your areas of research
expertise and the keywords that characterise your interests. IÕve read most of
the publications in the display cabinet by the water dispenser in 1WN level 3.
IÕm hoping that you feel a heuristic power of inclusivity as I connect the original
contributions to educational knowledge of some of our completed doctoral and
other accounts to your ideas and enquiries. As I do this IÕm thinking of Jerry
AllenderÕs comment to me after a seminar of presentations of Ph.D. students
from Bath at an AERA conference in New York. Jerry said Š ŌJack, IÕm not sure
if I understand your ideas, but those doctoral students from Bath are
inspirationalÕ! I think the
pedagogisation of our collective knowledge from our research could help with
the generation and testing of educational theories that can help to transform
the world into a more peaceful, just and loving place to be and enhance the
international reputation of our contributions to educational research.
There is no
particular order in what follows. IÕm starting with Yolande because IÕve been
inspired by Elka YaffeÕs educational theory in her Ed.D. Thesis. I know
something of a supervisorÕs influence in the learning of her students and while
the originality is ElkaÕs, I can feel YolandeÕs influence through her teaching.
So, hereÕs to
YolandeÕs educational influence through her teaching and research. IÕve already
sent a note round to state my belief that if we collectively explored the
implications of ElkaÕs thesis for research in the Department we could establish
ourselves within three years as the most significant centre in the world for
the generation and testing of educational theories.
I feel very
close to CarolÕs interests and ideas in the continuing professional development
for teachers from induction to senior management. IÕm connecting CarolÕs
interests to the generation and testing of the educational theories of our own
education students as they research their own professional development. In the
web version of these notes in the JWÕs writings section of http://www.actionresearch.net IÕve
connected this paragraph to:
1) Moira
LaidlawÕs guide for initial teacher education at http://www.actionresearch.net/preserve.shtml
2) Erica HolleyÕs M.Phil on How do I
as a teacher-researcher contribute to the development of a living educational
theory through an exploration of my values in my professional practice? Erica is Head of Upper School of
Greendown School, Swindon and you can access her M.Phil. at http://www.actionresearch.net/erica.shtml
3) Moyra EvanÕs
Ph.D on An action research enquiry into reflection in action as part of my
role as a deputy headteacher at
http://www.actionresearch.net/moyra.shtml
4) Mike BosherÕs Ph.D. on How can I as an educator and
Professional Development Manager working with teachers, support and enhance the
learning and achievement of pupils in a whole school improvement process? at http://www.actionresearch.net/bosher.shtml
,
to show the
research-based learning resources we can offer students of education. I think
these support CarolÕs enquiries into continuing professional development.
BillÕs and
SteveÕs commitment to sustainable
development and learning (along with Alan and other colleagues) seems to me to
be fundamentally important in the creation and testing of educational theories
in personal and global transformations. On page 145 of their recent book they
stress the importance of practical, collaborative learning in relation to
overcoming poverty. They set out on pages 145-146 concrete commitments for
sustainable development from the Johannesburg Summit. These include issues of
water and sanitation, natural resource management, health education and a focus
on Africa.
I like DavidÕs
ideas in his paper on From Pedagogical Dialogue to Dialogical Pedagogy and
share his interests in inclusive education; classroom
discourse; socio-cultural learning theory and qualitative research methods.
Andy LarterÕs M.Phil emphasised the importance of all of these issues in the
creation and testing of his own
educational theory. Andy chose to represent his learning in his educational
research as a form of dialogical pedagogy in his dissertation on An Action
Research Approach to Classroom Discussion in the Examination Years. You can
access this at http://www.actionresearch.net/andy.shtml
.Andy completed this work in 1997 and it would have been strengthened by the
inclusion of DavidÕs ideas.
Whenever I look
into our publications cabinet in the foyer of 1|WN I find energising the titles
associated with HughÕs name:
Trading in Futures - why markets in education donÕt work; Capitalism and
social progress - the future of society in a global economy; High skills
globalization, competitiveness, and skill formation.
A point from Education:
Culture, Economy and Society I always stress with my students is:
ŅThe fact of the matter is that education is just one factor, albeit an important one, in an overall melange of conditions that determines productivity and economic competitiveness as well as the levels of crime, public assistance, political participation, health, and so on. Education has the position for powerful impacts in each of these areas if the proper supportive conditions and inputs are present. It has the potential for a very nominal impact when the complementary requirements are not in place. By ignoring this set of facts in both policy and in our research, we tend to overstate the potential of education for improving society. We need to be realistic about what education can do and what other changes are necessary to maximize the effects of education and to realize our aspirations for economic and social betterment.Ó (p.250).
JimÕs list of publications includes: with Thompson, J.J. & Hayden, M.C. (2003)Towards a structural typology for baccalaureate-style curricula in post 16 education systems. In Pound, T. & Phillips, G. (Eds) A Baccalaureate Future: a model for the reform of the 14-19 curriculum. (London, Kogan Page) ***'Global Product Branding and International Education' Journal of Research in International Education 1(2)227-44.
I think JimÕs ideas on global product branding will be highly significant if we are to become the ŌbrandÕ leaders in the generation and testing of educational theories for personal and global transformation.
I link AlanÕs
and ElisabethÕs research interests in geography and environmental education to
the crucial importance of a sense of place in educational theorising. I
identify with ElisabethÕs interests in teachers'
professional development and novice teachers' subject competence. I also
identify with the educational enquiry title in AlanÕs Ph.D. How does the
geography teacher contribute to pupils' environmental education? I learnt a lot
from CollingwoodÕs ideas on the importance of question and answer in the growth
of knowledge and use his idea that we should enquire into the nature of the
question(s) which propositional assertions are claiming to answer.
IÕm with Sue in
her focus on the importance of theory into practice in her recent publication
of her research on voices and choices in coursework. ItÕs great to see SueÕs
stress on exploring the relevance of insights from researchersÕ theories for
improving the quality of pupilsÕ coursework. I think a number of the
successfully completed educational enquiries and methods of educational enquiry
assignments of our masters units would have benefited from a close engagement
with SueÕs ideas. IÕm thinking here of the excellent educational theorising of
Karen CollinsÕ educational enquiry of Jan. 2003: How can I effectively manage
students' learning to take account of self-assessment within Modern Foreign
Languages? Šat http://www.actionresearch.net/module/kcee3.pdf
.
IÕm thinking of Graham LloydÕs Methods
of Educational Enquiry assignment on - How do I/we help the students in Key
Stage 4 improve their learning if they are in danger of underperforming? passed
in June 2003 Š at http://www.actionresearch.net/module/glmee.doc
I enjoyed
GeorgeÕs advocacy of learning to be, learning to do, learning to know and
learning to live with others (in the book edited by Mary, Jeff and George on
International Education in Practice). Louise (S) reinforced this advocacy in
ItÕs About Learning (and itÕs about time). I think Mary is spot on with her
point about accreditation:
ŅThe notion of
some form of accreditation of what might be described as, say, an ŌAdvanced
International Education TeacherÕ (akin to the Advanced Skills Teacher concept
recently introduced in England and Wales) may seem to be taking the idea too
far, but such accreditation would at least have the virtue of recognizing the
centrality of this dimension of a teacherÕs role in the promotion of
international education.Ó
Mike and Louise
have been wonderfully productive together. They have focused attention on the
importance of educational
leadership & management and on the importance of critical reading for
self-critical writing. Mike has also focused attention on
the management
of complex educational change in the large-scale reorganisation of schools. I
think the influence of MikeÕs ideas can be seen in the merit awarded to
Daisy Walsh's
Methods of Educational Enquiry assignment on - How do I improve my leadership
as a team leader in vocational educational in FE? Š at http://www.actionresearch.net/module/dlmee.doc
IÕm also going to see if I can help my
Masters and Ph.D. students to enhance the quality of their writings by
integrating insights from Louise and MikeÕs work on critical reading for
self-critical writing.
Louise and Elias
have also been very productive together. EliasÕ research interests are
inspiring: Inclusive Education; evaluation of
inclusive education programmes; managing complex educational change; emotional
and behavioural difficulties in childhood and adolescence; supporting disabled
students in higher education; dyslexia in adulthood; quantitative research
methods. IÕve also found inspiring the ecological thinking of Alan Rayner with
his ideas of inclusionality at http://www.bath.ac.uk/~bssadmr
.
Paul RobertÕs Ph.D. (2003) on Emerging Selves in Practice: How do
I and others create my practice and how does my practice shape me and influence
others? contains a
powerful description of his emotional and behavioural difficulties in childhood
and adolescence at http://www.actionresearch.net/roberts.shtml
IÕve appreciated
AndyÕs writings on education for diversity and making differences. I identify
with his pragmatic, interpretive view of learning and his examination of this
view in terms of its possible consequences for educational policy and for
practice in teaching. IÕll engage with this text and encourage my students to
do the same in the masterÕs module IÕm tutoring on Understanding Learners and
Learning. I like AndyÕs point that:
ŅAll
bureaucratic control (as opposed to stakeholder influence) should be
light-touch: that is to say, control of the system of provision should limit
itself as far as possible to attempting to ensure availability of desired types
of provision. The masters become the servantsÓ
Jackie Delong
developed the idea of servant leadership in her doctoral enquiry into her
educational influence as a Superintendent of Schools in the Grand Erie District
School Board in Ontario. Jackie is President of the Ontario Educational
Research Council and you can access her thesis on How Can I Improve My
Practice As A Superintendent of Schools and Create My Own Living Educational
Theory? from (http://www.actionresearch.net/delong.shtml)
IÕve
already expressed my delight in a previous note to the Department in the
research focus on educational relationships being supported by Rita, Felicity, Yolande and Kate. IÕm sure
that it is crucially important for the generation and testing of educational
theory to enhance understanding of
the relationship between parents and schools Š one of FelicityÕs
interests - and I do support KateÕs and FelicityÕs ideas in:
Bullock,
K. and Wikeley, F. (2001) Personal Learning Planning: strategies for pupil
learning Forum Vol. 43 No. 2.
Robyn
PoundÕs doctoral thesis on her educational influence as a health visitor with
parents and their babies highlights the importance of educational relationships
in the home. You can access the Abstract and contents of RobynÕs thesis on How can I improve my health visiting
support of parenting? The creation of an alongside epistemology through action
enquiry at
http://www.actionresearch.net/pound.shtml
. Other doctoral theses by Geoff Mead as a Superintendent of Police, Jacqui
Scholes Rhodes and Paul Roberts show the importance of educational
relationships outside the formal context of schooling. These can be accessed from the living theory
section of actionresearch.net Š http://www.actionresearch.net/living.shtml
IÕm
struck by the quality of RajaniÕs relational way of being. IÕm inspired by her
commitment and passion for research into higher education policy in the United
Kingdom and in developing and in newly industrialised countries. I identify
with the keywords that characterise her interests: the commodification of
higher education; students as consumers; mass higher education, quality and
access; comparative education policy and globalisation.
IÕve
worked with Ram Punia over many years and been impressed with his understanding
of the need to take account of spiritual values in the creation of a
globalising educational policy. RamÕs Ed.D. thesis on The Making of an
International Educator with Spiritual Values is under examination. You can
access RamÕs writings on the creation and testing of his educational theory of
his life-long learning at http://www.actionresearch.net/arsup/punia.shtml
The
inclusion of SarahÕs ideas in the DFES guidelines for Best Practice
Scholarships was one of last yearÕs highlights. Sarah has drawn insights from
her book on Mentoring in the development of her recent ideas on research
mentoring:
ŅMentoring means guiding and supporting trainees to ease them through difficult transitions; it is about smoothing the way, enabling reassuring as well as directing, managing and instructing. It should unblock the ways to change by building self-confidence, self-esteem and a readiness to act as well as to engage in ongoing constructive interpersonal relationships. Mentoring is concerned with continuing personal as well as professional development (CPPD) and not just continuing professional development. In the process, personal and professional values come under scrutiny and are subject to change. Mentoring is not synonymous with cloning because it means developing individualsÕ strengths to maximize their professional and personal potential and also that of students who come under their care within a classroom situation.Ó (pp. 1-2) Fletcher, S. (2000) Mentoring in Schools: A Handbook of Good Practice. London; Kogan Page.
SarahÕs website http://www.teacherresearch.net contains a large number of accounts by teacher-researchers who have engaged in self-studies of their professional practice and is a most valuable learning resource. Sarah has influenced the development of the Wiltshire Journal of Education and IÕve expressed the reasons for my optimism on making it probable that our home grown educational theories are at the forefront of educational research in Vol. 4 No. 3 of the Wiltshire Journal of Education. You can access this from http://www.actionresearch.net/otherpages.shtml - itÕs the third item from the top.
MikeÕs
(F) work on effective schools in
developing countries, school management in developing countries and the
management of International Schools has opened up wonderful opportunites for
the extension of the influence of ideas from all our research into these
international contexts as do the Summer Schools organised by Mary. Peggy Leong
(nee Kok) is now Director of the Academy for Best Learning in Education (ABLE)
of the Institute of Technical Education in Singapore. PeggyÕs masters
diisertation on the Art of an Educational Inquirer tells an entrancing story of
her learning from differences in values between her supervisor Š a white
westerm male and herself Š a Chinese woman. You can access details of ABLE at http://www.ite.edu.sg/~able/
and
the Abstract and Contents of PeggyÕs dissertation at http://www.actionresearch.net/peggy.shtml
I
still carry the laughter from years ago when the previous School of Education
was undergoing cutbacks and ChrisÕ cry of
ŌWe are DoomedÉ. DoomedÕ echoed round the corridor Š we are still here
and I still enjoy our conversations. ChrisÕ interests are information
technology in education, science education, teacher education and initial
teacher education. Without ChrisÕ interest in supporting the early work of
Maggie Farren I wouldnÕt be supervising her research programme now. Maggie is
researching the development of a pedagogy of the unique in her teaching on ICT
programmes at Dublin City University. You can access her latest ideas from the
action research supervision section at http://www.actionresearch.net/arsup.shtml
Keith
recently did something I would have liked to have done. He examined Elka
JaffeÕs Ed.D. thesis and recommended the award! Kate (H) was the Reader and
Kate (B) responded to some earlier work with Elka. Paul and Keith have engaged in a most productive
collaboration and I identified with their book on effective learning in science
of some 6 years ago. I also know how important their work is in understanding
the development of subject knowledge in trainee science teachers. It was my
learning from the science teachers and their pupils I worked with between
1975-77 on improving learning in mixed ability groups that moved my research
onto its present dialogical and dialectical base. The 1976 publication on which
this was based is still in the library. ItÕs great to see KatherineÕs latest
Research Update for October 2003 and the details of PaulÕs collaborative work
in Japan and the UK comparing initial and in-service approaches with science
teachers. ThereÕs an upsurge of
interest in action research in Japan. You can join the living action research
e-forum established by one of our research students Je Kan Adler Collins who is
working in the Faculty of Nursing at Fukuoka University. Je Kan has recently
received an £8000 grant to develop scientific enquiries into nursing practice.
You can join the living action research e-forum from the front page of http://www.actionresearch.net
I
find JohnÕs presence such a pleasure because of the passionate commitment he
always expresses for his students and their learning as well as his living
embodiment of social justice. I identify with his research interests in education and national development, comparative
and international education, assessment of student achievement; curriculum
development and globalisation and its implications for education policy.
I first came
across KateÕs (H) work on peer mentoring when someone at a conference in Canada
gave me a paper of hers and asked
ŌIsnÕt this a colleague of yoursÕ! I really like KateÕs ideas in, Mentor pedagogy and student teacher development: a study
of two mentoring relationships, in Teaching and Teacher Education, 1998, and
in Learning from peers: the
experience of student teachers in school-based teacher education - a review of
the literature, in Journal of Teacher Education, May-June, 1995.
I
like the way Moira Laidlaw extended the idea of peer mentoring in her work on
learning partners with her Year 8 pupils. IÕve
still got video-tapes of Moira working with her pupils to develop learning
partners in her Year 8 class Š most energising to watch.
If I have time
in the seminar IÕll give a brief illustration of my most recent multi-media
work in which IÕm seeking to communicate the educational influence of my spiritual, aesthetic and ethical
values in the learning of students as well as in my own learning.