Dear All,

I am currently working closely with policy makers/stakeholders at the GTCe
and with teacher researchers submitting presentations of their learning to
the Teacher Learning Academy.  I strongly support the Stages of Recognition
initiative as an opportunity to prepare accounts of personalised learning by
teachers and for teachers as well as for others involved in supporting them.
I must say the current TLA website doesn't do justice to this superb scheme!
As a verifier and as part in the Stage 4 Pilot I have some knowledge of what
is possible through the Scheme and as a research mentor I feel privileged to
share in enabling elicitation, representation and dissemination of teachers'
learning using web-based technology if/where this meets an identified need.
 
I respect Barra's openness in saying that he does not encourage self study
by teachers. I do have some concerns myself about how self study accounts of
practice are validated at times by those with a vested interest in doing so.
Teachers working in the same school may not be best placed as validators as
school hierarchical structures can come into play, often quite unwittingly. 
I have to wonder though about how far advising teachers not to undertake a
form of research they want to adopt might be curtailing academic freedom? I
hope that where it seems advisable to tell a teacher to avoid researching in
a particular way, advice is offered that the TLA scheme supports any model
of research as long as the account embodies six core dimensions of learning.

It's crucial to listen to what teachers are saying about undertaking enquiry 
- some are put off by the idea of starting from the base 'I have a problem'.
They feel beset by problems and want to start from a more affirmative base.
Some feel strongly that they are not doing their research primarily to share 
either the process or the outcomes - their research is just for themselves
and they are concerned about being approached by others and held to account. 

This is not to say the research is without rigour but rather whom it is for.
From my perspective, teachers undertaking self study enable us to see what
occurs in their world in a way that other approaches may not permit us to. I
don't necessarily favour one research approach undertaken by teachers over
another but believe that self study offers a potential to create knowledge
that complement that generated by other research methods and is crucial if
we are to assist in 'personalising' education for teachers - and students.

As a consultant, I try to assist teachers in selecting the research method
that can best assist them in finding out what they seek to know. This might
be drawing on Cooperider's Affirmative Enquiry or grounded theory or self
study action research. I have moved away from the close affiliation to one
particular form of action research that characterised my early approach as 
a research mentor to one I hope enables how a teacher wants to research -
that is how I am seeking to personalise support for practitioner research.

Ho do I explain my educational influence? With excitement and delight and
using multi media and web-based technology to assist me whenever possible!

Kind regards,

Sarah

PS On Sun, 2 Mar 2008, Jack Whitehead <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>Responding to Sarah's point about this e-seminar convenor's space. I'd like
>to keep its present form as a space where I can just send round brief notes
>and introduce people as I add them to the e-seminar list of participants. 

re. 'How about using the Convenor's comment thread for info like introducing
people (whom we are all looking forward to hearing from) and news & events?
That way we keep conversations running in relation to your invited themes.'

Thanks, Jack, that's what I was suggesting when I posted to the list last
week - it works much better than adding names to your conversation threads.