Hi Tim,
I will be happy to read your paper and talk about it.
Nathalis
P.S. My email is: [log in to unmask]
----- Original Message -----
From: "Cain T." <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 4:03 am
Subject: Re: Education and Learning Virtual Networking Stream for ALARA's 8th World Congress
To: [log in to unmask]
> Dear all,
> Following the AR conference Zagreb I was moved to re-work a
> paper that I had already submitted to a journal, about teachers'
> classroom-based action research. Here is the abstract:
>
> I argue that teachers’ classroom-based action research is
> frequently misunderstood by those who undertake it and support
> it, in three respects. First, it is wrongly assumed to fall into
> either positivist or interpretative paradigms (or perhaps a
> mixture of both) or to be critical. Second, there is little
> understanding as to why action research is necessarily self-
> reflexive, collaborative and political. Third, there is a view
> that classroom research studies are not suitable for
> dissemination because they are not generalisable. Drawing on
> Heron and Reason (1997) I outline a view of how teachers are
> positioned in their classroom to explain why teachers’ classroom-
> based action research cannot be underpinned by positivist,
> interpretative or critical paradigms, is necessarily self-
> reflexive, collaborative and political (albeit in a weak form)
> and is suitable for dissemination to teachers, working in
> similar contexts.
>
> If anyone is interested in reading and responding to the article
> I will happily send it to you. I would particularly appreciate
> critical comments because I will resubmit it soon and I'm sure
> it could be strengthened by critical appraisal. My email address
> is [log in to unmask]
>
> Warm regards,
>
>
>
> Tim Cain
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Practitioner-Researcher [mailto:PRACTITIONER-
> [log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Marie Huxtable
> Sent: 23 May 2010 15:59
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Education and Learning Virtual Networking Stream
> for ALARA's 8th World Congress
>
> Hi,
> I have just returned from the AR conference in Zagreb and I am
> beginning to reflect on what I have learned and the practical
> implications. I am wondering whether as I do so I can build on
> what Jack has offered in response to Brian’s posting 18th May
> 2010 where Brian stated:
> ‘There are several different approaches to PAR, AR., ways of
> seeking to improve professional practice, or to work with others
> to address agreed issues...... as the literature or a BERA or
> CARN conference illustrate..
>
> There are different motivations for our work.’
> During the Zagreb conference Tim Cain (Univ. Southampton, UK),
> Alan Markowitz (College of St. Elizabeth, New Jersey, USA), Jack
> Whitehead (Liverpool Hope Univ.) and Branko Bogna (Faculty of
> Philosophy in Osijek, Croatia) shared their approaches to AR
> interactively with teachers and other educators developing their
> research. Sanja Milovic, Ninocka Truck-Biljan, and Dubravka
> Kovacevic from the Education and Teacher Training Agency,
> Croatia, presented their research on AR as a tool for
> professional development and the creation of learning
> communities and networks. I was also very fortunate in being
> able to attend a small workshop by Sanja Mandaric, a teacher
> from Djakova , ‘The importance of values for teachers as action
> researchers’, which has given me a great deal to think about. I
> hope Sanja will produce her account of her work as I think it
> will inspire and challenge others as it has me.
> What was of interest to me was the degree of congruence between
> what on the surface appeared very different approaches. Reading
> the power point of Noriyuki Inoue (Univ. San Diego, USA) that
> Jack has made available on
> http://www.actionresearch.net/writings/jack/jwprposting190510.htm and in particular the two slides:
> Practice-linked Cultural Concepts from Japanese culture
> *思い (omoi)
> -Integrated form in thinking, feeling and passion that serve as
> driving force of an individual or a group
> *場 (Ba)
> -Communicative space for deepening understanding and building
> consensus characterized by bounded instability
> *反省 (Hansei)
> -Reflection on one’s moral obligation and duty
> *絆 (Kizuna)
> -Enduring bond built among colleagues, friends, and family
> *匠 (Takumi)
> Sophisticated skill built on advanced wisdom and experiences
> East Asian Epistemology
> -Different from linear, deductive and confrontational way of knowing
> -Assumption of complexity and dynamic understanding of reality
> -Self as a part of the social, cultural, and physical context
> -Reflection and compassion
> I am struck by the resonance between what he says and those
> speaking in Croatia. I disagree with Brian where he asserts,
> ‘There are different motivations for our work’. I believe I
> share a motivation with the educators I met. We came from a
> dozen different countries but seem united in a passionate
> motivation for improving our educational theory and practice
> with the intention of making a life-enhancing difference to the
> learning of self, others and the social formations in which we
> live and work, and ultimately to the educational experience of
> children and young people. There was a common understanding that
> engaging in ‘action research’ is emotionally and intellectually
> challenging, ‘messy’ and life changing for the researcher. The
> incongruence between the approaches provoked a creative,
> critical engagement with presenters and audience as I sought to
> integrate what I also learned from creating and offering a
> workshop on ‘children and young people as action researchers.’
> On 15th May 2010 Brian posted rhetorical questions:
> ‘Is it not also important to subject Inclusionality to rigorous
> analysis or experiential testing as a way of thinking?
> Is not important to uncover the presuppositions, the world-view
> lying underneath these ideas and to ask questions of their claims?’
> In response I would agree it is important on both accounts but
> not just to talk in the abstract; I would contest that educators
> need to show and account for their educational influence in
> learning. Over the next few weeks I will try to create an
> account, building on what I have learned from preparing and
> offering the workshop on ‘children and young people as
> researchers’, which explains my practice. I will post it on my
> website for anyone who will help me test the validity of my
> claim to know what I am doing and to be making an educational
> difference in learning, and offers a response to Brian’s questions:
> - What is your
> rigorous analysis and experiential testing of your way of
> thinking which underpins your efforts to improve what you do?
> - What are your
> presuppositions, the world-view lying underneath your ideas and
> the questions you ask of your claims?
> And mine:
> - What is your
> educational explanation for your educational influence, in your
> own learning, the learning of others and the social formations
> in which you live and work, as you hold yourself to account for
> your practice?
>
> I hope that others might also be willing to make their accounts
> public and in doing so make a life-enhancing difference to the
> learning of self, others and the social formations in which we
> live and work, and ultimately improve the educational experience
> of more children and young people.
> Enjoy a smile and pass it on
> Marie
>
> ________________________________
> From: Jack Whitehead <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Wed, 19 May, 2010 5:24:57
> Subject: Re: Education and Learning Virtual Networking Stream
> for ALARA's 8th World Congress
>
> To emphasise the importance of the points Brian posted yesterday
> I've posted some reflections from last week's 7th Annual Action
> Research Conference in San Diego, USA, and this week's Action
> Research workshop in Zagreb, Croatia at:
>
> http://www.actionresearch.net/writings/jack/jwprposting190510.htm
>
> The reflections include a welcome to Prof. Norijuki Inoue from
> the University of San Diego whose presentation to the 7th Annual
> Conference emphasised the importance of infusing non-western
> epistemology into action research. Nori was supported by Prof.
> Satoshi Suzuki the Director of Japan's Association for Action
> Research. The reflections include details of the url to Nori's
> powerpoint presentation. The reflections also report on the
> first Collaborative Action Research Network (CARN) study day in
> North America, with a 4:50 minute video-clip of Lonnie's introduction.
>
> I'm finding most inspiring the range of different motivations in
> the unique constellations of values that distinguished the
> diverse contributors to both the San Diego and Zagreb AR
> Conferences. Yesterday I participated in one discussion group of
> 6 of the 55 participants, with individuals from Estonia, Latvia,
> Romania, Croatia, Czech Republic and the UK ! We all
> communicated our individual action research accounts from our
> diverse historical and cultural contexts and our unique
> constellations of values. Here's hoping that the reflections
> communicate something of our influence in extending the global
> influence of our AR conversations. Tim did a great job in
> extending the audience's understanding of AR. Marie and Branko
> are presenting tomorrow at the AR conference in Zagreb.
>
> Love Jack.
>
> On 18 May 2010, at 16:14, Brian wakeman wrote:
>
> Dear All,
>
> There are just two comments I wish to contribute before signing
> off this thread:
>
> There are several different approaches to PAR, AR., ways of
> seeking to improve professional practice, or to work with others
> to address agreed issues...... as the literature or a BERA or
> CARN conference illustrate..
>
> There are different motivations for our work.
>
> I hope there is space for us all.
>
> Brian
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> <[log in to unmask]><[log in to unmask]>
