Practice-Focused Research in Further Adult and Vocational Education (eBook)

Shifting Horizons of Educational Practice, Theory and Research

Margaret Gregson, Patricia Spedding (Herausgeber)

eBook Download: PDF

2020
XIX, 279 Seiten
Springer International Publishing (Verlag)
9783030389949 (ISBN)

Infos

This book examines how educational practice can be improved through practice-focused educational research. The editors and contributors explore the issues involved in breaking down boundaries between educational research and practice - research often seen as an elitist activity that can only be determined by a favoured few - as well as the socially constructed nature of boundaries between academic and vocational education. Containing illuminating case studies written by practicing teachers from the further and vocational education sector, it posits that educational research should enable teachers to learn from research in order to improve their own educational practice. This book will be of interest and value to scholars of further and vocational education, as well as those wanting to bridge the gap between research and practice. 

Margaret Gregson is Professor of Vocational Education and Director of the Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training (SUNCETT) at the University of Sunderland, UK. Her research interests include practice-focused research, initial and continuing teacher education and approaches to educational evaluation and improvement.

Patricia Spedding is Associate Professor of Learning and Teaching at the Centre for Excellence in Teacher Training (SUNCETT) at the University of Sunderland, UK. Her research interests include understandings of the development and sustainability of innovative pedagogy for the initial and continuing education of teachers.

Inhalt

Preface 6
Acknowledgements 9
Contents 11
List of Contributors 13
List of Figures 14
List of Tables 15
1: Practice! Practice! Practice! 16
Introduction 16
The Power of Stereotypes 17
Beginning with Ourselves 20
What Is a Practice? 20
The Practice of Education 24
Summary and Conclusion 30
Conclusion 31
References 33
2: Vocational Education Matters: Other People’s Children…Not Seen and Not Heard 35
Introduction…Empowerment of the Other, Reclamation of Practice, and a History of Accidental System Neglect 35
Unintended Consequences and Accidental Spirals of Neglect 36
Research in FAVE 37
Breadth of the Sector 38
The Importance of Context 39
The Teaching Workforce 40
Practitioner Led Research in FAVE 43
A Changing Landscape, or a Difficult Climate? 45
Learners in the FAVE Sector 48
Vocational Practice and Skill Development 50
Conclusion 53
References 53
3: The Internal Goods of Educational Leadership: Alternative Approaches to Quality Improvement 55
Introduction: Early Memories 55
Conclusion 68
References 69
4: Non-traditional Students and Practical Wisdom: A Perspective from a Practitioner-Researcher 71
Introduction 71
Problem and Context: Non-traditional Students as Marginal Within Some Art and Design Courses 73
Literature Relating to Practical Wisdom 75
Phronesis and Friendship 76
Phronesis, Teachers and Students 77
Method 78
Findings 79
Discussion 84
Conclusion 85
Recommendations 86
References 87
5: Adaptive Comparative Judgement 90
The Problem and Context 90
Literature Review 93
Tacit Knowledge and Professional Learning 93
Professional Learning and Opportunities for GCSE English Teachers in the FAVE Sector 95
Adaptive Comparative Judgement 98
ACJ as Assessment of Learning 100
Methods and Preliminary Findings 102
Research Question 102
Methods 103
Adaptive Comparative Judgement Workshop 103
Semi-Structured Interviews 104
Preliminary Findings 105
Discussion of Findings from the Adaptive Comparative Judgement Workshop 106
Discussion of Findings from the Semi-Structured Interviews 106
Conclusions and Recommendations 108
References 109
6: Their Defining Moments: Identifying Critical Influences that Prompted Progression into Post Compulsory Education in the Arts 112
Introduction 112
Background to and Motivation for the Research 113
The Context and Problem 115
Social Mobility 115
Compensating for Education? 117
Research Methodology and Methods 121
The Research Population 122
Storytelling Prompts 124
Ethics Approval 124
Positionality of the Researcher 125
Analysis 125
Emerging Themes 126
Summary 128
Conclusion 130
References 131
7: Developing Critical Thinking and Professional Identity in the Arts Through Story 134
Introduction 134
The Research Problem 136
Context of the Research 137
Research Population 137
Debates and Issues in the Teaching of Critical Thinking 138
The Right to Learn 139
Can Critical Thinking be Taught? 140
Against Generalization 140
For Disciplinary Specificity: Brown’s Narrative 141
Transferability of Critical Thinking Skills 141
Lipman 142
Critical Thinking Toolkits 143
Critical Thinking, Critical Making 143
Transformation Through Narrative Inquiry 144
Data Analysis 144
Pedagogical Intervention 1: Diary Project 144
Research Project Interviews: Accidental Experts 145
Pedagogical Intervention 2: Book Club 147
Discussion 148
Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking 148
Reflexivity and Measurability 149
Findings 150
Conclusion 152
References 153
8: Identity in Focus: Examining FE Practitioners’ Informal Professional Learning Through the Lenses of Online Community Dialogues 158
Setting the Scene for Practitioner Research: The Problem and Its Context 158
A Fruitful, Necessary Area for New Research 160
Reviewing the Literature on Teachers’ CPD 161
Research Methods for Informal Online Community Investigation 163
Data Analysis 165
What Does the Model Tell Us About Teacher Identity? 165
Pedagogy Lens Dialogues 169
Learning Community Lens Dialogues 171
Identity and Voice Dialogues 173
So What Next? Calls to Action and for Further Research 174
To Fellow Teachers 176
To Fellow Teacher Educators 177
To FE Leaders and Managers 177
To Government and Sector Bodies 178
To Fellow Practitioner Researchers 179
A Closing Thought on Essential, Human Presence 179
References 180
9: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants: An Exploration into the Realities of Sharing ‘Good Practice’ and Developing the Craft of Teaching Through an Online Video Platform 184
Introduction 184
Context and Problem 185
Literature Review 186
Teacher Workloads 190
Good Intentions, Wrong Turns and Cul de Sacs 194
The Importance of Small Acts and Incremental Improvement 196
Conclusion 197
References 198
10: Re-dressing the Balance: Practitioner-Research as Continuing Professional Development 200
Educational Evaluation and Improvement: Gradgrind, a Case of Simple Arithmetic 201
Time for Change: What We Have Is Not the Same as What We Need 204
Teachers Professional Development: Gradgrind—Ready to Weigh and Measure Any Parcel of Human Nature 205
CPD: The Way It Is 206
CPD Can Be Different 209
CPD Starting with Practitioners: Getting Better at What We Do 210
Educational Evaluation and Improvement: Time to Relinquish Gradgrind’s Rule and Scales 212
Redressing the Balance: The ETF-SUNCETT Practitioner-Research Programme (PRP) 213
Getting Involved in the PRP 215
ETF-SUNCETT Research Development Workshops 216
Guiding Principles of the PRP 217
What We Have Started to Find Out: Emerging Findings 219
What Next? 220
Summary Thoughts 221
References 222
11: What Do We Mean by Good Work? Issues of Practice and Standards of Quality in Vocational Education 225
The Relationship of Practice to Theory 225
Educational Practice 227
The Fabrication of a Vocational-Academic Divide 233
What Do We Mean by Good Work and How Will We Know It? Realising Standards of Quality in Vocational Education 241
References 246
12: Bringing Practitioners Back In 248
Introduction 248
Practice 254
Conclusion 260
References 263
References 266
Index 285

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 29.7.2020
• Zusatzinfo: XIX, 279 p. 3 illus.
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sozialwissenschaften ► Pädagogik ► Erwachsenenbildung
• Schlagworte: Educational practice • Educational Research • Fave • Further Adult and Vocational Education • professional learning • Researcher-practitioner
• ISBN-13: 9783030389949 / 9783030389949