Ideas that really stood out for me today:
“Teacher inquiry is research” (Lewison, in press)
A big question for me when I started my senior project at Queen’s was “Is there truth beyond statistical significance?”. Because of my academic background I had taken many courses on research methodology and the accompanying statistical techniques for analyzing data. I believe that the answer to that question has to do with the identity of the researcher. The conventions of psychology call for specific types of methodology and parameters for what is considered “Good research”.
In my experience I have found that most teachers are not motivated to understand research. It also seems that many researchers understand teachers. Very simply put there is an incompatibility or misunderstanding between those creating the research and those who are meant to consume it. The reason why I like inquiry is that it empowers teachers. It allows them to become active creators of knowledge instead of passive consumers.
I see inquiry as a way that teachers can reclaim educational research in a way that is meaningful to us individually and also collectively as a profession. In the future I hope teacher inquiry is seen as a valid and conventional way to conduct research in the field of education.
Perhaps in the future teacher inquiry will be to education what case studies are to social work.
“When a teacher ceases to be inquisitive about his or her practice- inquisitive about how students learn- then his or her practice ceases to be professional”