(7) Praxis-based research and teacher inquiry into praxis

Here is a short-term, instrumental distinction between these two terms and the way I will use them (and it might change - but then all ideas might change).

Praxis-based research

• the researcher is a practitioner (a professional within the area of practice, in this case, teaching)
• the researcher understands praxis as being a blend of practice and theory (action and word in Freire's terms) with a focus on social justice / social good

AND

• the researcher publishes or shares the emerging findings with her/his peers so that conversations are ongoing and pragmatic (seeking to understand consequences of actions) and the researcher seeks critique (rather than simply acclamation) of praxis (actions and theorising).

Teacher inquiry into praxis (This is identical to the above except for the red words)

• the teacher is a practitioner (a professional within the area of practice, in this case, teaching)
• the teacher understands praxis as being a blend of practice and theory (action and word in Freire's terms) with a focus on social justice / social good

AND

• the teacher may (or may not) publish or share the emerging findings with her/his peers so that conversations are ongoing and pragmatic (seeking to understand consequences of actions) and the researcher seeks critique (rather than simply acclamation) of praxis (actions and theorising).

The consequences of these definitions are to do with who can call themselves researchers and who might publish in refereed journals. The consequences are to do with ...

1. Teachers in higher education being able to see themselves as researchers and see that there is research value in investigating their own praxis. (Currently this insight is not well understood among some teacher educators who did not previously see themselves as researchers yet they had been engaged in praxis-based inquiry (i.e. teacher inquiry into praxis). In order to publish they do not need to engage in new forms of work in order to gather data - they are already engaged in the investigation - the challenge is to publish their understandings, their learning as they grapple with current educational issues, and their approaches and ways of exploring/researching their ideas.
2. Teachers in areas other than higher education being able to see the potential for moving into higher education because they are engaged, not only in teaching within their sectors, but also that researching in their specialism is natural for them - they might see themselves as praxis-based researchers who do debate their own learning through research with their peers and with their colleagues in the tertiary sector (as part of gaining higher quals or being involved in research projects such as TLRI or ECE COI)
   
3. Teachers in areas other than higher education being able to generate knowledge, directly, about teaching in their areas without becoming involved directly in higher education - i.e. to publish in refereed journals.
   

So, whether these things are called inquiry or research, I am keen to foster the notion that teachers are able to explore the impact of their own teaching in ways that foster their thinking about the social impact of their ways of working - and I am keen to foster ways of enhancing this kind of collaborative conversation - something that encourages all professional practice to be under the scrutiny of collective self-study.