I was honored and pleased to be one of two teachers
chosen to represent California at the Northwest
Practitioner and Research Knowledge Institute at
Portland State University two years ago.  Research
from the University Lab School was presented;
practitioners were encouraged to use research results
in their classroom.  The research I was most
interested in was small group interactions; the
results stated that when a teacher enters a small
learning group the students make one of two
adjustments: either they return to the easiest part of
the task or they interrupt the task to ask the teacher
a question.  My observations in the classroom did not
support those findings; they are published in Research
Brief No.5/Teacher Research at
http://www.calpro-online,org/. 
The Pair Work Web Log is at 
http://calpronwpkipairtwork.blogspot.com/
 I am convinced that practitioner wisdom has an equal
footing with research in guiding strategies, theory
and methods, and that published research can and
should be informed by Practitioner Knowledge. 
Teachers in the classroom are obligated to look at
research results with a critical eye and to question
results that do not match their experience.  To do so
is also a bold and necessary step that, together with
research results, will enrich the field.  Bonnita
Solberg  

--- Julie  McKinney <julie_mcKinney at worlded.org>
wrote:


> One thing I found interesting about Ana's work  is

> that she took a

> common assumption about adult learners, found that

> there was no real

> evidence to back it up, and tested it with the best

> available tools. 

> Her research turned up results that surprised most

> of us, and may

> improve our practices. I think this is a bold and

> necessary step.

> 

> I hear a lot of opinions based on observation that

> people seem to take

> as fact, and this work reminds us that our

> assumptions may actually

> prove to be incorrect or incomplete. Of course, some

> skepticism is

> healthy, but if we base our teaching practices on

> unverified

> assumptions, might that impede the educational

> process?

> 

> What do people think about this?

> 

> Julie

> 

> Julie McKinney

> Discussion List Moderator

> World Education/NCSALL

> jmckinney at worlded.org

> 

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