Teachers as Researchers

Historical Development

Teacher research as a research methodology has existed since at least the end of the nineteenth century. Although many would credit the start of teacher research with Stephen Corey at Columbia University, it is difficult to give a precise history or starting point for when teacher research began because many teachers have long incorporated research to inform their own teaching practice, without the intention of publishing their results.

A modern example of this can be seen on a systemic level in the Reggio Emilia preschools, where teachers are expected to do action research as part of their normal duties. The fact that this research is not published does not mean it is not happening. As such, it is impossible to state exactly when teacher research started as a practice and to quantify how widespread it was in the past, or, for that matter, how prevalent it is today. It is safe to say that during the beginning of the twentieth century, teachers started to call their work research and to share it with others.

The struggle to have the research teachers do on their own practice be considered valid has existed since its beginning. This struggle has been fundamentally about control; initially, this argument came from an academy reluctant to relinquish its control on knowledge production. Although this argument continues, and subjects teachers unnecessarily to positivistic criticism that is no longer tolerated within the academy itself, the current struggle of teacher [Page 800]researchers comes from governments, both federally and locally, as politicians collectively exercise greater influence and control over what teachers can and cannot do in their classrooms.

Increasingly, teacher research is coming under pressure not because it is banned or discounted, but because teachers' work is so legislated and controlled that there is little room for teachers to conduct research on their own practice except as a counternar-rative. Teacher research reached a peak of popularity in the 1990s, but it has been steadily losing ground ever since. Today, pockets of teacher researchers can be found in the United States and throughout the world, but rarely are they aware of each other's existence.

Current Practice

How is teacher research best described? Teacher research does not dictate a specific method. It is possible, as a teacher researcher, to do experimental, quantitative research, but the classroom setting and the fact that teachers are typically participating in the research that they are doing lends itself to qualitative approaches.

Often, teacher research is simply described as a form of action research, but this perspective ignores and undermines the power of teacher research as a “new” methodology, and undermines the power of teachers as researchers. Although action research is the one method of conducting research that resonates best with what teachers are trying to do in their classrooms, teacher research is not just a type of action research. Teacher research does not dictate either a qualitative or quantitative methodological perspective or use of specific methods.

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