This book explores the challenges and considerations of researchers who work on the educational margins of society. It investigates the diverse and specific research strategies that have been developed to ensure research is authentic, ethical, rigorous, situated and, where possible, empowering. Traversing cutting-edge global research, the chapters demonstrate the effectiveness of specific research methods when researching within educational margins related to particular ‘wicked problems’. Against a backdrop of increasing scrutiny of the conduct of researchers working with marginalised people, this book provides an informed and empowering overview of research methods for those working with marginalised groups.
Philosophy and Theory in Educational Research: Writing in the margin explores the practices of reading and writing in educational philosophy and theory. Showing that there is no ‘right way’ to approach research in educational philosophy, but illustrating its possibilities, this text invites an engagement with philosophy as a possibility – and opening possibilities – for educational research. Drawing on their own research and theoretical and philosophical sources, the authors investigate the important issue of what it means to read and write when there is no prescribed structure. Innovative in its contribution to the literature, this edited volume enlightens readers in three ways. The volume focuses on the practices of reading and writing that are central to research in educational philosophy, suggesting that these practices constitute the research, rather than simply reporting it. It is not a prescriptive guide and should not be read procedurally. Rather, it is intended to illustrate the possibilities for this kind of research, and to suggest starting points for those pursuing research projects. Finally, attention is given to the ways in which conducting educational philosophy can be educative in itself, both to the researcher in writing it, and to its audience in reading it. With contributions from international scholars in the field of educational philosophy, this book is a valuable guide for practitioner-researchers, taught postgraduate and doctoral students, and early career researchers in university education departments. Academic staff teaching research methods and seeking to introduce their students to philosophy-as-research without wishing to offer a prescriptive ‘how to’ guide will also find this book of particular interest.
Private supplementary tutoring, widely known as shadow education because of the way that it mimics mainstream schooling, has greatly expanded worldwide. It consumes considerable family resources, provides employment for tutors, occupies the time of students, and has a backwash on regular schools. Although such tutoring has become a major industry and a daily activity for students, tutors and families, the research literature has been slow to catch up with the phenomenon. The topic is in some respects difficult to research, precisely because it is shadowy. Contours are indistinct, and the actors may hesitate to share their experiences and perspectives. Presenting methodological lessons from diverse cultures, the book contains chapters from both high-income and low-income settings in Asia, Caribbean, Europe and the Middle East. Separately and together, the chapters present valuable insights into the design and conduct of research. The book will assist both consumers and producers of research. Consumers will become better judges of the strengths, weaknesses and orientations of literature on the theme; and producers will gain insights for design of instruments, collection of data, and interpretation of findings. The editors: Mark Bray is UNESCO Chair Professor in Comparative Education at the University of Hong Kong. Ora Kwo is an Associate Professor in the Comparative Education Research Centre at the University of Hong Kong. Boris Jokić is a Scientific Associate in the Centre for Educational Research and Development at the Institute for Social Research in Zagreb, Croatia.
The essays in Globalization on the Margins explore the continuities and changes in Central Asian education development since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Reflecting on two decades of post-socialist transformations, they reveal that education systems in Central Asia responded to the rapidly changing political, economic, and social environment in profoundly new and unique ways. Some countries moved towards Western models, others went backwards, and still others followed entirely new trajectories. Yet, elements of the “old” system remain. Rather than viewing these post-Soviet transformations in isolation, Globalization on the Margins places its analyses within the global context by reflecting on the interaction between Soviet legacies and global education reform pressures in the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Instead of portraying the transition process as the influx of Western ideas into the region, the authors provide new lenses to critically examine the multidirectional flow of ideas, concepts, and reform models within Central Asia. Notwithstanding the variety of theoretical perspectives, methodological approaches, and conceptual lenses, the authors have one thing in common: both individually and collectively, they reveal the complexity and uncertainty of the post-Soviet transformations. By highlighting the political nature of the transformation processes and the uniqueness of historical, political, social, and cultural contexts of each particular country, Globalization on the Margins portrays post-Soviet education transformations as complex, multidimensional, and uncertain processes.
This volume comes at a critical juncture, as global commitments transition from the Millennium Development Goals to Sustainable Development Goals and the wider post-2015 development agenda is being discussed and debated. In these discussions, children and youth have been recognized as one of the nine major groups of civil society whose participation in decision making is essential for achieving sustainable development. There is also a concomitant need for action – innovative, evidence-based approaches to addressing entrenched global challenges or ‘wicked problems’ and engaging youth in those efforts. Within academic discourse, the perspectives and active participation of youth in research has long been debated. It is widely believed that their participation can result in better policy responses and contribute to the development of more relevant and effective interventions and programs to address their needs. However, the engagement of youth in research processes is not without critique; issues such as how to move from tokenism towards authentic participation and empowerment have been critically discussed, and many question if youth can or should even be expected to make change happen. Youth ‘At the Margins’: Critical Perspectives and Experiences of Engaging Youth in Research Worldwide brings together a range of critical and empirical contributions from emerging scholars and seasoned academics alike. Each contribution provides a unique perspective on the potentialities and challenges associated with youth engaged research. The chapters presented in this volume strive to critically interrogate and debate important foundational issues to consider when engaging youth in the research process, such as epistemological and methodological considerations. Important insights into the ethical, pedagogical and practical aspects one must contend with can be gleaned from the selection of chapters here; some of which are primarily theoretical and descriptive, whilst others present empirical data with case examples from around the world. This volume is devoted to showcasing high quality contributions to the scholarly literature on youth engaged research in order to spur further critical debate on the various epistemological, methodological and ethical issues associated with engaging youth in research processes and in addressing intractable global issues. The audience for this volume includes students, researchers and academics within a broad range of fields who are interested in understanding the range of approaches being used worldwide to include youth in research endeavors on issues of global importance including poverty, social exclusion, structural violence, un- and under-employment, education and health.
The definitive career guide for grad students, adjuncts, post-docs and anyone else eager to get tenure or turn their Ph.D. into their ideal job Each year tens of thousands of students will, after years of hard work and enormous amounts of money, earn their Ph.D. And each year only a small percentage of them will land a job that justifies and rewards their investment. For every comfortably tenured professor or well-paid former academic, there are countless underpaid and overworked adjuncts, and many more who simply give up in frustration. Those who do make it share an important asset that separates them from the pack: they have a plan. They understand exactly what they need to do to set themselves up for success. They know what really moves the needle in academic job searches, how to avoid the all-too-common mistakes that sink so many of their peers, and how to decide when to point their Ph.D. toward other, non-academic options. Karen Kelsky has made it her mission to help readers join the select few who get the most out of their Ph.D. As a former tenured professor and department head who oversaw numerous academic job searches, she knows from experience exactly what gets an academic applicant a job. And as the creator of the popular and widely respected advice site The Professor is In, she has helped countless Ph.D.’s turn themselves into stronger applicants and land their dream careers. Now, for the first time ever, Karen has poured all her best advice into a single handy guide that addresses the most important issues facing any Ph.D., including: -When, where, and what to publish -Writing a foolproof grant application -Cultivating references and crafting the perfect CV -Acing the job talk and campus interview -Avoiding the adjunct trap -Making the leap to nonacademic work, when the time is right The Professor Is In addresses all of these issues, and many more.
This book explores, and problematizes, what it means to be ‘critical’ in education research. Drawing together chapters from diverse global perspectives, this volume aims to stimulate dialogue about possible meanings of criticality in education research. In doing so, they question why criticality has become such an essential part of education, and what researchers expect of it. The book opens up and contests some of the deficiencies of criticality in education research: ultimately it is not a global term, but often creates a false binary between East and West. Offering an alternative trajectory to educational narratives surrounding criticality, this book will be of interest and value to scholars of critical pedagogy and comparative education.
This book presents a detailed ethnographic study conducted in an urban slum in India. It explores how a State school, as a social and pedagogic institution, shapes the aspirations and worldviews of children in the urban margins. The volume engages with the children's experience of marginality and exclusion as they negotiate the intersecting axes of caste, class, gender, and citizenship. It further explores how their everyday school experience is mediated by the power asymmetries between the teachers and the community. In this process, it makes-sense of the political dynamics between the State and its margins while highlighting the role of schools and locating childhood in this context. Based on ethnographic fieldwork, the book will be of interest to researchers, students, and teachers of education studies, sociology and politics of education, teacher education, childhood and youth studies, and urban studies. It will also be useful for education policymakers, and professionals in the development sector.
"Comprising more than 500 entries, the Encyclopedia of Research Design explains how to make decisions about research design, undertake research projects in an ethical manner, interpret and draw valid inferences from data, and evaluate experiment design strategies and results. Two additional features carry this encyclopedia far above other works in the field: bibliographic entries devoted to significant articles in the history of research design and reviews of contemporary tools, such as software and statistical procedures, used to analyze results. It covers the spectrum of research design strategies, from material presented in introductory classes to topics necessary in graduate research; it addresses cross- and multidisciplinary research needs, with many examples drawn from the social and behavioral sciences, neurosciences, and biomedical and life sciences; it provides summaries of advantages and disadvantages of often-used strategies; and it uses hundreds of sample tables, figures, and equations based on real-life cases."--Publisher's description.
How can we make sense of make sense of the deluge of information in the digital age? The new science of Quantitative Ethnography dissolves the boundaries between quantitative and qualitative research to give researchers tools for studying the human side of big data: to understand not just what data says, but what it tells us about the people who created it. Thoughtful, literate, and humane, Quantitative Ethnography integrates data-mining, discourse analysis, psychology, statistics, and ethnography into a brand-new science for understanding what people do and why they do it. Packed with anecdotes, stories, and clear explanations of complex ideas, Quantitative Ethnography is an engaging introduction to research methods for students, an introduction to data science for qualitative researchers, and an introduction to the humanities for statisticians--but also a compelling philosophical and intellectual journey for anyone who wants to understand learning, culture and behavior in the age of big data.
