Abstract
The Collaborative Action Research Network holds an annual conference, and this book is a result of the editors identifying 14 papers from the 2011 conference that they believe make a further and substantial contribution to the body of work in the action research field. This is achieved by presenting the reader with an eclectic collection that examines various aspects of, and approaches to, action research from a multi-disciplinary and international perspective.
What is significant about this book is the breadth and depth of the chapters, which contribute to the theoretical and practitioner debates in the field. Additionally, the reader is presented with a number of models and templates substantiated and supported by the evidence put forward by the various authors which the reader who is attempting to understand and instigate action research can adapt and utilize from their own specific context and perspective. This is further supported by a particular emphasis on the ethics of utilizing action research which runs as a red thread throughout this collection.
The collection has been deliberately divided into four specific parts. The first part is entitled From micro- to macro-politics: AR as a driving force for change. This section of the book examines how action research at a local level can drive innovation that leads to models being created to be taken on board by various stakeholders and can influence systemic change. The three chapters in this section examine innovation and reform in education from an Austrian perspective and dealing with end-of-life issues through peer education in an English context that raises public awareness so that older people can make plans for their future.
The second part is entitled Action research for participation and empowerment, and contains four chapters that present varying perspectives from diverse nations. The overriding theme is the encouragement of individuals and groups to engage in various forms of participatory action research that have a profound effect on them from what can be termed a ‘Triple P’ perspective – the personal, professional and political. The four chapters highlight how to encourage vulnerable groups, local communities, young people and teachers to research issues that enhance their lives and inform others by creating initiatives and strategies to deal with issues as diverse as HIV, trauma, greater engagement of local people in community affairs and improving pedagogical practice. Significantly, it demonstrates how action research empowers individuals and groups to understand ethical issues and gain greater awareness of themselves as citizens and learners.
The third part is entitled Evidence-based reflection as a key to reflective action, and consists of five chapters that illuminate the research of academics and practitioners, highlighting particular innovations such as the empowerment of weak students. Of particular interest is the stand-out chapter of the book, for me, by Amir Har-Gil, who has produced an insightful and sublime piece of self-reflection when reporting on an experiment to empower and enhance the self-esteem of a group of low-achieving and troublesome Israeli students through making documentary films. The reader gets a real sense of the angst that both the author and the students experience during the period of the experiment. It is a lesson that the vocation of teaching can be fulfilling, stressful, frustrating and empowering, all within a single incident!
The final part of the book is entitled Epistemological considerations, and consists of two chapters that adopt a philosophical and theoretical perspective. The chapter by Eleni Katsarou is a challenge to the action research community, as she rightly states that ‘… constant reflection on any research methodology is necessary’. Katsarou advocates post-modernist methods to deal with the deficiencies in action research she identifies in her forceful but much needed critique of the methodology.
Thomas Stern in the concluding chapter asks the question, ‘What is good action research?’ He identifies a number of key characteristics of action research and seeks to justify them, notably by discussing the ethical and practical criteria to be adopted by those proposing to utilize this methodology. Stern offers epistemological criteria for action research and discusses the controversies of quality and rigour that abound in relation to the adoption of action research. He offers the reader a theoretical model that highlights the importance of epistemic interest that requires the highest methodological standards and demands for rigour – a valuable lesson that further enhances the contribution of this collection to the literature in the field.