An Australian view of the academic partner role in schools

Abstract

The role of 'academic partners' working alongside teachers is an increasingly complex and sometimes controversial one. This paper explores the role of academic partners in educational action research, reporting on data from a larger study conducted in NSW, Australia. Schools involved in the study had received targeted government funding between 2006 and 2010 to conduct school-based action learning projects employing action research. As part of the funding, the schools had been provided with external support from university-based Academic partners, who supported individual school teams in the completion of their projects. Here we focus specifically on the role of the 'academic partner'. Data were obtained via semi-structured interviews with academic partners themselves, with the project's State Coordinators who oversaw the project, and with teachers who had worked with the academic partners over the course of their school-based projects. Participants in the study identified significant benefits for both teachers and academics engaging in co-inquiry, but findings also suggest that the role of academic partner is increasingly complex, multifaceted and sometimes under-supported. When there is "good fit" between academic partners and schools and when structures are in place to support academic partners in their work, the academic partner role in schools can contribute to sustained educational change. In this paper we discuss the crucial antecedents, enablers and constraints that ensure that academic-school partnerships enrich learning for both academics and teachers, building mutual capacity.

Rethinking researcher–teacher roles and relationships in educational action research through the use of Nel Noddings’ethics of care

“…Building on experiences from school-university partnerships in research, Beveridge, Mockler, and Gore (2018) give powerful insights, enriching the philosophical analysis in this paper. It is important that schools are part of the process when academic partners are assigned to a project.…”

“…The better the academic partners' knowledge, competence, and physical proximity match the schools' needs and location, the greater the opportunity for positive contributions to the success of the project. To create a shared understanding of roles and responsibilities between researchers and teachers, Beveridge, Mockler, and Gore (2018) propose the use of a 'Memorandum of Understanding'. This is an agreement that: 'clearly articulated the roles and responsibilities of all team members' (30).…”

“…This is an agreement that: 'clearly articulated the roles and responsibilities of all team members' (30). Moreover, Beveridge, Mockler, and Gore (2018) stress the importance of teachers' ownership of their project with locally identified issues, where researchers act as facilitators, 'critical friends', in the process. Teachers and researchers work side by side, critically reflecting on teachers' questions and exploring possible ways forward.…”

“…On the one hand, action research processes might provide the researcher with first-hand learning experiences about how educational policies and programs are implemented in teaching and the possibility of learning from narratives embedded in a school context (Postholm and Skrøvset 2013). On the other hand, teachers can find opportunities to contextualize teaching knowledge in action research processes (Postholm and Skrøvset 2013) and learn how to find fruitful ways for improving teaching through reflecting on the research (Beveridge, Mockler, and Gore 2018). Also, research collaborations in which teachers and researchers recognize each other's abilities and knowledge benefit learning and development within a school practice (Olin, Karlberg-Granlund, and Moksnes Furu 2016).…”

Contarte. Una sistematización de la práctica reflexiva entre docente y amiga crítica

“…No obstante, tomar decisiones individualmente presenta una subjetividad difícil de suprimir. Por esto, Çimer, Odabasi y Sezen (2013) destacaron la necesidad de contar con otras personas con quienes realizar dicha reflexión, los denominados "amigos críticos" (Aktekin, 2019;Beveridge, Mockler y Gore, 2017;Day, 1999;Golby y Appleby, 1995;Gurr y Drysdale, 2018).…”