Practitioner Inquiry

Abstract

This chapter takes an expanded view of practitioner inquiry to include multiple traditions being conducted by P-12 teachers, in-service teachers, teacher candidates, and teacher educators. Discussion includes the historical roots and defining qualities of four traditions of practitioner inquiry: action research, teacher research, self-study, and communities of practice. Selected studies in music education are examined to provide a view of the kinds of focusing questions prompting the many versions and variants of practitioner inquiry, as well as to illustrate the dialogic relationship of inquiry and practice. Critiques of practitioner inquiry and current obstacles facing researching teachers in music education are reviewed for the purpose of forwarding the conversation about the promises and pitfalls of practitioner inquiry. Suggestions for new voices, networks, and venues are made in order to move the tradition of practitioner inquiry into fuller view within qualitative research in music education.

Teaching Composition in a Middle School Orchestra Classroom: A Narrative Action Research Study

“…A consequential outcome of such a shift may motivate ensemble directors like Marcus to “become knowers and producers of knowledge rather than consumers of knowledge being worked out somewhere else by someone else” (Robbins, 2014, p. 187). Given such knowledge, a music teacher may “assume multiple roles as learners, researchers, leaders, and artists” (Schmidt & Robbins, 2011, p. 98) and determine their outcomes of identity and self-efficacy (Cabaroglu, 2014) by (re)composing and (re)telling their story, just like Marcus:I have learned a lot about teaching composition.…”

“…Educational action research provides classroom teachers opportunities to conduct collaborative research projects to try out teaching ideas “as a means of improvement and increasing knowledge” about a given topic (Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988, p. 6). As “real-world dilemmas” (Robbins, 2014, p. 187) arise, teacher–researchers navigate an ongoing cyclical or spiral process (see Figure 1 in the online supplemental material) of planning, teaching, observation, and reflection of their instruction and curriculum (Kemmis & McTaggart, 1999). Continual reframing of dilemmas and problems takes on a “spiraling dynamic” (Anderson & Herr, 1999, p. 16), which characterizes strategic action research that finds not only practical solutions to classroom problems but also challenges standardized and formulaic teaching and professional development (Regelski, 1994, 2009).…”

“…The disruptions and uncertainties of the COVID-19 pandemic motivated Marcus, a middle school orchestra teacher, to redesign his traditional performance-based orchestra curriculum to include composition lessons and creative activities. Marcus collaborated with Sam, a university professor, to design a collaborative action research study (Conway & Jeffers, 2004; Robbins, 2014; Robbins et al, 2007) to develop a new curriculum and examine his teaching in his 49-member advanced orchestra class.…”

Balancing the Varied Needs of Master of Music Education Students: Perceptions From Program Directors and Alumni

“…However, we were unsure of the collective understanding in the profession of what action research or teacher research really is. Some of the program director participants gestured to these sorts of designs as if they were "lesser" types of research, and we view that as a misunderstanding of the rigor of practitioner inquiry (Robbins, 2014).…”

Teacher-practitioner Inquiry in Professional Development A Case of Adaptation and Resistance to Genre-based Systemic Functional Linguistic as a New Writing Instruction: A Case of Adaptation and Resistance to Genre-based Systemic Functional Linguistic as a New Writing Instruction

“…Teacher-practitioner inquiry is a thinking tool for teachers to flexibly customize their teaching and derive meanings, assumptions, and beliefsin-action that underlie their ideas and methodologies in class (Groundwater-Smith and Dadds, 2004;Ngo, Cherrington, and Crabbe, 2022;Phan, 2020;Pringle, 2020;Tuan, 2021). Specifically, teacher-practitioner inquiry offers a structured sense-making opportunity, such as doing a scaffolded collaborative lesson planning, inviting them to explore and justify their own pedagogical practices through lesson study and reflective practices in a trusting environment (Duffy, 1995;Gutierez, 2019;McArdle and Coutts, 2010;Robbins, 2020). The central questions for sensemaking when using teacher-practitioner inquiry are 'how they [i.e., active agents] construct what they construct, why, and with what effects?'…”