Practitioner inquiry in South African schools: what, how and why (not)

Abstract

This article discusses practitioner inquiry in a South African context. It begins by outlining the changing policy context in the country, particularly since the advent of democracy in 1994. The implications of these changes for practitioner inquiry are then discussed. The article explores some issues and dilemmas arising from this context, including considerations of why teachers do research, and what promotes and hinders research in schools. In discussing the way forward, a number of issues are highlighted, including different conceptions of practitioner inquiry, the relevance of teacher identity, the possibilities and limitations of policy reform and the importance of generating new knowledge for a new post‐apartheid agenda.

Keywords:

• practitioner inquiry
• teacher professional development
• action research
• policy reform

Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to the following people who so willingly contributed their time and their insights: Faheema Abbas, Oral Accom, Karen Collett, Alison February, Chiwimbiso Kwenda, Dominique Mwepu, Jean McNiff, Heather Phillips, the 35 teachers on an ACE programme who responded to a questionnaire about whether teachers normally do research in their classrooms.