Archival research as living inquiry: an alternate approach for research in the histories of teacher education

Abstract

Exploring the role of archives in recovering the histories of teachers' lives and the potential of archival research as living inquiry, a non-traditional perspective is offered concerning life writing as a way into an epistemological storying of the past. Archival research as living inquiry is examined both as a methodological approach to theorizing practice, and as a method of gathering information in public collections that is rendered through life writing. The application of this emerging form of research has the potential to change structures of teaching and learning, and in the process, provide suitable methods to write accounts of educational histories. In this case, I document my archival quest into Bessie's story as an exemplar of how reflective practice can contribute to becoming a researcher of history through unorthodox approaches and methods. This inquiry is motivated by questions that include: Why should a teacher of the past matter to teachers today? What value do archives hold in teacher education? How might we rethink our methods of inquiry to give meaning to the lives of women teachers?

Keywords:

• alternate research methods
• living inquiry
• teacher education

Acknowledgements

This article is dedicated to Sheila Maddock, who passed away in 2012. The author thanks Sheila for her generous contributions to the Bessie Project. This research has been made possible by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

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