RR 93-1 Creating contexts to change teachers' beliefs about the influence of research.
Abstract
Over the last 20 years there has been a surge of activity in research on teaching. Researchers and teacher educators have also debated the merits of this research for teachers in terms of its value and the ways research can influence practice. Controversy continues about the kind and degree of influence research can have on teachers and teacher education. This report contributes to the discussion by taking a closer look at what teachers believe about the influence of research. Two groups of teachers with substantively different prior experiences with research were interviewed regarding their beliefs about the influence of research ont their teaching. Three vignettes, based on review of current literature on teachers' views of research, were constructed to elicit teachers' beliefs. Analysis of teachers' responses show the conflicts teachers experience when thinking about the influence of research more broadly. In addition, the analysis indicates that teachers' progress through graduate programs in education typically does not broaden their view of how research can influence them. It is therefore critical that researchers and teacher educators created educative contexts in which teachers can acquire broader, more flexible views of research.