With the new academic year comes renewed thinking and reflection on my practice; how my ideas and actions are embraced by my philosophies and ideals, and how I might seek to challenge my current ‘ways’ in considering new contexts and the influence of others. Such reflection has long characterised my approach to teaching and learning;…
Category: Action research
Considering Research in Schools
The term ‘research’ is thrown about a lot in schools, but often what happens is far from any real definition of the word. “The research shows…” has become a favoured line, when the ‘research’ is an essentially an ‘untested hunch’, a thought gleaned from an oft-biased, non-peer reviewed, glossy opinion piece, or a ‘no-expense-spared’ video peppered…
Teachers owning education research
I am a teacher; I am also a ‘newly minted’ education researcher… and I think the latter very much supports and enhances the former. I am currently considering applying for a position in my school that brings education research into the ‘everyday life’ of teachers and students… but I am very wary of the baggage…
The student voice prompting pedagogical change in music education
In Meditation XVII from Devotions upon Emergent Occasions, John Donne (1624) wrote: “No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main” (¶ 1). This passage brings forth a theme relevant to school music education today. Too often, music teachers see themselves and their…
Dr Cade Bonar 