The Distinctive Affordances of Close to Practice Research: An Argument for its Deployment within Postgraduate Initial Teacher Education

The purpose of this chapter is to explore whether undertaking a scaffolded form of classroom-based research could support postgraduate university–school initial teacher education partnership programmes. Our design for supporting student teachers to execute a Close-to-Practice (CtP) based empirical study is described including methodological and philosophical underpinnings. Close-to-practice (CtP) research is defined as research that ‘focusses on defined by practitioners as relevant to their practice, and involves collaboration between people whose main expertise is research, practice, or both.’ (BERA, 2018). In the case of this study, issues were decided in collaboration between student teachers and schools. In terms of evaluation of the efficacy of such an approach, a qualitative methodology was undertaken, comprising of a critical discourse analysis of student teacher written research reports. Discourse analysis revealed that several sociocognitive processes took place during, and as a result of, student teachers engaging in CtP research, including explorations of identity, polarisation to collective groups, articulation and examination of beliefs and values and negotiation of existing power relationships and structures. In addition, the data showed that many aspects of undertaking a small-scale research study supported student teacher pedagogical knowledge acquisition and professional development. Student teacher testimony also revealed they valued this mode of learning and developed positive attitudes to educational research in the widest sense. This study has clear implications for the design of initial teacher education programs and the continued professional development of teachers, in England and potentially further afield.