Research as Social Change New Opportunities for Qualitative Research

The authors of "Research as Social Change" argue in clear and accessible language that teaching, learning and research are essentially social and deeply personal activities. This is not a conventional text, for although it is about ways in which research can be used by those in various areas of professional practice, it does not simply catalog or describe conventional research methods. The book's main concerns are qualitative research, research in action (rather than in abstraction) and case study methods. Rob Walker and Michael Schratz give examples of research that are concerned with the nature of personal memories and discuss what is worth doing in reviewing research literature. Other topics covered include the social nature of perception, the uses that research can make of drawings and photographs, the emotional relationships implicit in research and research in the context of the contemporary workplace.
Walker and Schratz develop new directions and new possibilities for research and find waysof bringing together theory and practice, the personal and the social as well as organizations and their clients. It is an important resource and means of support for all who are interested in doing research but are critical of most studies that are currently available.

Have you ever thought research is boring? "Research" writes Umberto Eco "should be fun". It seems unlikely that Umberto Eco has read many of the standard social science or education research texts. But social research does offer the possibility of involvement in projects that are informative, sometimes revealing, and fun to do. This book shows us that teaching, learning and research are essentially social and deeply personal activities and that fun needs to be an integral part of this. This is not a conventional text, although it is about ways in which research can be used by those in various areas of professional practice. Its main concerns are with qualitative research, action research and case study methods, and it goes back to first principles arguing for research that is concerned with the nature of personal memories and of perception, the use of drawings and photographs, the emotional relationships implicit in any kind of research and the context of the contemporary workplace. The authors develop new directions and new possibilities for research and find ways of bringing together theory and practice, the personal and the social, organisations and their clients. It is an important resource for all who are interested in doing research but are sceptical or critical of most studies that are currently available.

1 Social research as social action 2 Elephants and apples: from social perception to false Consciousness 3 Collective memory-work: the self as a re/source for re/Search 4 Being there: using pictures to see the invisible 5 Reading to write: finding song lines in the research Literature 6 Theory is not just theoretical 7 Emotional work in doing research: looking at/with a blind spot in academic relationships 8 In place of work: beyond the recognition of prior learning 9 Windows to look through/windows to break, open or close

Michael Schratz teaches methodology and curriculum innovation at the University of Innsbruck and his research interests in management and leadership in the context of educational change have recently taken him to communities in Estonia, Croatia and Australia. Rob Walker teaches classroom research by distance education at Deakin University, his students being located in various parts of Australia and elsewhere around the Pacific rim.