Democracy, Education and Research

There are many books focusing upon recipe-like strategies for undertaking research, and there are many books on the politics of change and sustainable change in communities. However in this ground-breaking book four leading experts in the field of research combine their talents to offer a very different focus: how practices and processes of research and education can create fundamental, radical social change.

Here the authors assess the meaning of ‘public impact’ by rethinking what is meant by a ‘public’ and how it is essential to the methodologies of education and research. They focus on and provide empirical illustrations of the use of research and educational processes in contemporary and emergent forms of social organisation, covering both the traditional forms to be found in the education system, health, community, business and the public institutions of government; as well as the emergent forms arising from innovations in information technologies. The book focuses on:

• researching the forms of learning and knowledge creation that take place across the whole range of everyday interactions that people engage in whether in places of learning, communities or workplaces
• the ways in which such learning and knowledge can be intentionally shaped by individuals and groups to effect social and political change
• The research strategies required to forge new practices, new ways of working and living for a more socially just world.

Avoiding jargon and introducing ideas and practices that can make a real difference this book will be relevant to students in education, sociology, politics, cultural studies and more generally on all courses where there are research-oriented modules focusing upon how to bring about change through social learning. It will also be of vital interest to a wide range of professional researchers from academics in their roles as teachers and professional researchers, to educators and activists working in our communities.

John Schostak is a Professor at the Education and Social Research Institute, Manchester Metropolitan University. He is interested in qualitative research methods generally. He has co-authored 2 books with Jill Schostak, for Routledge: (2009) Radical Research. Designing, and (2010) Researching Violence, Democracy and the Rights of People.

Ivor Goodson works as Professor of Learning Theory at the University of Brighton in the Education Research Centre, as well as Research Associate at the Von Hugel Institute at St. Edmunds College at the University of Cambridge. In addition he has a Stint Foundation research professorship which he holds in the universities of Uppsala and Gothenburg in Sweden.