In this essay, we explore the tension between research using continuous improvement (CI) paradigms, such as improvement science, and conventional research, and the role and regulation of Institutional Review Board (IRB) oversight. We argue that the current regulatory structure privileges traditional research and hinders collaborative inquiry that…

This article discusses a participatory action research (PAR) team's response and adaptation to the COVID-19 pandemic amid multiple crises in Puerto Rico. Drawing on an ethnographic study of a PAR collaboration, the article: 1) examines four key dilemmas that emerged during the study, 2) emphasizes the significance of reciprocal partnerships…

This study explores Participatory Action Research (PAR) as a practice that promotes collaborative knowledge construction between researchers and participants. Within this framework, a PAR experience carried out for the transformation of a school in the province of Valencia (Spain) is explored. The aim is to analyse the shared construction of…

The aim of this study is to explore what happened -- and why -- in a collaboration between ourselves as researchers and school leaders from two different schools in Sweden. The theory of practice architectures is used to frame the study. The goal of the collaboration was to enhance the scientific foundation of school practices, which motivated the…

In out-of-school care centres in Flanders, building warm and trusting relationships with parents is both an important aim and a huge frustration. Practitioners often struggle with their role towards parents and feel insufficiently trained to deal with increasing expectations about cooperation with parents. In this article we describe the results…

The curriculum includes educational activities that determine the struggle for survival and sustainability of a university's departments. Approaches that seek more flexible solutions and have a post-positivist understanding are needed to manage this system. One of these approaches is action research, first used by Kurt Lewin (1946) to solve social…

This paper, delivered as a provocative keynote address to the Collaborative Action Research Network (CARN) conference in Manchester on 28th October 2023, explores the question if action research might have a sweet spot. A sweet spot is defined as an ideal location, area or combination of factors for a particular activity or purpose. It draws on…

Differentiated instruction has been shown to meet the needs of diverse learners, and can meaningfully improve individual student learning, however many teachers find it challenging to implement. This paper reports on a targeted professional development programme which was undertaken as a collaborative action research project. Results show many…

This study focuses on three essential concepts -- collaboration, action, and research. It was initiated by three former teacher educators (TEs) at Asmara Community College of Education (ACCE), Eritrea (now defunct), and data was drawn from their written accounts and rigorous reflective discussions. It illuminates the lines of development while…

Purpose: This article, written by a multilingual learner program (MLP) specialist, provides a first-hand account of how a professional development school (PDS) (school-university partnership school) promotes teacher advocacy. Design/methodology/approach: Due to the subject of the piece, no research methods were necessary. Findings: Due to the…

In this article, the authors share what they learned from considering a collection of narrative reflections written by six high school educators, all co-authors, who have integrated youth participatory action research (YPAR) into their instructional practice. Taken together, the written reflections shed light on teachers' reasons not only for…

This article nuances an ongoing discussion among researchers about external researchers in emancipatory action research in the educational field. It examines opportunities and challenges for emancipatory action research for participants in top-down and bottom-up initiated action research projects with external researchers. An analysis based on…

Purpose: The purpose of this action research study was to design, implement and evaluate interventions that enhanced the induction program for new teachers in a P-12 school district. At the outset, we hoped the study would provide new teacher support resulting in improved teaching practices, increased job satisfaction and/or increased teacher…

Purpose: This study investigated a teacher leadership program created by a partnership between a large US urban district, their teachers' union and a university. We were part of an action-research partnership that examined the program's implementation. Design/methodology/approach: We employed a hermeneutic phenomenology methodology and…

This data-based theoretical paper explores the contrasting tensions of adults being in "solidarity" with youths while not reproducing systems of oppression through adultism. Written by adults who have been engaged side-by-side with youth activism, the purpose of this article is to better understand what adult solidarity and support look…