As a teacher I surely get a few things now.

So MUCH of this research is embedded in classrooms studying them. It’s incredible the direct connection that allows for such rich work.

Phillip Kovacs and Doug Noon I respect beyond saying. Doug’s model is one I know…
Well I’m saying. I know they have much to say…and I’m kind …hoping that this kind of wiki is built, or maybe i see trails to what is there to then think about this.
Sarah

YES to more interaction, but a more important (in my opinion) YES! to teachers and researchers working together to put political pressure on legislators so that we might have the freedom and support to pursue all of these amazing ideas.

Sarah, please understand that I am frustrated by the lack of solidarity between teachers and scholars, and I truly hope that both will work closer together…and I say this as a former high school teacher and a current “scholar.”

In response to Paul, I vehemently disagree that there are “no” mechanisms other than tests to measure student development and growth.

Portfolios (for students and teachers), could be used to point out areas of strength and weaknesses, but right now there is a large political movement calling for standards and “objective” measurement.

There is a group of individuals who do not trust or believe in teachers, and they have convniced both politicians and publics that the only way to be sure that children are “learning” is through tests.

I disagree. Many teachers disagree. But who is listening to us disagree and what are we doing in order that our experiences and research are validated and acknolwedged when debating school reform?

I ran into this in my MEd program, and it was a surreal Catch-22 situation where we had to get clearance to do things in our classroom that were completely normal, but because we called it “research” the review board thought “experiment” and hesitated, attaching weird conditions that gave parents permission to opt out – as if this was some kind of subversive activity. It was absurd, because all we really wanted was to try out a new idea, like Literature Circles for example, and report back on how it went. Teachers do need a certain amount of political freedom to do even simple things in places where the scripting has gone over the edge, and that could be a problem – unless the teachers want to research THAT ( the scripting), which is what I would do in that situation, research the “research.”

I do see a great deal of value in a teacher-researcher network, however. I believe that a network of this nature could provide the political leverage to re-open lines of inquiry that are being closed off by the narrowed curricular focus resulting from high-stakes tests. Presently, there are no mechanisms, other than the tests themselves, in place to monitor current policy. A teacher-researcher network, even in an environment that is constrained by inflexible curricular mandates, could allow teachers the opportunity to “research back” and provide alternatives to the one-dimensional results we get from testing.

So, a national teacher-researcher network sounds good to me. The technology angle would suggest a wiki open to teacher researchers and Education academics.