Tracey Smith

Pedagogy, education and praxis

This Special Issue is significant for two reasons. It introduces the work conducted by an international research and professional education network which was established to extend theoretical conversations about Pedagogy, Education and Praxis in contemporary times. These dialogic networks trace the different traditions of theory, research and practice in education across international contexts and form the basis of this edition as a collaborative writing project. Second, the co‐creation of the articles in this journal presents prominent concerns facing educational practice and research from a truly international perspective. The differences between intellectual traditions from where the authors are situated provide accounts of what enables or constrains educators across the globe; for example how some European traditions of pedagogy are being challenged and perhaps even supplanted by Anglo‐American perspectives in educational research, practice and policy.

Staying alive in academia: collective praxis at work

Internationally, as the twenty‐first century unfolds, there is a burgeoning literature that documents the changing nature of academic work and workplaces. One recurring theme in this literature is the extent to which academic freedom and autonomy are being threatened in higher education settings. In this article, the nature of this ominous threat and what might be done about it are interrogated using praxis as a conceptual lens. On one meaning of praxis, we consider the actions of academics as individuals aiming for ‘right conduct’; on a second meaning, we consider praxis as collective ‘history‐making action’. An analysis of the existing practices of researchers in two international settings revealed particular kinds of practice architectures – collective research practices – that have revitalised and sustained the working lives of these academics. The notion of collective praxis is suggested as a model of intellectual engagement for building communicative connections. It provides a strategic way forward both to enable academic freedom and autonomy and to benefit the institutions in which academics work.

Knowing Pedagogical Praxis in Twenty-First Century Education

There are always perennial and critical questions to be asked about the nature, conduct and study of education. Who is it for? What is its purpose? Is it just? How does it happen? How does one educate? What is education? Such questions lead us into the complex territory of interrelated educational practices involving student learning, teaching, leading, professional learning and development and researching. This chapter seeks to answer a more fundamental question for educators about pedagogical practice posed by Stephen Kemmis: in whose interests are we acting? To do this, we take the lead from decades of influential work by Kemmis and his commitment to a praxis-oriented view of pedagogy, research and education. For him, praxis in education, although differently understood in different historical and educational traditions, concerns a more deliberative, moral, ethical and virtuous conceptualisation of pedagogical practice. It sets aside a more simplistic view of praxis as action by tying it intimately to the notion of phronēsis, a concept that accounts for practical wisdom and the recognition that practical action in the here-and-now (in everyday life, in educational settings) has consequences and so is part of history-making. Thus, the chapter re(in)states the promises of education by considering what is pedagogical praxis, what is required for pedagogical praxis and why should educators be concerned with pedagogical praxis in contemporary times.