Praxis and the theory of practice architectures: Resources for re-envisioning English education

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Author(s)
Edwards-Groves, Christine
Grootenboer, Peter
Year published
2015
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This article examines practices in English education through the lens of praxis and the theory of practice architectures. Drawing on empirical material collected in two case study schools in New South Wales and Queensland, we outline a view of praxis and practice that allows English educators to re-imagine the nature of their pedagogical work. It does so, first, by reconnecting practice with individual and collective praxis as a way of expressing the double purpose of education; ‘to help people live well in a world worth living in’ (Kemmis, 2008). Second, using the theory of practice architectures, we show how different kinds ...
View more >This article examines practices in English education through the lens of praxis and the theory of practice architectures. Drawing on empirical material collected in two case study schools in New South Wales and Queensland, we outline a view of praxis and practice that allows English educators to re-imagine the nature of their pedagogical work. It does so, first, by reconnecting practice with individual and collective praxis as a way of expressing the double purpose of education; ‘to help people live well in a world worth living in’ (Kemmis, 2008). Second, using the theory of practice architectures, we show how different kinds of cultural-discursive, materialeconomic and social-political arrangements make visible the dispositions and knowledges which give rise to different kinds of actions and judgments in the everyday work of teachers. By doing so, we reconnect with a lifeworld – or humanistic – perspective on English teaching practices as a human and social endeavour with indissoluble moral, political and historical dimensions.
View less >
View more >This article examines practices in English education through the lens of praxis and the theory of practice architectures. Drawing on empirical material collected in two case study schools in New South Wales and Queensland, we outline a view of praxis and practice that allows English educators to re-imagine the nature of their pedagogical work. It does so, first, by reconnecting practice with individual and collective praxis as a way of expressing the double purpose of education; ‘to help people live well in a world worth living in’ (Kemmis, 2008). Second, using the theory of practice architectures, we show how different kinds of cultural-discursive, materialeconomic and social-political arrangements make visible the dispositions and knowledges which give rise to different kinds of actions and judgments in the everyday work of teachers. By doing so, we reconnect with a lifeworld – or humanistic – perspective on English teaching practices as a human and social endeavour with indissoluble moral, political and historical dimensions.
View less >
Journal Title
Australian Journal of Language and Literacy
Volume
38
Issue
3
Copyright Statement
© 2015 Australian Literacy Educators' Association. The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the journal's website for access to the definitive, published version.
Subject
Education systems
Curriculum and pedagogy
Curriculum and pedagogy theory and development
Specialist studies in education