Participatory research with teachers: toward a pragmatic and dynamic view of equity and parity in research relationships

Abstract

Participatory research in education provides an opportunity for university-based researchers to collaborate with teachers to develop understandings and to overcome the school‒university and research‒practice divides. Several studies illuminate the challenges inherent in conducting participatory research within the institutional context of schools, particularly in achieving a truly equitable research relationship. The purpose of this paper is to argue for a more pragmatic and dynamic view of equity and expertise between school- and university-based collaborators. Elaborating examples from a partnership with teachers at the elementary level, this paper illustrates the complex power dynamics that existed between university- and community-based stakeholders. It points to the need to work with and against existing power structures to co-create multiple and shifting positions of expertise that keep the learning communities open and alive for the promotion of transformative educational practices.