In search of a different set of organising principles: the method of discursive dislocation

Diego Santori, Jessica Holloway, Katriina Maaranen

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference paperpeer-review

Abstract

Relevance
Across the world, the teaching profession is in crisis. In England, for example, the National Education Union (NEU) recently found that 44% of teachers reported they would leave the profession by 2027, while 20% said they might leave within the next two years. This resonates with similar findings in Australia (Heffernan et al., 2022), the USA (Carver-Thomas et al., 2022) and others (Federičová, 2019). These staggering reports paint an increasingly troubling picture about what teachers consider unmanageable workloads, as well as unrelenting pressures from government inspectors and the public more broadly. The picture is abundantly clear that fundamental changes are needed for teachers to thrive.

Imagining exactly what changes are needed, however, is a much more complex and difficult prospect (see e.g., Ball 2013, Ball 2018, Moss et al, 2021). Indeed, Ball (2018) suggests that ‘in order to eradicate the damage done to the creativity, wellbeing, and enthusiasm of teachers and students by the regime of performativity what is needed is a process of restarting policy from a different set of organising principles’. With this in mind, we use this paper to introduce the concept of discursive dislocation, which is an approach that draws across methodological traditions of participatory action research (Anderson, et al., 2015; Kemmis, 2006) and critical policy studies (Ball, 2003; Baachi, 2012; Webb, 2013) to immerse participants within ‘foreign’ environments to disrupt their everyday assumptions about their own contexts. That is, we present findings from a project that used discursive dislocation as a means for (re)imagining a different set of organising principles for teachers and teaching.

Theoretical Framework
While conventional research methods continue to illustrate the dire conditions that teachers around the world currently face, we see such methods as limited in terms of being able to challenge common assumptions about schooling and allowing the imagining of new possibilities.
Discursive dislocation emerges from the realisation that whilst researchers may be able to design and collect data based on their understanding of the issues and circumstances that affect the target population of a particular study, there is a dimension that remains elusive, almost inaccessible, due to the researchers’ and the participants’ inability to escape the familiar assumptions that are embedded in their day-to-day vocabularies, ideas and knowledge about the institutions within which they operate. Specifically, the Discursive Dislocation method builds on a body of research that has provided valuable insights into teachers’ lived experiences of policy, yet we argue there are constraints imposed by the social imaginary (or discourse) that shapes what is possible for the researcher-participant interaction (cf. Bacchi, 2000; Foucault, 1980). Therefore, we argue that by immersing participants (teachers in our case) within a context that drastically differs from their typical environments, they can more vividly explore the tacit norms, assumptions and defaults that shape their own teaching practice and subjectivity.

Methodology
Rather than use methodological instruments to observe and study participants (participants as the object), discursive dislocation positions participants as the instrument and co-creators for data collection and generation. For this project, we facilitated an exchange between two schools in England and Finland, which have vastly different regulatory systems and accountability demands for teachers. Over a two-week period, four English teachers spent a week in a Finnish school, followed by four Finnish teachers visiting the English school.

During the immersion, participants observed classes, attended faculty meetings and interviewed their respective teacher-partner. They were asked to document their experiences, feelings and ongoing ‘disrupted’ thinking (e.g., daily journals, observation sheets). Throughout the study, we provided prompts for consideration, but we encouraged participants to follow their own curiosities. We also held focus groups at the end of each week, where participants shared their experiences. Across all forms of data generation, we collected over 400 pages of rich, highly nuanced data.

Preliminary Findings
For this methodology paper, we will be sharing findings that illustrate how discursive dislocation created ‘disruptions’ in our thinking about teachers, their work, and their subjectivities. By ‘our’, we refer to ourselves as researchers, but also our teacher-participants. The following indicative excerpts show the disruptive moments that prompted deep considerations about the relationship between teachers, schooling and society:
Excerpt 1:
“That first lesson we walked into, and I just sat there. And it was a good thing I had the mask on because I think I just looked shocked the whole time, "What the hell is going on here?" And then it was picking apart for three days” (English Teacher A).

Excerpt 2:
“There obviously must not be a liability culture here” (English Teacher B)

“It all comes down to personal responsibility. For us...policies are in place (English Teacher C).

“You have got to do that. Something goes wrong, are you the negligent one or did you actually adhere to the safety instructions?" I just watched so much, "Wow, that teacher does not fear being sued. Why not? Is it not a thing here? Why is that child not wearing the goggles? Why is he sitting down...?" Just couldn't - really uncomfortable to watch. Like, I was holding myself back or stepping in and saying, "Oh, my God, put your goggles on" (English Teacher A).

Scholarly Contribution
The purpose of this project was to provoke new ways of thinking about schooling and teaching, with participants positioned as the most suitable actors for thinking newly about what might be possible to improve their environments and practice. We see the possibility for discursive dislocation to have a significant impact on how policy sociology (within and beyond education) might be done. Our findings suggest that disruption can provide a unique opportunity for participants and researchers to think creatively about what a transformed system might look like. It is important to note here, however, that researchers must avoid any temptation to adopt a ‘what works’ mentality (cf. Auld & Morris, 2016; Lewis 2017). That is, this project does not encourage a lifting of ‘exemplar practice’ from one context to be imposed onto another. Rather, this project aims to use ‘disruption’ as a means for provocation, co-creation, and transformation.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication Comparative and International Education Society 2024
Publication statusPublished - 11 Mar 2024

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