26 February 2010 Session

Thoughts for the day
“The thesis demonstrates a resolution of the problem
of the separation of theory and practice in educational research.
This is accomplished through a living methodology
in which the researcher engages with both improving practice and generating knowledge
in an investigation into influences on the development of an approach to family literacy.
The thesis demonstrates a way of sustaining connections,
in a journey of improving practice in family literacy,
that include explanations of educational influence in the researcher’s learning,
her influence in the learning of others
and, most impressively, her influence in the learning of social formations
in local, national and international contexts.
This is the first living theory thesis of the 40 plus
that I have examined or supervised that has accomplished this so well.

The thesis can also be placed at the forefront of current discussions in 2008-9 issues
of the British Educational Research Association newsletter, Research Intelligence,
on epistemological transformations in educational knowledge.
Because of this, every effort should be made to make this thesis public,
certainly through peer reviewed Journals, a book and through the internet.
The acknowledgements in the thesis should not be underestimated
as they draw attention to the quality of support and supervision at Durban University of Technology.”
Jack Whitehead

“The great strength of the thesis
is that it contributes to an understanding of the nature and role of self in relation to others
in the real world of the development of an educational programme.
It focuses attention not only on the development over time of practices and thinking
associated with educational and programmatic decision making,
but also, importantly,
foregrounds the way in which contexts, cultures, and diverse human experiences and needs
powerfully influence programme design, practices, and quality.
In turn, the thesis shows how thorough and contextualised investigation of the self
can inform educational engagement in general
– as the general is embedded in the individual.”
Kathleen Pithouse-Morgan