Learning, Teaching and Education Research in the 21st Century

Book excerpt: Learning, Teaching and Education Research in the 21st Century draws on Karl Popper's evolutionary epistemology and challenges widespread assumptions about learning, teaching and research that are embedded in the practices of many teachers and in the design of most education institutions worldwide. Joanna Swann argues that to promote the growth of learning we need to encourage children and adolescents to exercise and develop creativity and criticality, and that we need to provide and maintain environments in which they can safely engage in self-initiated and self-directed exploratory activity. In accessible and engaging language, the author presents philosophical arguments that support the defence and development of non-authoritarian approaches to learning and teaching that can be used by individuals and groups working in or outside state-funded schools. In particular, she provides tried-and-tested guidelines for student-initiated curricula and a problem-based methodology for professional development and action research.