Bridget Somekh, Thomas A. Schwandt

Introduction Part 1: Examining Educational Knowledge Production in Global Discourses of Accountability, Quality Assessment, and Performance Measures of Usefulness: A Diatribe. How is Educational Research 'Being Framed'? Governmentality, the (Ac)counting of, and Expertise in, Educational Research. 'Clarity Bordering on Stupidity?' Where's the Quality in Systematic Review?' Sex, Science and Educational Research: The Unholy Trinity. Internationalisation, Globalization, and Quality Audits: An Empire of the Mind? Part 2: Restructuring Educational Research Practices Theorizing Innovation and Knowledge Creation in Pursuit of Educational Justice. Democratic Accountability. From 'Human Capital' Theory to 'Capability Theory' as a Driver of Curriculum Reform: A Reflection on the Educational Implications of the Work of Amartya Sen in the Light of John Dewey's Account of Educational Values. Rethinking Doctoral Writing as Text Work and Identity Work. Politics, Knowledge, Identity and Community: Methodologist as Hitchhiker, Skateboarder

This collection from a highly impressive international group of educational researchers explores epistemological, methodological, and ethical-political issues in the production of knowledge about educational phenomena in contemporary society. The book is organized in two sections. The first focuses on how the enterprise of knowledge production is being influenced by global discourses of educational accountability, evidence-based practice and policy, and quality assessment. The second section features material that focuses more specifically on reconceiving both methodological matters and the kinds of knowledge that demand attention in this climate.
The book is unique in bringing together chapters by scholars well-known internationally for their original contributions to educational theory and research practice. Many books in this area are no more than guides on how to do research or text books reiterating rather narrow frameworks of research paradigms, this book both breaks new ground and sets the tone for discussions about the future path of educational research in the coming years.