Power and Voice in RPPs (Research-Practice Partnerships): A Cross-National Study of RPP Meetings

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Abstract

Research-practice partnerships (RPPs) offer a strategy for supporting educational change and shifting power relations between researchers and practitioners. This paper examines what discourse patterns in RPP meetings reveal about how researchers and practitioners share power, and how meeting artifacts mediate these dynamics. We analyze meeting data gathered in US and Swiss RPPs, allowing for cross-context comparisons. Video-recorded meetings were coded using MAXQDA, and artifacts were analyzed. Meetings engaged participants in collaborative problem solving. Despite efforts to engage practitioner voices, researchers generally held power in RPP meetings. The positional authority and identity of participants also influenced participation, beyond researcher-practitioner distinctions. These findings point to the importance of analyzing meeting dialogue as a possible vehicle for continuous improvement of RPPs.

Authors

• Amanda L. Datnow, University of California - San Diego

• Enikoe Zala Mezoe, Zurich University of Teacher Education

• Nora Turriago, University of California - San Diego

• Benjamin C. Kennedy, University of California - San Diego