GAINING ACCEPTANCE FOR CHILD-RESPONSIVE PRACTICES - WHAT DO TEACHERS KNOW ABOUT IT

This paper reports on a study of teachers managing dilemmas associated with gaining acceptance for 'child-responsive' curriculum practices. Collaborative inquiry into personal experiences in deciding the classr oom curriculum resulted in new insights into knowledge that is activat ed as teachers face situations where they perceive their curriculum id eals to be in conflict with ongoing routines for living in the workpla ce. Narrative methodologies surfaced deeply-held knowledge about socia l processes and relationships and revealed how this knowledge is caugh t up in personal images which are activated when the teacher faces dil emmas in deciding the curriculum. It is argued that the constructs of teacher dilemmas and teacher images provide useful focuses for reflexi vely examining the knowledge that teachers bring to their work as clas sroom curriculum decision makers.