Paper 3 – Conditions for praxis: local and global

Ian Hardy (University of Queensland), Ingrid Henning-Loeb (University of Gothenburg, Sweden), Anita Norlund (University of Borås, Sweden), Kiprono Langat (Charles Sturt University), Kirsten Petrie (University of Waikato, New Zealand).

The practices of educators are affected, consciously or otherwise, by changing cultural, social, political, and material conditions for praxis and praxis development in the contexts in which educators work. Educational trends and conditions play out in nuanced ways across different national contexts. However, changing conditions for practice equally share many similarities. Of particular note is the way in which the processes and elements of neoliberalism and new public management have shaped education and the practices of educators globally.  

In this presentation, the focus is on how, in different national contexts, the changing cultural, social, political, and material conditions for praxis and praxis development affect educational practices of the ‘teaching’ workforce. Drawing on empirical research undertaken by members of the PEP network, within and across different national contexts allows for a unique interrogation of how praxis and praxis development is prefigured by different governing conditions in different countries and educational sites. This work highlights the conditions that constrain educational practices, while importantly offering insights into the conditions of possibility for local practices where educators ‘resist’ particular arrangements and instead create opportunities to enhance educational practices.