Teaching/learning action research requires fundamental reforms in public higher education

Abstract

Action researchers have rarely focused attention on reforming higher education and I argue that this is a mistake. The article reviews some of my failed attempts to make AR a sustainable teaching, research, and extension strategy in my own university. These experiences show that AR works well in the classroom and in small and marginal projects but this small scale and marginality and invisibility also makes such efforts fragile and short-lived. We action researchers have yet to use AR strategies successfully to guide necessary reforms in the relation between universities and the extra-university stakeholders and to deepen collaborative relationships within universities among students, staff, and administrators. © 2007, Sage Publications. All rights reserved.