This seminar will focus on using theory in research. PhD students and early career researchers are exhorted to find their theoretical paradigm, world view, or theoretical framework to underpin their research. And, to complicate matters, only rarely will only one theory do all the necessary work in a research undertaking. The seminar will explore how to use theory in research, including defining one’s paradigm, selecting complementary theories, and aligning research methods with one’s theoretical framework.

The seminar will be led by Leesa Wheelahan, who will use the example of the philosophy critical realism to demonstrate how this ‘under-labours’ all her research and guides the selection of complementary modes of theorising.

Suggested reading:
Wheelahan, Leesa (2023). Realism and theorizing curriculum-the role of knowledge. In R. J. Tierney, F. Rizvi, & K. Ercikan (Eds.), International Encyclopedia of Education (Fourth Edition) (pp. 85-95). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-818630-5.03012-8