The SAGE Handbook of Research on Teacher Education offers an ambitious and international overview of the current landscape of teacher education research, as well as the imagined futures. The two volumes are divided into sub-sections: Section One: Mapping the Landscape of Teacher Education Section Two: Learning Teacher Identity in Teacher Education Section Three: Learning Teacher Agency in Teacher Education Section Four: Learning Moral & Ethical Responsibilities of Teaching in Teacher Education Section Five: Learning to Negotiate Social, Political, and Cultural Responsibilities of Teaching in Teacher Education Section Six: Learning through Pedagogies in Teacher Education Section Seven: Learning the Contents of Teaching in Teacher Education Section Eight: Learning Professional Competencies in Teacher Education and throughout the Career Section Nine: Learning with and from Assessments in Teacher Education Section Ten: The Education and Learning of Teacher Educators Section Eleven: The Evolving Social and Political Contexts of Teacher Education Section Twelve: A Reflective Turn This handbook is a landmark collection for all those interested in current research in teacher education and the possibilities for how research can influence future teacher education practices and policies.

This book brings together a group of teachers and teacher educators who have researched their own students’ learning in schools and universities as part of the EC funded REDCo Project. Combining the methods of action and practitioner research with the key concepts of Robert Jackson’s interpretive approach, the book illustrates the collaborative research of a group of professionals working together as a community of practice. • Part one sets out the key ideas of the interpretive approach and action research. • Part two reports case studies from individual researchers’ projects carried out in diverse though related settings: different schools, teacher education and local authority teacher training. • Part three traces the ideas of the ‘interpretive approach’, ‘action research’ and ‘community of practice’ across the individual studies. • Part four connects the research with wider themes and findings from the European Commission REDCo Project on religion, education, dialogue and conflict. The book is highly relevant to the work of teachers and teacher trainers in the field of religions and education, to researchers in this field, and to all interested in action research, practitioner research and communities of practice.

The relevance of contextual perspectives in religious education has been growing for the last decade. It has been central to the European Network for Religious Education through Contextual Approaches (ENRECA) - the research network that has produced the present book. Several members of the network have contributed to the theoretical and empirical development of contextual approaches in different publications, but for the first time this has been the focus of an entire collectively produced volume. The history of the book dates back to research seminars in 2009 and 2010 and is based on the discussions in the seminar. The chapters have been developed through a process of critical examination. Through this process we believe to have produced a coherent and also comprehensively rich book, dealing with the issue of context as a challenge, and also a stimulus to religious education research and practice. The chapters are presenting both empirical research and scholarly investigation into methodological and theoretical dimensions. Taken together we hope that this book will contribute to the further development of contextual thinking in religious education research. Or aim has not been to answer all questions, but rather to pose questions and to complicate things in order to enrich the academic field of religion in education.

The author conducted an empirical study on RE teachers' religious literacy, more specifically, on how they interpret a religious narrative. The transactional analysis of the RE teachers' interpretations of The Prodigal Son brought forth four categories or typologies: the immanent approach, the ethical, the Christian, and the dialogical approach. The typologies reflect that the RE teachers' interpretations are determined by different factors, more precisely, by the decisions made in the actual text-reader transactions. Kjørven therefore argues that it is important for RE teachers and RE teacher students to develop an awareness of and knowledge about the complexity of what is involved in meaning-making processes. A literacy of this kind, he concludes, will promote critical skills and thinking in school and in education. Ole Kolbjørn Kjørven works as an associate professor in religious education at Hedmark University of Applied Sciences in Norway. His research interests include teacher research and intercultural education. In 2014 Kjørven received his Ph.D for a thesis on RE teachers' religious literacy.

A practical guide to the methodologies used in language teaching and learning research, providing expert advice and real-life examples from leading TESOL researchers Research Methods in Language Teaching and Learning provides practical guidance on the primary research methods used in second language teaching, learning, and education. Designed to support researchers and students in language education and learning, this highly accessible book covers a wide range of research methodologies in the context of actual practice to help readers fully understand the process of conducting research. Organized into three parts, the book covers qualitative studies, quantitative studies, and systematic reviews. Contributions by an international team of distinguished researchers and practitioners explain and demonstrate narrative inquiry, discourse analysis, ethnography, heuristic inquiry, mixed methods, experimental and quasi-experimental studies, and more. Each chapter presents an overview of a method of research, an in-depth description of the research framework or data analysis process, and a meta-analysis of choices made and challenges encountered. Offering invaluable insights and hands-on research knowledge to students and early-career practitioners alike, this book: Focuses on the research methods, techniques, tools, and practical aspects of performing research Provides firsthand narratives and case studies to explain the decisions researchers make Compares the relative strengths and weaknesses of different research methods Includes real-world examples for each research method and framework to highlight the context of the study Includes extensive references, further reading suggestions, and end-of-chapter review questions Part of the Guides to Research Methods in Language and Linguistics series, Research Methods in Language Teaching and Learning is essential reading for students, educators, and researchers in all related fields, including TESOL, second language acquisition, English language teaching, and applied linguistics.