Beyond Scientific versus Interpretive: Deweyan Inquiry and Educational Research

Abstract

Questions like these — investigating the relationship between education and science — have ebbed and flowed throughout this past century, in response to changing political pressures, evolving conceptions of science, and the emergence of education as a particular field of study. While these questions are not new, the debate over what forms of educational research are valid has been resurrected in new forms — and with arguably higher stakes — by recent U.S. federal priorities supporting “scientifically based research” in education. In light of this debate, my essay focuses on the distinction between scientific and interpretive research. After briefly examining the current context of this debate, I explore two central aspects of Dewey’s concept of inquiry: the experimental method and the social context of inquiry. I conclude by looking at some of the ways in which we might — working through Dewey’s pattern — complicate and reconstruct the terms of this emerging debate about educational research.