Kan handelingswetenschap de conceptualiteitsimpasse tegengaan

Abstract Can Participative Action Research reduce the conceptualism-impasse? The conceptualism-impasse emerges when educational authorities (such as the Education Inspection) offer conceptual knowledge based on ‘objective’ research while expecting that such knowledge consists of knowhow that is ready for use by teachers. Conceptual ‘knowledge that,’ however, is of a different kind than ‘knowhow’. Knowhow is embodied knowledge that cannot be transferred to other people via language. It is developed by deliberate practice. If authorities offer conceptual knowledge while expecting to offer the technical knowhow to make education work, they (inadvertently) impose inadequate requirements on teachers and draw untimely conclusions about teachers’ failure, with all due consequences for the pedagogical climate in schools. The emergence of this impasse is related to a technical view of education that was established by behaviorism and resulted in an architecture of our education field in which knowledge and action are separated. This article addresses the question whether participative action research (handelingsonderzoek) that connects knowledge and action can prevent this impasse. It concludes that participative action research can contribute a great deal, but the present architecture of our educational field and the pretensions of ‘objective’ research need to be addressed too.