Translating research into practice: towards an act of transformation and commitment

Abstract

Drawing on works in philosophy of education and adopting a perspective borrowed from the philosophy of language, this paper attempts to distance itself from commonly accepted conceptions in order to discuss the translation of research into educational practice. Following a brief presentation of translation as an act of transformation and commitment, it assesses the fertility of this model drawing on Paul Standish’s work on social justice. Based on this model, this paper examines an important debate in educational research: the relationship between research and practice. It adresses two issues raised by this model, the question of the criteria used in order to judge the quality and relevance of research, and the question of translation interfaces. This has certain implications for teaching, educational research and teacher training.