Critiquing and cultivating the conditions for educational praxis and praxis development

This chapter addresses how, in different national contexts, the changing cultural, social, political, and material conditions for praxis and praxis development are affecting the educational practices of teachers and other educators. Through the corpus of PEP research (2008-2018), the chapter explores the broader conditions within which educators undertake their work – conditions that enable and constrain educators’ working lives. At a more macro level, the chapter elaborates changing conditions of educational policy and practice, especially regarding the nature and effects of neoliberalism, that have had a significant impact on educators’ possibilities for praxis. At more micro levels, the impact of neoliberalism is felt through a myriad of significant issues – including educators’ professional practice, refugee education, and responses to climate change. The chapter shows that, while these issues are problematic, there are also grounds for hope. Through specific examples, the chapter concludes by identifying practices that cultivate conditions that serve as resources for hope, enabling educators to sustain and foster educational praxis.