Introduction

This GUIDE was designed by the Virginia Adult Educator's Research Network with the first-time practitioner-researcher in mind. The staff at the Research Network had been working with researchers for two years and during annual evaluations many of them had asked for a handbook with plenty of "how-to." We found several good handbooks, but we still felt the need for something more condensed. We also wanted to capitalize on the rich experiential background of the practitioner-researchers in Virginia. Our work is confined to the practice of adult education and literacy; however, the GUIDE should be useful for practitioners in other sectors of education as well.

The GUIDE is written in three parts: an introduction to practitioner-research, a list of stages or steps found in most research projects along with suggestions for each, and a series of case studies. The case studies, excerpts from the stories of several practitioner-researchers, illustrate the stages discussed in the previous section and help bring the process to life for the reader. Immediately preceding the case study section, the reader will find a section called "What to Do When You Get Stuck." This is a trouble-shooting section, and is printed on colored paper for fast reference.

I have used the pronoun "she" throughout the GUIDE in reference to the practitioner-researcher. I used one gender only to make the text easier to read and chose the feminine in honor of the researchers who shared their stories with me.

The Research Network certainly did not invent practitioner-research. I drew heavily upon the work of others in preparing the GUIDE; I especially want to thank them for clearing a path for me. I was inspired in this work by a speech Marian Mohr gave at the Virginia Association for Adult and Continuing Educators conference in April 1993, and I have enjoyed working with Marion MacLean on several projects. I highly recommend their book, Working Together: A Guide for Teacher-Researchers, to anyone who wants to go beyond the beginning this book makes. I am also indebted to Leslie Patterson, Carol Minnick Santa, Kathy Short, and Karen Smith, who edited Teachers Are Researchers: Reflection and Action. Both of these books helped me conceptualize my own experiences with research and gave me a language for articulating the process of doing research.

This GUIDE is a publication of the Virginia Adult Educator's Research Network, a project funded by the Virginia Office of Adult Education. Since July 1991, The Research Network has been dedicated to encouraging practitioner research among adult educators in Virginia. The Research Network provides research grants to practitioners and graduate students through a proposal process. We also support researchers by maintaining communication through membership letters, state newsletter articles, the Year In Review (a publication of practitioner-researcher reports), a professional reading review, and a membership directory. We welcome comments and questions from our readers. You can contact us