ABSTRACT
Given the centrality of educational issues across societies, as well as the inherent accessibility of educational research in comparison to other academic fi elds, educational researchers are uniquely positioned to engage in forms of public pedagogy by sharing our fi ndings with non-professional audiences (Labaree, 1998; Willinsky, 2001). By rendering our empirical work more public, educational researchers not only contribute to a more educated citizenry, but also increase the infl uence of educational research in political deliberation, democratic dialogue, and concrete social change. Despite its considerable value, however, public pedagogical work is viewed by many educational researchers as tangential, if not antithetical, to the mission and mandates of the profession. Th is disposition is oft en linked to the belief that the fi eld of education is ill equipped for rigorous intellectual activity (Cochran-Smith, 2006; Lanier & Little, 1986), as well as the notion that public engagement undermines the intellectual objectivity and distance that are requisite for rigorous scientifi c inquiry (O’Connor, 2007; Rudalevige, 2008). For others, professional socialization and institutional barriers have eliminated public intellectual work from the realm of possibility (Hill, in press). Due to this disciplining of our professional behavior, everyday people are denied access to crucial research knowledge related to education and schooling.
