Interview Information Letter for Teachers
Dear Educator:
I am a professor in the Department of Theory and Policy Studies at the Ontario Institute
for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE/UT). I am requesting your
cooperation as a voluntary participant in a three year study entitled Educational equity and
inclusion in neoliberal times: Policy webs and school practice, in which we will examine how
policy discourses interact in complex ways to influence school practice. The goal of this study is
to understand the impact of the provincial policy context on this work. This study is supported by
a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. I am the principle
investigator in charge of Ontario along with my colleagues Drs. Reva Joshee and Jim Ryan and
the other co-investigators are Dr. Ann Vibert at Acadia University in Nova Scotia and Dr.
Brenda Spencer at the University of Alberta.
Given the current emphasis that both ministries of education and school boards have put
on equity and inclusion over the past two decades, neoliberalism has shaped public policy in
significant ways with far-reaching effects. Through our previous and on-going research we have
discovered that, despite this context, educators who embrace the ideals of social justice continue
to work in the service of educational equity and inclusion, albeit not without tension and
difficulty. To date, most studies that have examined the impact of neoliberalism have focused on
policy at a macro-level. While much of the existing literature notes that the neoliberal agenda of
globalization carries with it a threat to prior educational policies that addressed equity and
inclusion, to date few have examined the new diversity agenda that is emerging within the
neoliberal framework and its specific influence in local school contexts. Recent research has
demonstrated that the new diversity discourses create barriers to social justice by obscuring the
meaning and intent of previous equity and inclusion policies. However, findings from our current
work, clearly show that educators continue to develop commitments to socially just schooling
despite blurred discourses and contradictory policies.
This research has a number of objectives, including: identifying the dominant discourses
of major educational policy documents, critically examining how neoliberalism has influenced
the direction of educational policy and has generated new diversity discourses, exploring how
both neoliberal and social justice discourses are taken up by educators, investigating how these
policy discourses hinder and/or facilitate the achievement of equity, diversity and inclusion in
schools. We will compare and contrast this information on variations in policy and practice
across different provincial and local contexts and develop recommendations for educators and
policy makers about how to work within these discourses to develop more equitable education
policies and practices
The research will occur in 2 phases. Phase 1 will begin with a detailed examination of
key policy documents currently in circulation from the federal and provincial governments,
relevant school districts, and organizations influencing policy work (e.g. nongovernmental
organizations and teacher unions) to identify discourses present in the diversity policy texts. We
will use the data from Phase 1 to develop interview questions for Phase 2. Phase two will
involve interviews with educators like yourself who we had worked with in the past or who had
been referred to us by others. Phase 2 involves an in-depth interview, approximately one hour in
length with 24 administrators (one from each elementary school and 3 from each secondary
school) and 78 teachers (5 from each elementary school, 8 from each secondary school) in three
provinces of Ontario, Alberta and Nova Scotia. Interviews will be semi-structured to gather data
about your working contexts, your conceptions of critical practice and social justice work in your
school and system, your experiences, histories with and investments in the work, conditions
which support, constrain, sustain, and shape your work, and possibilities seen for extending the
work through practice and policy supports. You were selected to participate, as you have
indicated that you are an educator working for social justice. All interviews will occur outside of
working hours at a time and neutral location convenient to you.
The interviews will be audio taped and transcribed with your permission. All data
generated during the study will remain confidential. Your name will not be used in the published
study or in any future publications or presentations. Only the research team will have access to
the primary data. All data will be stored in locked filing cabinet in my office, to which only I
and research assistants on the research team will have access. All data will be destroyed five
years after the study is concluded. You are free to raise questions or concerns with me or the
research team at any time, and may withdraw at any time if you choose, or refuse to answer any
question in the interview without negative consequences.
There are no known harms associated with your participation in this research. You will at
no time be judged or evaluated. No value judgments will be placed on your responses.
Anonymity and confidentiality measures, and the fact that research participation takes place
outside of working hours and away from work sites, are intended to address concerns you may
have about potential career repercussions should some research findings prove critical of official
policies. Participating in this study is worthwhile professional development because it allows
time to reflect on your practice and views and to talk about pedagogical issues. This study will
also make a strong contribution to knowledge about both policy and practice in Canada as it
examines the influence of discourses of diversity and on local educational practices.
Furthermore, your participation in this study will offer crucial insights for gaining perspective
about the purposes of education and for resisting and challenging those discourses that continue
to privilege certain values while marginalizing others.
Participation is completely voluntary. If you are interested in participating in this
research or if you have any questions about it, please contact me at 416-978-1277or by e-mail at
jportelli@oise.utoronto.ca. If you have any questions about your rights as a participant,
please contact the Research Ethics Office at 416-946-3237 or by e-mail at
ethics.review@utoronto.ca.
Sincerely,
Dr. John P. Portelli
252 Bloor St. West 6th Floor
Toronto, ON M5S 1V6 416-978-1277