Post compulsory education - the evacuation of politics: research as subversion?

Currents trends in educational theory and state concerns with educational research have placed a premium upon interventions into educational practice. These developments are inherently messy facing in both conservative as well as progressive directions. The latter direction is thought to offer a politics of hope as well as the possibility of subversion. This paper argues that in itself a concern with practice, albeit one rooted in a progressive politics, can easily fold over into a form of conservatism, unless it is articulated to a wider politics.