As argued above, in the process of action research curriculum aims and principles
(values) become articulated as objects of reflection in parallel with the means of
realising them in action. Teachers not only change their teaching strategies but also
clarify their curriculum aims and values. For example, teachers have undertaken
action research to create conditions for students to engage in more ‘self-directed’ or
‘autonomous learning’. In reflecting about their strategies for realising this aim they
have inevitably called into question the way they have construed the aim itself.
Initially, ‘autonomous learning’ may be construed as an individualised process, but