'The Story So Far': Personal Knowledge and the Political.

This paper explores some forms of inquiry that are becoming influential within teacher education. In particular, the document focuses on forms of inquiry variously called "stories,""narratives,""personal knowledge,""practical knowledge," or in one particular genre "personal practical knowledge." Storying and narratology are genres which allow movement beyond (or to the side) of the main paradigms of educational inquiry--with their numbers, variables, psychometrics, psychologies, and decontextualized theories. Potentially then, the new genres offer the chance for a substantial step forward in the representation of lived experience in schooling. Because of this substantial potential, the new genres require very close scrutiny, for while they have some obvious strengths, there are some weaknesses which may prove incapacitating. This investigation seeks to locate the genres of narrative and storying within the emergent cultural patterns of contemporary societies and economies. The media context of personal knowledge is examined and a series of questions and issues are raised as a result. In the final section, some conclusions as to the role of personal knowledge in educational research are provided. (Contains 22 references.) (LL)