Comments on Howe : Getting Over the Methodology Wars

Abstract

Howe’s (2009) critique of positivistic tendencies in the education research community is valuable and pertinent. His analysis is nonetheless one-sided, finding fault with one side of current divisions alone. In an effort to retain the good points of his analysis, the author first summarizes Howe’s argument, interpreting it as a critique of hasty and dogmatic reductionism. He then considers parallel problems arising from hasty and dogmatic holism that Howe does not address. Following this discussion, a third, temporal approach is suggested in which analytic and synthetic perspectives are used to suggest and modify one another in a cycle, rather than being taken as fixed stances. Adopting this approach could help reduce the dogmatism evident in the methodology wars, although struggles for advantage would clearly remain.