ACTION RESEARCH AS A DRIVER OF PEDAGOGICAL INNOVATION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ITALIAN AND SPANISH TEACHER EDUCATION MODELS

Scientific thinking skills (STS) are a foundational element in initial teacher education across disciplines, serving as essential prerequisites for creating an educational environment centered on co-generating meaningful experiential learning.These skills encompass the capacity to observe, analyse, document, evaluate and critically reflect on information.The integration of an interdisciplinary approach within the context of teacher education is identified as a pivotal element, thereby nurturing a socio-critical paradigm within the teaching-learning process.Action research is recognised as a particularly participatory and reflective methodology designed to foster positive change within specific contexts.Action research, as pioneered by Kurt Lewin in the 1940s, is a methodology that involves active participation from members of the relevant community or institution, facilitating collaboration through a cycle of planning, action, observation, and reflection.This iterative process is repeated until a practical, effective solution is reached, aiming to improve a given situation through systematically posing questions, planning, observation-based inquiry, analysis, rediscovery of prior knowledge, and the promotion of co-learning.The present study aims to compare the pathways for qualifying secondary school teachers in Italy and Spain, specifically examining whether and to what extent these programs incorporate and encourage the development of scientific thinking through the use of action research methodology.The overarching objective of this study is to enhance the teaching-learning process, thereby supporting the holistic development of individuals.