In this research article, Sarah Dryden-Peterson explores the concept of researcher positionality, focusing on its malleability over time. The methodological analysis is situated in an empirical study of history teaching and learning in Cape Town, South Africa, schools in 1998 and 2019. Dryden-Peterson argues that researcher positionality is often articulated as static, ignoring temporal shifts. She analyzes the ways shifts in identities, comparative frames, and positions on expertise and vulnerability have implications for how researchers collect and interpret their data.
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Sarah Dryden-Peterson (
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0849-9489) is an associate professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she leads a research program focusing on the connections between education and community development, specifically the role that education plays in building peaceful and participatory societies. Her work is situated in conflict and postconflict settings and is concerned with the interplay between local experiences of children, families, and teachers and the development and implementation of national and international policy. Her research reflects connections between practice, policy, and scholarship and is strengthened through sustained collaborations with UN agencies, NGOs, and communities. Dryden-Peterson’s long-term research on refugee education has played a critical role in shaping global policy on the importance of quality, conflict-informed, and future-creating education in all phases of conflict. She is a recipient of the Palmer O. Johnson Award for an outstanding article and was a National Academy of Education Postdoctoral Fellow. Raised in Toronto, Canada, Dryden-Peterson has taught primary and middle school in Madagascar, South Africa, and the United States.