Abstract:

In the public debate on the perspectives of artificial intelligence, many scientists, including educational scientists, are looking for new ideas how to comprehend ongoing changes and understand why the world, revolutionary in technology, does not relieve tension in human relationships. Qualitative research in education science can just be described as an approach that looks at social reality from a postpositivist perspective. The present research reveals the influence of M. Bakhtin’s works on the methodology of qualitative research in the context of discourse analysis. The article explores the Russian tradition of discourse, referring to M. Bakhtin’s teaching about the significance of language, in order to expand the perception of architectonics of qualitative research in the context of discourse analysis. Therefore, the questions naturally arise, how are M. Bakhtin’s ideas related to the approach of qualitative research in education science? How can his culturological concepts be useful for discourse analysis? How does language help to understand social reality? These questions reflect the problem of the article. In order to answer the aforementioned questions, three books by M. Bakhtin (Bachtin 2002; Bachtin 1996, Бахтин, 1975) were investigated. Thematic analysis was conducted to understand the benefits of Bakhtin’s ideas for qualitative research in education science. A five-step plan was drawn up, which was consistently used both during the research and in presenting the results of the research (Braun, Clarke, 2012). The thematic analysis of the books by M. Bakhtin pointed out the five themes related to the qualitative research: the meaning and responsibility of science, environment and its influence on cognition, participatory philosophy, significance of language on cognition of reality, author’s attitude toward the hero. Undoubtedly, the methodology of qualitative research was and is being formed by many investigators; however, M. Bakhtin’s teaching on architectonics of investigation, introspection, centres of value, dependence of values on contexts, influence of environments on cognition of a phenomenon, the merging of the unity of human culture with other areas, involved participation, unavoidability of subjectivity, attitude toward ethical norms etc. is acceptable and used in education science. Exploring the significance of language for cognition of reality makes it possible to expand the understanding of architectonics of qualitative research in the context of discourse analysis: in order to become familiar with the reality one must deeply investigate the language, analyse, contrast it. The analysis of the language is related to the action, context, circumstances and intonations. M. Bakhtin suggests searching for the value orientation in the form. He focuses on notional purposes occurring in a word, the problem superimposed on an alien statement and the living of a word in general. Several sub-topics are emphasised while investigating the dialogue-based nature: valorisation of findings; contrasting as a technique; teaching on linguistic centres, meta-linguistic nature of stylistics and a dialogue as a technique. M. Bakhtin’s ideas on discourse research as a method of cognition of reality enrich architectonics of the paradigm by their depth. M. Bakhtin can be considered as a scientist who was a century ahead his time and influencing modern education science, including through qualitative research.

Keywords:

Language, social reality, cognition, M. Bakhtin’s ideas, qualitative research.