The relationship between Theory and Practice as a Controversial Issue in Curriculum Studies

Reviewing and comparing the views of effective experts of curriculum studies field about the relationship between theory and practice aimed in this article. To achieve this aim, the views of experts of this special field about the relationship between theory and practice using evidence-based arguments, were studied. These ideas have been classified in three categories which named ''technical-scientific'', ''practical'' and ''reconceptualization''. The findings showed, in ''technical-scientific'' category, theory was similar to the prevailing theories in the natural sciences, in ''practical'' category, it was situative and in ''reconceptualization'' class, it was like the humanities and arts theories. Practice in ''technical-scientific'' category, was instrumental action (poiesis) and in both of ''practical'' and ''reconceptualization'' categories, it was informed action (praxis) but with a difference. In former, the emphasis was on the moral and in the latter it was on political and social dimensions of practice. The relationship between theory and practice in these three ''technical-scientific'', ''practical'', and ''reconceptualization'' classes, , was ''logical'', ''problematic or inquiry'', and ''dialectical'', respectively. This new organization of thoughts of the curriculum scholars as three categories is new classification of paradigms in this field that is different from the previous classifications. It was the most important result of this study.