1. Teachers make the worst
students: so how can we
become better at using the
research?
How can you move yourself, your
department or school towards a culture of
evidence based practice.
@thrive_teach
Martha Boyne
Emily Clements
Ben Wright
2. Why is evidence important?
‘there is a huge prize to be claimed by teachers…. by
collecting better evidence about what works best, and
establishing a culture where this evidence is used as a
matter of routine, we can improve outcomes for
children’. Goldacre, 2013
• Integral part of many professions
• Used to inform policy and practice
• A basis to implement new ideas
• Bridge the gap between research and
practice
• Research schools
@thrive_teach
3. How do you get there?
CPD Library – Get your
school to invest in making
current reading accessible.
Make use of social
media:
• Variety of perspectives
• Look for links to research
@thrive_teach
4. How do you get there?
Completing a Masters
• Meta view of education
• Return to pedagogy
• Grounded in research
• Critical approach
• Conduct own small-scale research
Limitations:
- Cost
- Time
@thrive_teach
5. How do you get there?
Journal Clubs
A whole school CPD
opportunity
• Promotes a reflective practitioner
• Provides a space for a professional learning conversation
• Promotes the critical thinker
Limitations:
• Time
• Support
@thrive_teach
6. How do you get there?
We couldn’t talk about acquiring evidence
without mentioning TeachMeets!
(other conferences are also available)
@thrive_teach
• Take away one or two ideas
to reflect upon and
implement.
• Network and listen to
others’ experiences and
perspectives on the topics
covered.
7. How do you get there?
Mini classroom projects:
• Small group of professional interested in research
• One theory/idea agreed and implemented
• Cross curricular in multiple classes
Limitations:
• Scaling
• Number of teachers taking part
@thrive_teach
9. Obstacles you might face…
• Time
• Finding relevant research
• Finances
• Lack of support
@thrive_teach
10. How do you get there?
1) Engage in pedagogy
2) Complete a Masters
3) Set up a Journal Club
4) Attend events
5) Conduct mini-classroom projects
6) Encourage your school and others to do the
above!
@thrive_teach
11. References
• Boyne, M. and Beadle, H. (2017). Journal Club: A mechanism for
bringing EB practice into school. Teacher Education
Advancement Network (TEAN) Journal. 9(2), pp. 14-23.
• Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
• Goldacre.B. (2013) Building Evidence into Education. Department
for Education
• Manchikanti, L. (2008) Evidence-Based Medicine, Systematic
Reviews, and Guidelines in Interventional Pain Management, Part
1: Introduction and General Considerations. Pain Physician 11:161-
186
• Profetto-McGrath. J. (2004). Critical Thinking and Evidence-
Based Practice. Journal of Professional Nursing. 10.1016
• Youngblut. J. M., and Brooten. D. (2001) Evidence-Based Nursing
Practice: Why is it Important? AACN Clinical Issues. 12(4):468-
76
@thrive_teach
Editor's Notes
Essential in the medical, nursing and social work professions
The is a large gap between teachers and research. The gap is often smaller in NQT and bigger in more experiences teachers
EEF gives funding for schools to become evidence based and to work within their locality to bring evidence into schools
Calls from the government in 2007 for schools to become evidence based
Forces you to step out of the classroom and instead reflect from an outside, meta perspective on what is happening in your lessons
For some teachers, a Masters facilitates a return to thinking pedagogically
All modules have a clear grounding in current research
Facilitates a critical approach to evidence so you can decide for yourself which research is most valuable
Take research into the classroom – the next step!
JC –
Successes - promotes a reflective practitioner
The opportunity to continue to engage in reflective practice, or to return to the practice of actively using reflection as part of a professional routine, is one mechanism for responding to the difficulties faced as a teacher
Takes time to engage in research – to read it, critique it, implement it, reflect on effectiveness
Without access to JSTOR or online journals, can be hard to find research
Can be hard to fund yourself or get financial support – from school to support investment of time/resources (fund or part-fund a Masters, for example)
When running JC, for example, hard to get teachers to come along and engage in this – partly due to time restraints, partly lack of motivation – also lack of support from school to create a culture of evidence based practice
CPD Library, social media
Ask school to fund or part-fund, part time
Be organised, positive, drum up support
TeachMeets, Research Conferences
Put your ideas into action
Spread the word!
