Research and the Teaching Profession: important new report launches today

Friday 16th May 2014

Today marks the launch of the Final Report of the British Educational Research Association (BERA) and Royal Society of Arts (RSA) inquiry into the the role of research in teachers’ initial and continuing education.

The report, Research and the Teaching Profession: building the capacity for a self-improving education system, which I was asked to draft for the Inquiry’s Steering Group, argues for a renewal of teachers’ professional identity – one which has research literacy and research engagement at its heart. It contends that a profession equipped in this way is required if the UK’s education systems are to develop and sustain the capacity for self-evaluation and self-improvement.

Focused on teachers in Early Years, Primary, Secondary and Further Education, the report offers recommendations on a range of issues for policymakers and public agencies in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Taken together these recommendations are designed to encourage the development of a research-rich culture in schools and colleges, settings in which practitioner-led research informs and renews practice in the classroom and beyond.

The report also calls for a stronger relationship between teachers and school leaders involved in research in different schools and colleges, and between educational practitioners and members of the wider research community, based in universities and elsewhere.

Read the full report at the BERA or RSA websites.

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