Research School Network: March Research Round-Up A guide to the interesting things we’ve seen and done in March

We attended: ResearchEd Blackpool

Our colleagues at Blackpool Research School put on their second event and more than 500 people came along to hear from a range of expert speakers. The keynote was from Daniel Muijs, Deputy Director, Research and Evaluation, at Ofsted, who made the case that ​“being evidence informed is a moral duty”. (We agree of course.) Next, we heard the excellent Oliver Cavigloili speak about ​‘Memory and Meaning’, something that we as a research school are particularly focussed on, so his explanations and illustrations will help our own. Our next talk was from Rebecca Foster, whose approach to subject leadership is evidence-informed and refreshing. Rebecca wrote one of our favourite blog posts of last year: ​‘What does a research-informed classroom actually look like’? As if that wasn’t enough, we heard from Alex Quigley on the complexities of reading and he was as thought provoking as ever. 

Congratulations to Simon Cox and Phil Naylor – plus the rest of their team – for putting on such an excellent event. We will certainly be back next year and would recommend it to anyone looking for a day of inspiring CPD. Details of all ResearchEd events, including the next one at Durrington Research School are here.

We read: Using Digital Technology to Improve Learning.

The EEF released their latest guidance report this week: Using Digital Technology to Improve Learning. As with previous guidance reports, it is a clear and concise summary of the main themes that evidence points us toward, and recommended reading for everyone in education. Sir Kevan Collins explains in the foreword that ​“we not only reviewed the best available international research, but also consulted with teachers and other experts.” We wrote about our top takeaways here.

We read: Engaging With Evidence Guide

From the Institute of for Effective Education in York, one of our partners at the Research Schools Network, this is a really useful document to support teachers in navigating the world of evidence. They explain how the guide will help teachers to:

• understand about different forms of evidence and different kinds of research
• understand which types of research/​evidence are best placed to answer different sorts of questions
• be aware of the limitations of different forms of evidence
• have some key questions you can ask to test the relevance and usefulness of evidence sources.”

We wrote:4 blog posts

1) Retrieval Practice: More Than Just Quizzing

Retrieval practice is often conceptualised as ​‘quizzing’ which can then create the impression that quizzes are the only way that we can facilitate retrieval practice. We explore alternatives.

2) The Trouble with Giant Ants and the Pitfalls of Scaling Up Evidence!

In this post, we look at some of the problems when increasing the scope of something which has been seen to work on a smaller scale. We refer to evaluation reports from the EEF of scaled up projects that had shown promise in efficacy trials.

3) The EEF Guide to Becoming an Evidence-informed School Governor and Trustee

Our reflections on another excellent guidance document from the EEF.

4) 3 Takeaways from the Digital Technology Guidance Report (see above)

Coming up

Training: Improving Literacy in Primary Schools. Join us for this three-day course with Aidan Severs. Need convincing? Read about how it transformed one leader’s practice.