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In 2008, Professor Frank Hardman led a baseline study of pedagogic practices in Tanzanian primary schools to inform the design of a national school-based in-service education and training (INSET) programme. In February 2011, a pilot of the programme was launched and in August 2012 Hardman was commissioned to lead on an evaluation of the pilot, building on the 2008 baseline. Based on the findings of the 2012 evaluation, the Tanzanian Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) and Prime Ministers' Office-Regional Administration and Local Government (PMO-RALG) are currently planning a national scale-up of the INSET programme.
The landmark research project described in this case study has caused national policy-makers, education bodies, inspectors, local authorities and schools to reconsider the once-routine practice of assigning teaching assistants (TAs) to work with lower-attaining pupils and those with special educational needs (SEN). It has led to:
The study's findings are also influencing education policy thinking in other countries.
A sustained and substantial research programme on teacher's lives and careers has influenced policy development, informed communities of practice and shaped leadership training materials and programmes. The work provides new insights into the complexity of teacher development which has been taken up widely around the world and used extensively by government policy makers and school leaders in the assessment of professional competencies and targeting of support to improve performance and enhance retention in the profession.
From 2000 to 2003 Professor Jean Rudduck led a largely Cambridge-based research team that investigated the potential of `student voice' to engage learners. The `Consulting Pupils about Teaching and Learning' research Network, funded by the ESRC's Teaching and Learning Research Programme, trialled and evaluated strategies with teachers in a wide range of schools. Take-up in the UK and abroad was extensive. This case study focuses on the impact in Ontario, Canada; where the Ministry of Education explicitly used the findings of Rudduck's research to mount an ambitious Student Voice initiative (2008-); the success of this has led to date to the Ministry providing some 6,000 grants to 800 schools to help build stronger approaches to `student voice' into the infra-structure of its school system.
The IOE's Centre for Holocaust Education has transformed the way that this disturbing historical event is taught in many English schools. The Centre's highly regarded research-informed professional development programme has benefited thousands of teachers and ensured that an estimated 1m pupils experienced a deeper emotional and intellectual engagement with this difficult subject. The Centre has established a group of `Beacon Schools in Holocaust education' which have developed programmes of study that are now being shared with their own school networks throughout England. It has achieved international `reach' by producing educational materials for the UN and providing advice, training and consultancy for organisations such as Yad Vashem, Jerusalem's international Holocaust memorial museum.
During the past twenty years, mentoring and coaching has increasingly been employed as a key strategy in the initial training and continuing professional development of teachers in England and other European countries with the aim of improving teaching and learning. This research has resulted in regional and international impact on education practitioners' continuing professional development and practice. These include:
(1) Primary and secondary teachers from the Merseyside region, who participated in the LJMU Mentoring and Coaching programme to enhance the effectiveness of their professional practice as individuals and to facilitate professional learning and development within their schools.
(2) Education practitioners from teaching, nursing and social work across Europe, who participated in the TISSNTE Intensive Course and attended dissemination events and workshops in England (2012), Finland (2010), Hungary (2008, 2011) and Norway (2009).
The research described in this case study has had a significant impact on the policy debate on the economic role of independent schools in Britain and what might be learned to improve policy in state education. Moreover, the research has informed the government's approach to funding the teaching of STEM subjects and has led to better public awareness and understanding of the issues.
The findings have provided policy-makers in education and government economists with a better knowledge base with which to consider and evaluate the role of the independent education sector in Britain and to contribute to the debate on skills, social mobility and inter-generational transfer through educational outcomes. A better understanding of academic privilege is part of the key to understanding social disadvantage. The reach of the impact is mainly in England, and its significance is in encouraging the improvement of educational outcomes in state schools, which can change lives for the better.
Robertson's research in learning via game-authoring demonstrated sustainable success in bringing programming into schools. This subsequently catalysed (i) creation of a whole new suite of qualifications by the Scottish Qualifications Authority; (ii) inclusion of the requirement for games development experience in the new Scottish Technologies Curriculum; (iii) the development of `Computing at Schools Scotland' in terms of its successful annual conference and provision of specialist CPD for Computing teachers. Having so far influenced the education of over 500,000 Scottish pupils, Robertson's work is also cited in the key document underpinning Obama's programme for STEM training in the US via game-authoring.
Creativity research of the Centre for Research in Education (CRE) has impacted upon practice in teaching and learning throughout the UK, and a number of other countries. It has helped inform policy decisions, in terms of assessment at Key Stage 3 (KS3). It has had impact upon teaching and assessment practices around the world, with specific examples being cited from the USA, New Zealand, and Chile. In the UK it has been used by commercial organisations (The ABRSM), arts organisations (Sound and Music, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group), charities (Esmée Fairbairn), and Local Authorities (Birmingham City Council Music Service).
The IOE researchers featured in this case study have had a major and sustained impact on education in the Indian sub-continent. Geeta Kingdon has shaped UK government policy on educational aid to India. She has also helped to ensure that millions of poor children in Uttar Pradesh — India's most populous state — qualify for free places in private schools. Angela Little's work in Sri Lanka has raised the profile of primary education, which has been hampered by low status and inadequate funding. She has also done much to improve the life chances of the country's disadvantaged children — particularly those growing up on tea plantations.