This module will explore the meaningful use of research evidence in schools. Start by watching the short video below to explore the key concepts.
We can think about the use of research evidence as ‘surface’ or ‘deep’, but it is ‘meaningful’ evidence use that considers your school context and is likely to have an impact.
Task
Consider the scenario presented. Where can you see the meaningful use of evidence occurring, where are the opportunities to strengthen evidence use? You may find referring to the examples from GEMS of surface-level and deep research evidence mobilisation on page 3 of the ‘Reflecting on research evidence use’ useful.
The school leadership team at Evidence College are looking to strengthen their approach to wellbeing. They’ve curated and circulated six journal articles that highlight initiatives to improve wellbeing in schools that are comparable to theirs. A staff meeting has been scheduled to begin discussions about the findings from the articles and make a decision about if there is an approach that will best suit their school.
What positive actions have the leadership team at Evidence College taken to use evidence in a meaningful way? What might you suggest to them to make their use of research evidence more meaningful?
Reflection
Would you describe your current use of research evidence as surface or deep? Where are the opportunities to make your use of research evidence more meaningful?
Discussion Prompts
How might a recent example of evidence use in your own setting have been designed or implemented to be more meaningful? Discuss the strengths of the example, and how this could have been done differently.
Explore ‘Reflecting on research evidence use’ and ‘Embedding research evidence’ tools published by Evidence for Learning.