The number of think tanks operating in the UK is increasing, providing an ever important source of ideas and research for policy audiences. They have been framed by some as useful intermediaries between research and policy, which academics aiming to influence policy might seek to emulate. Yet, there has been very little empirical work to explore…

This article seeks to answer the following questions: (1) What is keeping educators from moving districts and schools to high-performing data cultures? and (2) What vital role does leadership play? Three years ago, as a senior designer and facilitator, Jennifer Unger developed a data leadership academy to address challenges for leaders, whether…

Despite calls for research-based policies, other types of evidence also influence education policy, including personal experience, professional expertise, and normative values. This article focuses on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) initiative, examining how research use varied over stages of the process and how it was integrated with other…

We have examined the teaching practices of faculty members who adopted research-based instructional strategies (RBIS) as part of the Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative (CWSEI) at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Of the 70 that adopted such strategies with the support of the CWSEI program, only one subsequently stopped using these…

Current changes affecting education systems have impacted teaching work as a whole. The concept of teachers' and establishments' effectiveness was introduced to operationalise an approach that is dominated by the cost-benefit model. This article uses this premise to suggest an analysis of the social value of teaching work, and more specifically…

The number of Social Stories[TM] studies and reviews has increased in recent years, yet concerns regarding quality and effect sizes continue to be expressed. With the emphasis on evidence-based practices (EBPs) for the education and treatment of people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), this issue becomes of paramount importance as…

Objective: This study examined whether and to what extent researchers addressed intervention fidelity in research of after-school programs serving at-risk students. Method: Systematic review procedures were used to search, retrieve, select, and analyze studies for this review. Fifty-five intervention studies were assessed on the following…

Purpose: The aim of the paper is to analyse the use of Communities of Practice and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to enhance knowledge sharing between researchers and advisors. The associated research question is to what extent ICT supported a virtual Community of Practice and has been effective in counteracting fragmentation…

Teacher leadership is a key to school reform (Fullan, 2005), yet it is not a widely practiced educational application (Crowther, 2009). Collay (2006) called for education faculty to assist teachers in developing powerful professional identities, but in order for university faculty to become partners in preparing teacher leaders, programs must…

Objectives: This article describes the Standard Interview for Evidence Use (SIEU), a measure to assess the level of engagement in acquiring, evaluating, and applying research evidence in health and social service settings. Method: Three scales measuring input, process, and output of research evidence and eight subscales were identified using…

Educational policy debates are no longer occurring exclusively in academic or governmental settings. Intermediary actors are promoting research using a variety of traditional and non-traditional media to advance and oppose policy agendas. Given the current policy arena, it is useful to re-examine the research underlying current reforms, and to…

In this 2012 American Educational Research Association (AERA) Presidential Address, the author considers this year's conference theme--how to take what we know from research and put it to effective (policy and practice) use. The essay challenges members individually and collectively to improve the connection. She reflects on the history of AERA as…

This paper outlines the process by which the Ontario Education Research Exchange (OERE), part of the Knowledge Network of Applied Education Research, developed and launched an online hub of education research summaries to facilitate greater use of research by stakeholders in the field of education. The project is an effort in knowledge…

Working Memory (WM) refers to a brain system that provides temporary storage and manipulation of the information necessary for complex cognitive tasks such as language comprehension, learning, and reasoning. WM also requires the simultaneous storage and processing of information. WM is directly related to academic performance in the classroom.…

This study employed the survey design on a purposive sample of 100 English Second Language (ESL) teachers from Swaziland and South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, to investigate the extent to which they accessed, utilised and conducted research to better their practice. A survey questionnaire and follow-up structured interviews generated…