SouthamptonEducation SchoolSouthamptonEducation School
Can educational research really inform
teaching in schools?
Marcus [email protected] March 2015
SouthamptonEducation SchoolSouthamptonEducation School
• Ways in which the latest educational research can be used to inform teaching in schools
• LifeLab – how can we transfer what we do there into the classroom?
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Is educational research any use?• Policy makers don’t make great use of
research findings• Teachers don’t have much time to read
research findings• Anyway, there is rapidly expanding
OFSTED database on school practice
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Aren’t Ofsted data sufficient?
• Ofsted is a non-ministerial govt. dept.
• Independent researchers are needed to question the hasty or incoherent policy
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Can we trust independent research?• Lots of educational research has been
flawed - some promoted by the media:• children only learn properly in groups• children learn using brain gym• drinking water frequently during
lessons• children only learn if you appeal to
their learning style• children must have iPads to learn in the
21st century
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• OECD Education Policy Outlook 2015: trillions of dollars are spent on education policies globally, only 1 in 10 are actually evaluated.
"If we want to improve educational outcomes we need to have a much more systematic and evidence-based approach. We need to make education a lot more of a science.“
Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director of Education and Skills
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Raising achievement: What actually works? John Hattie – Visible Learning
http://visible-learning.org/
• Biggest analysis of educational research ever• Meta-analysis of 60,000 studies/0.25 billion
students• All comes down to:
Teacher Expertise• Not class size, uniform, school type,
homework, length of school day, setting/streaming…
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Hattie, John (2008). Visible Learning: A Synthesis of Over 800 Meta-Analyses Relating to Achievement. NY: Routledge. p. 392. ISBN 978-0-415-47618-8.
Encourage: • Teachers with passion!• Teachers with high expectations• Teachers who look for impact• Teachers need to talk together about their
teaching• Peer learning• Give GOOD teachers autonomy
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Hattie:Why are we falling behind in
international league tables?1. We’re neglecting our highfliers. 2. Lower expectations:In England: if you don’t succeed it’s because
you aren’t very able. In Asia: if you don’t succeed it’s because
you didn’t try + wanting their families, schools & society to be proud!
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‘Me, my health and my
children’s health’
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Southampton teenagers’ views (Survey of 14-15 year old students:
395 girls & 370 boys from 9/12 schools)
• They think they’re generally healthy• They know much fruit & veg they should have, but don’t
follow this in practice• 30% usually have an alcoholic drink at least once a week• 19% smoke on a regular basis
Life course
CHRONICDISEASE RISK
Timely intervention
produces substantial risk
reduction
Fixed genetic contribution
to risk is small
Impact of adult
intervention is small
Lifecourse approach to non-communicable disease risk reduction
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School Ofsted Report“A particularly successful workshop, LifeLab…is making an important contribution to students’ understanding of the need to adopt healthy lifestyles.”
&School of Medicine
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A lasting impression
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Our studies have demonstrated important statistical changes in the attitudes of children six
months after experiencing LifeLab.
P=0.001
0
20
40
60
80
100
Pe
rce
nta
ge
ag
ree
ing
LifeLab Non-LifeLab
The food I eat now willaffect my future health
P<0.0001
0
20
40
60
80
100
Pe
rce
nta
ge
ve
ry o
r q
uit
e l
ike
ly
LifeLab Non-LifeLab
How likely are you to carry onstudying S cience after your GCS E s?
P values derived from tes t for trend ac ross al l poss ible categories
Responses to LifeLab questions
Grace, et al., (2012) Health
Education, 112(6), 543-
559
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LifeLab programmeTeacher Professional Development
Lessons at school
Visit to LifeLab (one day)
Follow-up lessons at school
Celebration Day: pupils present scientific posters at LifeLab
???16
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Post-LifeLab activity
• Later LifeLab experience in Year 10/11?• An app to keep checking diet• Fitbits
• Teacher research?
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Links between schools and Southampton Education School
LifeLab‘Talk to US’ (linking pupils with researchers)Maths & Science Learning Centre PD coursesPGCE (Schools Direct & Placement Led)MastersPhDTaught PhD
Open to any new ideas!
e.g. acti
on
research in th
e
classroom