In their recent BERA Blog post, Watkins et al. (2022) highlighted concerns about school leaders’ understanding of research and using research for school improvement; specifically, knowing what evidence-based research is and how to bridge the gap between research and practice in schools. The purpose of this blog is to complement the knowledge surrounding the call by Watkins et al. for greater systemic use of evidence. This response offers a successful example of evidence-based research implementation. Furthermore, it sheds light on concerns raised, suggesting that the problem is embedded within the education system as a whole and is limited by deeper infrastructural issues when it comes to practitioner research knowledge.
In my recent article I used evidence-based research to explore how best to enact recovery in English schools impacted by the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic (see Lynch, 2022). Specifically, the aim of this research was to investigate the following question: ‘How do we improve children’s mathematics, reading and writing through the promotion of wellbeing?’ The context for this evaluative case study was a medium-sized English maintained school. Methods engaged included: semi-structured and focus group interviews; reflective journal; observations; surveys; and document analysis.
