Commentary: Moving From Practice to Research, and Back

Abstract

It is a widely accepted idea that knowledge from research needs to be better integrated into practice. Considerable energy is dedicated to strengthening the flow of research to practice. Less attention, however, has been paid to strengthening the ways researchers can learn from practice to improve their work. In this commentary, we draw on our work over the past decade to offer reflections on the nature and pace of practice, the gaps between practitioners' needs and available research, and the importance of trust and relationships. Although there are no easy responses to these challenges, we can create a dialogue about them and begin to work collectively toward overcoming them.

Research and evidence in education decision-making: A comparison of results from two pan-Canadian studies

“…Since the 1970s there has been considerable focus on the impact of research on the production of social, health and educational policy (e.g., Caplan 1979;Cooper, Levin & Campbell, 2009;Cooper, 2013Cooper, , 2014Edwards, Sebba & Rickinson, 2007;James & Pollard, 2011;Landry, Amara & Lamari, 2001;Lavis, Lomas, Hamid & Sewankambo, 2006;Levin & Riffle, 1997;Lindblom, 1980;Lindblom & Woodhouse, 1993;Majone, 1989;Martin, Downe, Grace & Nutley, 2010;Moat, Lavis, Wilson, Rottingen & Bärnighausen, 2013;Nutley, Jung & Walter, 2008;Nutley, Walter & Davis, 2003, 2009Pollard, 2007Pollard, , 2008Qi & Levin, 2013;Rosenblatt & Tseng, 2010;Stone, 2002;Strike, 2006;Tseng & Seidman, 2007;Weiss, 1979;Yohalem & Tseng, 2015). While many social science researchers perceive their raison d'être to be connected to the development of sound public policy decisions, policy-making in education is seen to be somewhat resistant to the influence of research-based knowledge and, driven by other, more immediate political and pragmatic factors (Davis, 1999;Ince, 2008;Levin, 2004a;Reimer & McGinn, 1997).…”

“…While many social science researchers perceive their raison d'être to be connected to the development of sound public policy decisions, policy-making in education is seen to be somewhat resistant to the influence of research-based knowledge and, driven by other, more immediate political and pragmatic factors (Davis, 1999;Ince, 2008;Levin, 2004a;Reimer & McGinn, 1997). The problem of the so-called research-policy divide has been approached from several perspectives and while it has become widely accepted that educational research has improved in volume and quality, difficulties with effective dissemination and integration into practice and underutilization by policy elites remain vexed problems (Cooper, 2013(Cooper, , 2014Qi & Levin, 2013;Yohalem & Tseng, 2015).…”

“…Knowledge mobilization (KM) has been touted as a useful all-encompassing term because it conveys the notion of direction instead of random interaction and it "embodies the idea that the use of knowledge is a social process, not just an intellectual task" (Cooper et al, 2009, p.166). The more recent North American work on education research utilization/research impact has framed the connection of research and policy environments in terms of KM and knowledge brokering with governments, schools and school districts, and community organizations (Cooper, 2013(Cooper, , 2014Cooper & Levin, 2010;Cooper et al, 2009;Jbilou, Amara & Landry, 2007;Knowles et al, 2013;Qi & Levin, 2013, Wilson, Lavis, Traverse & Rourke, 2010Yohalem & Tseng, 2015). were interested in which forms of evidence, if any, were used in school district offices and the purposes for which the evidence was used.…”

Para além das métricas simplistas na pesquisa educativa. As lições da contínua relevância e impacto freiriano

“…É importante indicar que a avaliação dos programas utiliza como um dos critérios-chave a avaliação das publicações dos/as professoras em revistas qualificadas (MAGALHÃES; REAL, 2018). É muito evidente que houve um aumento do número, reconhecimento e qualidade das publicações em educação fatores que deveriam sinalizar uma melhoria do campo, mas que não parecem contribuir para apaziguar os críticos (SCHNEIDER, 2015;YOHALEM;TSENG, 2015;KUENZER;MORAES, 2005;RAMOS;, CIAVATTA;FRIGOTTO, 2014). Considerando a contínua expansão das publicações dos/as pesquisadores/as educacionais, é evidente que 'publicar ou perecer' não é apenas um ditado popular, mas também um dever.…”

Mind the Gap: Approaches to Addressing the Research-to-Practice, Practice-to-Research Chasm

“…3 There has also been concern around the “practice-to-research gap” or the relevance of research to the needs of decision makers and community stakeholders. 4,5 To address this concern, there have been continuous calls for knowledge to flow from practice to the academic domain to inform more relevant research and transferrable science and ensure that important practice-based knowledge is included as evidence (or “what is known”), is valued, and disseminated. 4,6,7 …”