Session Information
23 SES 02 A, Research/Evidence-based Approaches to Policy Making (Part 1)
Paper Session continued in 23 SES 03 A
Contribution
The paper is in four sections, where we present the outline of an argument positing the pros and cons, and usefulness of the of the “what works” idea in education. The thrust of the presented paper is in section three. The overall argument is placed in the context of the more general discourse on the value of research and evidence in education.
- The issues. The first section, discusses briefly the call for evidence based policy and practice and clarifies specifically the “what works” movement, some of its roots and its development and attempts at implementation (see e.g., Krejsler, 2013) and discussion by Lingard (2013). Also, how it fits into the larger picture of evidence based action (Bridges, Smeyers, & Smith, 2009; Kvernbekk, 2011) and taking up the question of the impact of high-stakes testing, internal or external evaluations, school rankings or international comparisons, such as PISA tests. Here we will distinguish between various different notions of the more general discussion, such as the difference between research-based and evidence-based, and between evidence-based and evidence-informed emphasis.
- Why is it so useful? The second section of the paper notes some of the strong arguments for adopting a research (evidence) based stance, inter alia the “what works” version of it.
- Some problems. The third section, which is the main section of the presentation, has two sub sections, which discuss the problems at two levels, i.e., the general level, noting problems with basing policy and practice on research or evidence and then the more specific level focussing on the idea of “what works”; or as we will argue, the “what works less” side of the argument. We identify two different classes of issues, i.e., what is the subject of research or collection of evidence and what is the level of explicit or implicit guidance derived from the evidence.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Biesta, G. (2013). The beautiful risk of education. Boulder: Paradigm Publishers. Bridges, D., Smeyers, P., & Smith, R. (Eds.). (2009). Evidence-Based Education Policy. What Evidence? What Basis? Whose Policy? : John Wiley And Sons Ltd. Hattie, J. (June 2015). What works best in education: The politics of collaborative expertise. OPEN IDEAS AT PEARSON. https://www.pearson.com/content/dam/corporate/global/pearson-dot-com/files/hattie/150526_ExpertiseWEB_V1.pdf Retrieved from https://www.pearson.com/content/dam/corporate/global/pearson-dot-com/files/hattie/150526_ExpertiseWEB_V1.pdf Krejsler, J. B. (2013). What Works in Education and Social Welfare? A Mapping of the Evidence Discourse and Reflections upon Consequences for Professionals. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 57(1), 16-32. doi:10.1080/00313831.2011.621141 Kvernbekk, T. (2011). The concept of evidence in evidence-based practice. Educational Theory, 61(5), 515-532. doi:10.1111/j.1741-5446.2011.00418.x Lingard, B. (2013). The impact of research on education policy in an era of evidence-based policy. Critical Studies in Education, 54(2), 113-131. Young, M. F. D., Lambert, D., Roberts, C. R., & Roberts, M. D. (2014). Knowledge and the future school : curriculum and social justice. Zhao, Y. (2014). Who's afraid of the big bad dragon? : why China has the best (and worst) education system in the world: Jossey-Bass.
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