Publications

This report draws on a range of published research and other evidence to address the question “what are the characteristics of high quality professional learning for practitioners in education?”  Our main interest is in the features of professional learning, for teachers and their leaders, which lead to benefits for their pupils and students but we also looked at the quality of the experiences for the teachers and leaders themselves. In addition, we examined the literature for evidence about the relative merits of professional learning delivered by direct, face-to-face methods in comparison to distance/online learning approaches

Enhancing achievement for vulnerable students: the role of research engagement and knowledge and capacity building in complex systems

This paper to the 2013 AERA conference in San Francisco focuses on two aspects of the use of research and evidence in increasing educational effectiveness. It explores the contribution of use of research and evidence to meeting the needs of vulnerable students (Proposition 1) and the way in which it becomes increasingly important as the governance of education moves from central regulation to de-regulation, from a small number of high profile players to an increasingly diffuse, diverse and localised group of stakeholders. (Proposition 2), As remarked in OECD (Fazekas & Burns, 2012) knowledge and its use moves centre stage in the context of increasing complexity in education governance systems. Similarly, in the context of the complexity of the learning needs of the most vulnerable and the difficulties education systems have in responding effectively to them, research and evidence about high leverage approaches have a particularly important part to play. (Ibid).

The first of the new 'Insight' series from the Centre for Skills Development at City & Guilds, this publication focuses on the practice and theory of coaching in vocation settings. It features a number of chapters by different authors and an introduction and overview by Kathleen Collett of CDC. Chapter Two,written by staff at CUREE, draws together material from interviews of 17 'users' of coaching in educational and work settings and from the massive research evidence analysed by CUREE over 15 years. The chapter concludes with some suggestions for FE practitioners about how the findings might be put to practical use.

Other chapters examine coaching and pedagogy, coaching and assessment, coaching in support of high level vocational skills and coaching in teacher education.