Synergising research in early childhood education: Creating a collaborative space between close-to-practice research and academia

Practitioner research and commentary in a networked society

Since the turn of the 21st century there has been a push for teaching to become a research-based profession in a way that is practically relevant to the classroom. The recent research report...

Competing, complementary and missing discourses of social justice in early childhood education and care in England

Earlier this year the University of Manchester’s Institute of Education hosted the first of four events to support BERA’s research commission into competing discourses in early childhood...

What is ‘variation’ in early years mathematics?

As we near the end of our year-long project into what effects five- and six-year-olds’ ability to count-on when adding, here we reflect upon our journey. What led us to this topic was the recent...

Experience, represent, apply (ERA): A heuristic for digital engagement in the early years

Presenting a powerful new mechanism for encouraging play-based learning that reflects a more up-to-date and holistic view of technology use in the early years.

Baseline Assessment

A new report from an expert panel convened by BERA sets out the case against the government’s proposal to use a baseline assessment test of pupils in reception to hold schools in England to...

BERA Blog Special Issues: BERA/TACTYC

To celebrate the launch of the BERA/TACTYC Early Childhood Research Review 2003-2017 we have a special edition of the BERA blog. Join the discussion. Influence the debate. #BERABlog

Encouraging educational research into nature, outdoor learning and play

BERA has a new Nature, Outdoor Learning and Play (NOLAP) special interest group (SIG)! It has the strategic aim of encouraging educational research into nature, outdoor learning and play across...

Collaborative Agency: policy enactment or resistance?

Research Commission: Competing Discourses of Early Childhood Education and Care

Online registration has now closed. If you want to attend this event, please email conference@bera.ac.uk for details of how to register onsite. This one-day seminar is the second part of the BERA...

Developing readers, developing selves

The process of reading actually changes the neural connections in our brains, enabling new thought processes to form and develop our thinking (Wolf, 2008). Indeed, the experience and act of...

The competing discourses of school readiness

BERA’s 2019–2020 research commission on the early years – entitled Competing Discourses of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC): Tensions, Impacts and Democratic Alternatives across the...

March Of The Four Year Olds

On 25th April 2019 More than a Score organised a march from Parliament Square to 10 Downing Street to hand in a petition calling for a halt to statutory tests for four-year-olds. The petition had...

Five ways in which Edu-exit was the test run for Brexit

Brexit is the current and incredibly dangerous version of the ongoing and deeply rooted restructuring of UK health, welfare, security, and education services. Comparing the UK government reforms...