Re‐educating the nation? The development of a new curriculum for Wales

This series of blogs summarises new research featured in a special issue of the Curriculum Journal  (published simultaneously in English and Welsh), which explores the many issues that arise...

School transition, socioeconomic inequalities in wellbeing and the Covid-19 pandemic

Covid-19, education and educational research

Children’s education and wellbeing are profoundly influenced by the circumstances into which they are born. Being from a wealthier family is associated with a range of positive outcomes. Poverty...

International students and Covid-19: What is the current advice?

Covid-19, education and educational research

The pandemic that has gripped the UK has meant that uncertainty becoming central to our way of life. With borders closed, migration curtailed and social distancing policies in place, this...

Rethinking the ‘digital’ curriculum: What else should we be aiming for?

After years of excitement and enthusiasm about all things digital, recent times have seen us collectively becoming more sceptical about the relationship between technology and society. We are now...

Time for educational researchers to take their place in the sun?

Covid-19, education and educational research

As recent posts on the BERA Blog have demonstrated, in the quiet chaos of lockdown a range of taken-for-granted assumptions (Courtney et al., 2020), competencies (Zhou & Wolstencroft, 2020) and...

Re‐educating the nation? A Curriculum Journal special issue on the new curriculum for Wales

A new special issue of the Curriculum Journal, published simultaneously in English and Welsh, explores the many issues that arise when a country decides to rewrite the school curriculum –...

Tackling the languages ‘crisis’: Supporting multilingualism in the new curriculum for Wales

Re‐educating the nation? The development of a new curriculum for Wales

What can be done to inspire an uplift for modern foreign languages across Wales in the future?

Learning progression in the humanities: Identifying tensions in articulating progression in the humanities in Wales

Re‐educating the nation? The development of a new curriculum for Wales

The current curriculum reforms in Wales (Welsh Government, 2020) represent a significant shift in thinking and organisation. As well as the introduction of the ‘four purposes’ to drive...

Going beyond the evidence: Research and the media

Covid-19, education and educational research

In a previous blog (published yesterday) I reflected on the danger of researchers going beyond the evidence in presenting policy-relevant findings: putting forward empirical conclusions as cogent...

Is educational research evidence-based?

One issue raised in the debate over evidence-based policymaking and practice has been what should count as evidence. I was prompted to think further about this by a recent paper in the British...

BERA joins call to cancel the introduction of Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) in the Autumn term

BERA President Dominic Wyse is one of the co-signatories to an open letter that calls upon the Government to abandon its plan to introduce the reception baseline assessment into primary schools in...

What do we know, so far, about the best ways to help users use good research evidence?

Research evidence is considered important, contributing to improvements in education policy and practice. High-quality evidence can lead to important gains for the public and for society....