Researching the world in uncertain times: The role of bricolage

Covid-19, education and educational research

‘Man finds himself living in an aleatory world; his existence involves, to put it baldly, a gamble. The world is a scene of risk; it is uncertain, unstable, uncannily unstable.’ (Dewey, 1929,...

The 10 books that made me a sociologist of education

Over a period of 45 years working in higher education I have accumulated a lot of books. I am now sorting through that accumulation and trying to decide which I will keep and which I will pass on...

Teacher identity in a performative age: Coming to research through autoethnography

What is it to be a teacher? In 2014, five years into my career as a primary school teacher, I would have answered that question with a story of early promise as a trainee and professional success...

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...

How do educational technology developers ensure that their products have positive impact, and don’t cause harm?

Whether they’re driven by commercial interests or not, most developers and companies care about positive impact. Of course, impact helps in selling products, but it’s also a key motivation in...

BERA Bites, issue 5: Research used or produced in schools: Which informs practitioners most?

BERA Bites

The BERA Bites series presents selected articles from the BERA Blog on key topics in education, presented in an easily printable and digestible format to serve as teaching and learning...

Action research: Closing the gap between theory and practice

In order to conduct action research, Elliott (1991) advocates that a tremendous desire to innovate and improve is a fundamental requirement. As a teacher-researcher, I came to my doctoral study...

When ‘good enough’ isn’t good enough: Ethical dilemmas of a netnographic researcher

Independent researchers: The challenges of accessing ethical approval

Ethnography has evolved for digital contexts in the form of netnography – researchers working with data originating from digital imprints of natural, public conversations (Kozinets, 2015). This...

Independent educational researchers: Untying knots of ethical issues and gaining ethical approval

Independent researchers: The challenges of accessing ethical approval

At the request of the Independent Researchers’ Forum (IRF), BERA recently hosted a vibrant event aimed at independent researchers. The topic, ‘Ethical Issues and gaining ethical approval’,...

Ethical review for education research: More than a box to tick

Independent researchers: The challenges of accessing ethical approval

BERA’s Independent Researchers’ Forum’s recent meeting to discuss the challenge of ethical review clearly demonstrated the gap faced by researchers working outside academic institutions....

The 2020 Revision Census: The ambition and ethics of large-scale independent research

Independent researchers: The challenges of accessing ethical approval

What do our children spend their time doing when they put in all those hours studying for big exams? Cognitive psychology tells us that the techniques they choose can have a substantial impact on...