Improving subject teaching: lessons from research in science education

Millar, Robin, Leach, John, Osborne, Jonathan and Ratcliffe, Mary (2006) Improving subject teaching: lessons from research in science education (Improving Learning), Abingdon, UK. Routledge, 210pp.

Abstract

In many countries, questions are being raised about the quality and value of educational research, and whether educational practice can ever draw upon research evidence as productively as in fields such as medicine. This book explores the relationship between research and practice in education, using the case of science education as an example. It looks at the extent to which current practice could be said to be informed by knowledge or ideas generated by research – and at the extent to which the use of current practices, or the adoption of new ones, are, or could be supported by research evidence – and so be said to be evidence-based. The issues considered are not specific to science, but apply to the teaching and learning of any curriculum subject.
The book draws on the findings of four inter-related research studies, carried out by the Evidence-based Practice in Science Education (EPSE) Research Network. It considers: • how research might be used to establish greater consensus about curriculum • how research can inform the design of assessment tools and teaching interventions • the impact of new teaching approaches on teachers’ practices and students’ learning • the extent to which evidence can show that an educational practice ‘works’
The book is unique in exploring the issues raised by the current debate about educational research within the context of the teaching and learning of a specific curriculum subject. Rather than looking at how research might inform educational practices in the abstract, it looks at how research can lead to improvement in the teaching of specific pieces of knowledge, or specific skills, that we value. The issues it explores are therefore of direct interest and relevance to educational practitioners and policy-makers.

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