Class of 2010: a qualitative longitudinal study of an English secondary school that became an academy

This project was a qualitative longitudinal research study into cultural and structural change in an English secondary school. The schools’ consistent underperformance led to its conversion to ‘academy’ status as part of a development under the Labour administration of 1997-2010. The Labour policy for academisation was designed first, to challenge the culture of underachievement in areas of high deprivation and secondly, to encourage schools to play a part in local community regeneration. Our research began at the point of conversion to academy status, and we have subsequently visited the school each year to interview senior leadership, teaching staff and a sample of pupils to investigate their views on continuity and change within the institution and the impact on their own roles. Wider context for the research has been provided by annual publicly-available performance data and academy documentation. In this case-study report we consider research design and some methodological issues that we encountered during the data collection. We show how trust is an essential ingredient between researchers and participants for the project to yield rich and interesting data

Changing student behaviour in schools located in areas of socioeconomic deprivation: findings from the 'coastal academies' research

No embargo can be found for this publication; there is no DO

Unequal childhoods: A case study application of Lareau’s ‘accomplishment of natural growth’ in British working-class and poor families

International authors have argued that social class inequalities can influence parental engagement in education (Bourdieu, 1974). Lareau argued that middle-class families possess the resources to actively cultivate their children to succeed academically, whereas working-class and poor families feel they lack such resources and allow their children to develop limited and passive relations with school. This paper applies a core element of Lareau’s typology of child rearing to examine disadvantaged British mothers’ experience of engaging with schools. A study involving 77 parents and caregivers of secondary school children, considered disadvantaged, sought to understand the experiences of parental engagement in primary and secondary education. Selective case studies have been chosen from this larger study, using a thematic analysis, to understand how these mothers interpreted their experiences of engaging with secondary education, their feelings of frustration, powerlessness and distance from secondary school. The stories presented illustrate that the ‘accomplishment of natural growth’ provides a contemporary class analysis framework to interpret the experiences of some disadvantaged British parents. Recommendations are made advising how Lareau’s typology of child rearing can inform policy and practice in the British education system and recommendations for future research are made with the purpose of promoting equal access to educational engagement and opportunitie

Translational research in education for knowledge mobilisation: a study of use and teacher perception in primary schools in England, UK

In order to achieve the standard expected in the classroom, teachers benefit from continuing professional development that enables access to resources with which to inform their practice. Smith and Helfenbein's “Translational Research in Education: Collaboration and Commitment in Urban Contexts.” In The Collaborative Turn: Working Together in Qualitative Research (2009), edited by W. S. Gershon. Rotterdam: Sense, identified that translational research ‘creates a space for collaborative, co-constructed inquiry that values and utilises the expertise of all stakeholders involved’ (page 91). This paper presents an overview and investigation of a founding model, MESH (Mapping Education Specialist knowHow guides, www.meshguides.org), for translational educational research and knowledge mobilisation in schools and colleges. MESH guides aim to support improved evidence-based and research-informed teaching practice, to in turn improve professional practice for better student attainment. Findings from this qualitative investigation focusing on the use of one MESH guide on the teaching and learning of spelling – in 120 Primary Schools in the South West of England, UK for curriculum development – suggest that teachers value evidence-based resources for curriculum planning and delivery. Furthermore, when resources such as MESH guides are used they do help in planning curricula and lessons and have an impact on both pedagogy, by improving opportunities for learning, and on practice, by reducing planning time. Translational research for knowledge mobilisation in education is shown to give confidence to the teacher through resources that are perceived to be ‘tried and tested’, and can therefore be ‘trusted’ to improve learning