What, why, when and how: Australian educators' use of research in schools

This summary report draws on quantitative findings from three Q Project surveys involving 1,725 Australian educators.

The report shares educators' insights into:

• What types of research and evidence they value;
• Why they access and use different research and evidence;
• When they use research and evidence; and
• How they access and then use research and evidence in practice.

It outlines considerations for school and system leaders in relation to increasing and improving research use in educational practice.

Read report (pdf) Read 2-page summary (pdf)

Educational resources

• Q Suites: Sets of resources and insights for educators
  Our Q Suites showcase data findings from our surveys with 1,311 educators across Australia.

Professional publications

• Using Research Well in Australian Schools – Q Discussion Paper #2 (pdf)
  This Discussion Paper offers a unique practitioner perspective on quality research use. It presents educators' views on using research well in terms of key characteristics and connections to the Quality Use of Research Evidence Framework (pdf).
• Collaborative teaching: sharing best practice, AITSL Collaborative Spotlight
• How and why educators use research and evidence: Insights from the Monash Q Project (pdf), ACEL Newsletter, Industry News, June 2021
• Quality Use of Research: Considerations from Ireland & Australia for Irish leaders engaged in SSE, Leadership+ The Professional Voice of School Leaders (Issue 118)
• Research and Evidence Use in Australian Schools – Survey, analysis and key findings
  This Q Report draws on quantitative finding from the Q Project’s first survey of educators. The report is technical in nature, outlining all findings, as well as the research rationale, design and approach to gathering and analysing the survey data.
• Using research evidence well in education (pdf), Learning Difficulties Australia Bulletin (LDA)
• Research and Evidence Use in Australian Schools - Early Insights from Educators (pdf)
• "Towards Quality Use of Research Evidence In Education" Discussion Paper
  Our Discussion Paper aims to stimulate debate about the process of working towards high-quality use of research evidence in Australian education.
• Quality Use of Research Evidence Framework
  We have developed a conceptual framework that defines and elaborates on what ‘quality use of research evidence’ might mean in education.
• Towards quality use of evidence in education, The Australian Educational Leader (ACEL) 42 Issue 2, 2020.
• Understanding quality of evidence use, Research Intelligence (BERA) Issue 144, Autumn 2020.
• Quality leadership, quality research use: The role of school leaders in improving the use of research, Australian Education Leader (ACEL) 42 Issue 4, 2020.
• Using research well: A framework for understanding quality use of research evidence, William T Grant Foundation

Academic publications

Evidence-Informed Practice in Australian Education, The Emerald Handbook of Evidence-Informed Practice in Education, Edited by Chris Brown
Joel R. Malin, 2022
• Beyond effective approaches: A rapid review response to designing professional learning, Professional Development in Education, Volume 47, Issue 5 (2021)
• Insights from a cross-sector review on how to conceptualise the quality of use of research evidence, Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Springer Nature
• Using research evidence to improve practice, in Building Better Schools with Evidence-based Policy, Edited by Kelly-Ann Allen, Andrea Reupert, Lindsay Oades
• The relational features of evidence use, Cambridge Journal of Education
• Towards a better understanding of quality of evidence use, in Getting Evidence into Education, Edited by Stephen Gorard
• Challenges and opportunities of evidence use in Australian children’s development programs, Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work

Presentations

• Leading and enabling quality use of research in schools 
  Q Project Monash Public Panel Session (20 October, 2021)
• Educators' collaborative use of research to improve practice - Concurrent Sessions
  Joanne Gleeson & Penny De Waele presented at 'Leading Excellence through Equity' ACEL Online Conference 2021 (29 - 30 September)
• Exploring GEMS - insights on using research evidence in schools
  Mark Rickinson and Jo Gleeson panel guests at the Evidence for Learning Webinar (31 August 2021)
• What does it mean to use evidence well? Discussion Event 13, #298
  Lucas Walsh and Connie Cirkony presented at Evidence and Implementation Summit 2021
  (March 30 – 31 2021)
• Panel 8 - Contextual Relevance
  Mark Rickinson and Jo Gleeson presented at Evidence and Implementation Summit 2021
  (March 30 – 31 2021)
• Collaboration for Quality Use of Research in Education (pdf)
  Mark Rickinson and Jo Gleeson [presented at BNU-Durham-Monash Joint Online Conference, 22 February 2021]
• A Systematic approach to making sense of cross-disciplinary research evidence
  Connie Cirkony presenting at Contemporary Approaches to Research in Mathematics, Science, Health & Environmental Education Symposium (CAR) Deakin University (23 November 2020)
• What does it mean to use research evidence well in education?
  Mark Rickinson presented at the EIS Virtual series webinar 6. (26 October 2020)
• Quality Use of Research Evidence in Schools after COVID-19
  Q Project Monash Webinar (16 September, 2020)
• Schools using research
  Mark Rickinson for AARE Webinar on “Engaging with Research in Schools” (16 September 2020)
• Quality of research use - early ideas from the Q Project (pdf)
  Rickinson and Cirkony [Slides from the William T Grant Foundation Forum, 26 March 2019]
• Towards quality use of evidence (pptx)
  Rickinson [Slides from Monash Learning and Teaching Conference, 5 June 2019]
• Towards Quality Use of Evidence in Schools (pdf)
  Rickinson and Walsh [Slides from Research Forum Seminar, Queensland Department of Education, 23 July 2019]
• National Evidence Institute: Some initial ideas (pdf)
  Rickinson [Slides from AARE Schools and Education Systems SIG seminar, 25 July 2019]

Interviews

• Radio: 3AW Ross and Russell show on Q Project research findings (Jo Gleeson)
• Radio: 3MDR 97.1FM Classically Saturday on The Q Project (Jo Gleeson)
• Podcast: Change: The Relationship of Education to Uncertainty in Change One Thing, Ep 13 (Lucas Walsh)
• Podcast: TER podcast on The Q Project (Mark Rickinson, Lucas Walsh, and Jo Gleeson)
• Podcast: TSC SouthWest Podcast on research use in schools (Mark Rickinson)
• Podcast: CPD Portal Edcast - Challenging Thinking Podcast, the Q Project (Jo Gleeson)
• Radio: 2NM on the Q Project (Lucas Walsh)