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In this module, students will be helped to become critical, informed consumers of education research. Over the course of the term we will examine the nature, production, uses and misuses of research evidence. This will include a focus on the interaction between education research, policy and practice.Ìý

Understanding Education Research is not a research methods module. Instead, the focus is on helping students become critical, confident consumers of research evidence. This includes but is not limited to academic studies. Much of the education-focused research that students will encounter in their lifetimes will be indirectly via the media (including social media) rather than through their own reading of academic research studies. Throughout the module, students will be encouraged and supported to develop their capacities for critical analysis of evidence, wherever and however it is published and reported. This capacity for critical analysis goes beyond merely digesting and understanding research; students will also be supported in the development of their capability to express informed opinions about evidence, including how it is produced by researchers and how it is used by others, including policymakers and the media.  Ìý

Teaching delivery:ÌýThis module is taught in 10 weekly lectures and 10 weekly seminars. Seminars and lectures are each 1.5 hours in length and are face-to-face.Ìý

Indicative Topics:Ìýbased on module content in 2023/24, subject to possible changes:Ìý

• Fake news and disinformationÌý
• µþ¾±²¹²õÌý
• University rankings and reputationsÌý
• Climate crisis educationÌý
• Research design: observational, experimental studies, cross-sectional and longitudinal studiesÌý
• Qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysisÌý
• Correlation and causationÌý
• Sampling and generalisationÌý
• The tuition fees paradoxÌý
• ´¡±õÌý
• The research-policy-practice relationshipÌý

Module Aims:

The key aims of this module are to

1. To help students become informed, critical consumers of education research and of information more generally.Ìý
2. To provide students with an understanding of research designs and methods, and the relationship between research methodologies, purposes and questions.Ìý
3. To help students understand how research evidence is produced, including the stages and methods employed in a range of study types.Ìý
4. To help students develop the skills required to analyse many different sources of information with confidence and critical awareness. These sources include education research but also include broader sources of information, such as social media, newspaper, the internet, and even arguments made by friends and family.Ìý
5. To introduce students to key issues influencing the production of education research and its utilisation by policy, practice and the media.