Renewed perspectives on research use in education (REPOSE)

In REPOSE, we will perform a philosophical inquiry of to what extent teachers’ professional knowledge base and agency can and should be informed by research evidence, a historical analysis of the development of Norwegian society’s expectations about the practical relevance of ‘pedagogical research’ from the 1930s onwards.

We will also conduct several empirical analyses of contemporary structures and practices of research use. These will take place in Norway Sweden, Finland and Switzerland and make use of different methods.

Project summary

REPOSE is an important project as it will tackle an issue in that is highly contested and debated, and where contested knowledge claims tend to blur fundamental epistemological questions about the characteristics of the knowledge base of education, including questions about how and to what extent research can inform professional practice for it to best meet the needs and rights of students.

A recurring problem in current research is for example that many studies fail to acknowledge both how practitioners use of research is often implicit and how practitioners integrate different knowledge sources in their work and decision-making. Not least, it is an ambiguous term difficult to operationalize for researchers.

Also, there is a frequent failure of mutual understanding concerning what research use ‘is’ among different actors in the education sector.

Therefore, in REPOSE, we ask questions such as:

What kind of knowledge can and should teachers use in their work?
What role does research play in combination with other knowledge sources, and how does this vary in different national and local contexts?
What about actors such as school leaders and municipal administrators?
How has policy initiatives and established structures affected research use over time?