the other variables that affect the development of teachers, such as a supportive manager or being experienced in workplace training? Enjoyment of the intervention does not mean positive effect, nor does raised confidence. Good teachers and trainers might be confident, but are all confident ones good? Instead, we return to our definition of pedagogy and to the ways that the teachers describe their decisions. Six months after the intervention, do they use the terms and concepts we introduced? We will make a judgement based on that. Our problem, however, has been finding participants. Too few SET teachers are being trained and so our population, never mind our sample, is much smaller than we anticipated. That, however, is in the way of pedagogical research and we are currently adapting our intervention and our evaluation to use entirely online delivery and to involve generic teacher educators. We will begin to disseminate our findings, and our materials, this summer.


Blogs and resources


It may have been years since you carried out any research, or you may be completely new to it. But fear not, there is information and support out there for those interested in investigating the possibilities of practitioner research. Here are a few leads and links.


Associations and research networks • Education and Training Foundation research information goo.gl/UvWeV5 • Society for Education and Training research information and support goo.gl/Qf2I2Z


• Association for Research in Post-Compulsory Education (ARPCE) goo.gl/pQGJqy


• British Educational Leadership, Management and Administration Society (BELMAS) runs a number of Research Interest Groups relevant to further education researchers and provides access to some journals goo.gl/7bD5dG


• British Educational Research Association (BERA) hosts member and special interest groups goo.gl/owuyeX


• The Learning and Skills Research Network aims to help practitioners engage with research and development goo.gl/Z8Gj4O


• Social Research Association provides access to the SRA’s ethics consultancy forum and access to training and regional networks goo.gl/q8JImM


• UCL Institute of Education’s Centre for Post-14 Education and Work carries out a lot of research and is a focal point for researchers in the field goo.gl/l0UItr


References • Commission on Adult Vocational Teaching and Learning (CAVTL). 2013. It’s about work: excellent adult vocational teaching and learning. London: Learning and Skills Improvement Service(LSIS). goo.gl/D9C5on


• Guile, D., Kersh, N. and Tiris, M., (2016) Enhancing SET Teaching at Level 3. Report for Gatsby Charitable Foundation. goo.gl/OrgvPN


• Loughran, J., Mulhall, P. & Berry, A. (2008) Exploring pedagogical content knowledge in science teacher education. International Journal of Science Education, 30(10), 1301-1320.


• Lucas, Bill, Ellen Spencer and Guy Claxton. 2012. How to teach vocational education: a theory of vocational pedagogy. London: City & Guilds.


• Shulman, L. (1986) Those who understand: knowledge growth in teaching. Educational Researcher, 15(2), 4-14.


• Shulman, L. (1987) Knowledge and teaching: foundations of the new reform. Harvard Educational Review, 57(1), 1-22.


Useful and interesting resources and websites • Interactive QTLS research map from ETF at goo.gl/7RTJQi • The Society for Education and Training (SET) research blog goo.gl/vEBiRj • BERA blog goo.gl/4WROYy • Evidence based educational leadership goo.gl/TMi6wy • Geoff Petty, teaching guru and inTuition columnist, has a wealth of material on his website goo.gl/nWjp5q


• Geoff Rebbeck, learning technology expert and inTuition contributor, has a learning blog and useful information and ideas on his website goo.gl/UVB2Wx


• National Foundation for Educational Research blog goo.gl/9lg2cM


• Professor Robert Coe, ‘What is Worth Reading for Teachers Interested in Research?’ (June 2016) is a useful departure point for other blogs and reading goo.gl/gWmLIU


• The British Psychological Society’s Research Digest goo.gl/seV1Qv • Tom Bennett’s blog goo.gl/r5Kuuy • Top 10 Educational blogs goo.gl/PLUX94


University open lectures and online lectures It is likely that your local university will be running a series of free lectures. These might be related to education, but also will include other areas that may be of interest to you. Here are a few to start with: • University of Bath goo.gl/Jjiwhe


• University of Kent goo.gl/s9QtpE • University of Oxford goo.gl/Rt12Bb


• University of Oxford Mathematical Institute (use this link to get to the public lectures online) goo.gl/K4bKnC


• University of York goo.gl/UB8tLv • Find more in your local area at Open Lectures and Talks goo.gl/dL9eqH


INTUITION RESEARCH • SPRING 2017 15


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