ANALYSIS What is research?


Research is an elastic term used to cover everything from a quick search on Google to enormous longitudinal studies that span decades. Here the curators of the inTuition Research Supplement, Gail Lydon, Colin Forrest and Joss Kang, shed light on the research process for teachers and trainers working in any part of the FE and training sector


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What is practitioner research in further education settings? A number of the Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers in Education and Training (ETF 2014) suggest that research and research evidence are important elements of being a teacher or trainer.


While the focus on research as an underpinning of professional practice is welcome, practitioners may at times struggle to separate practitioner research from other aspects of professional practice. There are, however, distinctive


features of practitioner research and there are many texts that may help you define what these are in your own context. See, for example. Lankshear and Knobel (2004), Robson (2002), Taber (2007), Walford (1998), IfL (2014), Gregson et al (2015), and Kara (2014). Practitioner research (also commonly


referred to as action research) is usually grounded in teaching practice, whether that takes place in the classroom, workshop or workplace (see section 3). As such, the problems that


practitioners seek to research may well be urgent. They will also be based on a teacher’s or trainer’s desire to make improvements to their practice and that of others – a motivation that is central to professionalism. Of course, research goes beyond


your immediate practice. When we talk of research, including


practitioner research, it includes the ability to undertake a critical evaluation of the evidence and theory found in existing studies (see section 5). The process of reflecting on one’s


practice tends to throw up lots of issues that could do with researching (see Gregson 2015, Punch 2009, and Robson 2002 for full explanations


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of this process). Whatever methodology and approach you take for your research, you should remember that it needs to be clear and accessible. Informed consent and other ethical considerations may well be important in considering how you undertake the research (see section 3 below). The National Foundation for


Educational Research (NFER) has a self-review tool that gives a useful insight into who those helpful others might be (see ‘Useful links’).


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What should I research and who is it for?


Practitioner research is a highly democratic activity. It is research done by teachers, not on teachers. There is potential for the outcomes of such research projects to impact directly on learner support, progression and success, often in settings that engage the most disadvantaged. Many of those undertaking


practitioner research find it empowering. The process gives you confidence, and permission, to ask dificult questions of yourself and others. Herein lies a challenge: the further education and training landscape is characterised by contested values and conflicting priorities, and positioning your research and its outcomes effectively in this noisy environment is a real art. Outsiders may well need to be engaged to help you with this. These may be champions in universities or within your organisation, they may well even be policymakers. There are suggestions, in the ‘Blogs and resources’ column on page 15, of groups and associations that can foster such relationships. The British Education Research


Association (BERA)/Royal Society of Arts report (2014) and Colucci-Gray et al (2013) both give powerful insights into the potential of practitioner research to make a difference and affect change. Some argue (see, for example,


Stewart 2015) that research is not teachers’ business. However, the number of practitioners that go on to publish and undertake Masters degrees, or complete their doctoral research, is significant. Indeed, many professional doctorates require research to be undertaken in workplace settings. The rewards for you, your learners and


your employment are high and your findings will have an authenticity and legitimacy that is hard to match.


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How to get a research project off the ground


In a practitioner research model, practitioners critically examine their own practice and make small, incremental improvements, often in response to problems or issues they encounter. This often involves engaging with, and in, research. Engaging with research can involve


reading around your topic; reading academic research papers, abstracts and summaries or findings from other practitioner-researchers. Reading critically is important as research findings typically cannot be transferred from one context to another, but they may spark ideas or a deeper understanding of a topic. Wider reading can also help you


to refine and scale down a potential research topic; particularly helpful if the practitioner-researcher intends to engage in research. In Scotland, where practitioner-led action research is commonly used


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