Supporting collaboration and partnership to improve educational achievement
Improving educational outcomes and closing the achievement gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers is a key priority for the Scottish education system. UofG research has informed the development and uptake of a Research-Practice Partnership (RPP) to generate collaborative improvement within and between schools in Scotland and elsewhere.
Find out more about:
Contact: Chris.Chapman@glasgow.ac.uk, 07702 918922
The research
Collaboration and networking are key to stimulating school improvement and to closing the poverty-related attainment gap.
Research led by Professor Chris Chapman at the Robert Owen Centre for Educational Change since 2013 has generated new understandings about the structures and processes associated with collaborative improvement that enhances teachers’ professional learning and ultimately impacts on student outcomes.
The innovation of Collaborative Action Research within schools, and the success of between-school partnerships, led the research team to propose that the model move from a set of stand-alone, semi-connected partnerships to a series of ‘innovation hubs’ across regions.
From 2016 onwards, the Network for Social and Educational Equity has built upon this approach to embed partnership working within and between schools. It has also been adapted beyond education as part of the What Works Scotland and Children’s Neighbourhoods Scotland programmes of research.
The impact
School leaders believe that the collaborative approach underpinned by UofG research has directly contributed to these improvements. Evidence confirms this collaborative approach has been shown to contribute to improvements in pupils’ numeracy, and in writing in participating schools. The West Partnership Lead reported that, ‘since 2016 achievement in numeracy has increased by 14% for P4 and 11% for P7, while achievement in writing has increased by 9% for P4 and 13% for P7’.
Furthermore, the research led by Professor Chapman provided evidence to inform the establishment of Scotland’s Regional Improvement Collaboratives (RICs) in 2018.
Running concurrently to the establishment of the RICs was the development of the Scottish Government’s flagship Education Bill, proposing the most radical reforms since devolution.
In June 2018, the decision to put the proposed Education Bill on hold was announced in a statement to Parliament. This decision was widely attributed to advice from a report from the International Council of Education Advisers, co-authored by Professor Chapman, which recommended pursuing a collaborative approach to educational improvement, rather than relying on legislation.
