From master student to master teacher: The meaning of teacher research for school practice

Kan, C. van; Brouwer, P.; Smit, B.H.J.; Spreeuwenberg, L.; Swet, J. van; Admiraal, W.F.

Teachers generally seem to have limited knowledge of, access to and interest in insights from academic educational research. A possible way to bridge the gap between research and practice might be research by teachers. This line of thinking has found its way to policy actions of the Dutch government, in which master programs for teachers are promoted. Yet evidence of positive effects of teacher research is minimal and somewhat ambiguous. The current study aims to answer the following research question: ‘How is teacher research evaluated with respect to the professional development of teachers and knowledge utilization in schools?’ First, a biographical study has been conducted with 36 teachers (primary education, secondary education and vocational education). Second, a Q-sort questionnaire was administered with a small group of teachers from each educational sector, which measures beliefs about teacher research as a professional development strategy. The preliminary conclusions...Show moreTeachers generally seem to have limited knowledge of, access to and interest in insights from academic educational research. A possible way to bridge the gap between research and practice might be research by teachers. This line of thinking has found its way to policy actions of the Dutch government, in which master programs for teachers are promoted. Yet evidence of positive effects of teacher research is minimal and somewhat ambiguous. The current study aims to answer the following research question: ‘How is teacher research evaluated with respect to the professional development of teachers and knowledge utilization in schools?’ First, a biographical study has been conducted with 36 teachers (primary education, secondary education and vocational education). Second, a Q-sort questionnaire was administered with a small group of teachers from each educational sector, which measures beliefs about teacher research as a professional development strategy. The preliminary conclusions indicate that a master program contributes to teachers’ professional development, among others, in terms of their ability to conduct teacher research. However, for knowledge utilization in schools to take place, teachers with a master degree are a helpful but not a sufficient condition. Show less

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From master student to master teacher: The meaning of teacher research for school practice

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