TY - JOUR

T1 - How does research reach teachers?

T2 - An agenda for investigating research mobilities in primary literacy education

AU - Burnett, Cathy

AU - Gillen, Julia

AU - Guest, Ian

AU - Maxwell, Bronwen

AU - Thompson, Terrie Lynn

PY - 2022/10/3

Y1 - 2022/10/3

N2 - In England, several developments combine in powerful ways to sustain certain ideas about literacy and research in education. These include the promotion of a specific model of ‘evidence-based practice’, frameworks for initial teacher education and early career professional development, and a strong accountability framework via inspection. However, as we illustrate through examples of activity on Twitter, to suggest that such ideas are all pervasive is to ignore other, less predictable, ways in which research circulates. Teachers, researchers and others working in literacy education, combined with the work of digital actors, assist the movement of ideas in sometimes unpredictable and even exciting ways. We argue that, if we are to understand how teachers encounter research, we need a better understanding of how research moves. We suggest that such movements are produced through shifting assemblages of human and non-human actors that combine to mobilise literacy research evidence differently and to varying degrees. This, we propose, calls for a new focus on what we call ‘research mobilities’ in primary literacy research.

AB - In England, several developments combine in powerful ways to sustain certain ideas about literacy and research in education. These include the promotion of a specific model of ‘evidence-based practice’, frameworks for initial teacher education and early career professional development, and a strong accountability framework via inspection. However, as we illustrate through examples of activity on Twitter, to suggest that such ideas are all pervasive is to ignore other, less predictable, ways in which research circulates. Teachers, researchers and others working in literacy education, combined with the work of digital actors, assist the movement of ideas in sometimes unpredictable and even exciting ways. We argue that, if we are to understand how teachers encounter research, we need a better understanding of how research moves. We suggest that such movements are produced through shifting assemblages of human and non-human actors that combine to mobilise literacy research evidence differently and to varying degrees. This, we propose, calls for a new focus on what we call ‘research mobilities’ in primary literacy research.

KW - literacy

KW - mobilities

KW - primary education

U2 - 10.1111/lit.12289

DO - 10.1111/lit.12289

M3 - Journal article

VL - 56

SP - 386

EP - 399

JO - Literacy

JF - Literacy

SN - 1741-4350

IS - 4

ER -