The evidence-based decision-making movement often assumes that once evidence is available (e.g., via the What Works Clearinghouse), decision-makers will integrate it into their practice. Research-practice partnership studies have shown this is not always true. In this paper, we argue that instead of assuming research will be useful and used, we…

In today's data-driven and data-informed educational landscape, leaders face increasing pressure to make decisions and present results based on what appear to be comprehensive statistical analyses. However, the ethical implications of these responsibilities can be complex, particularly when statistical results carry the potential to be…

This article compares and contrasts two versions of the Education Endowment Foundation's (EEF) Teaching and Learning Toolkit ('Toolkit'), a web-based summary of international evidence on teaching 3-18 year-olds. The Toolkit has localised versions in six different languages in Australia, Cameroon, Chile, Jordan and Spain. The initial Toolkit,…

The evidence-based decision-making movement often assumes that once evidence is available (e.g., via the What Works Clearinghouse), decision-makers will integrate it into their practice. Research-practice partnership studies have shown this is not always true. In this paper, we argue that instead of assuming research will be useful and used, we…

Evidence-based practice (EBP) requires professionals to be guided by the best available evidence. When a child is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), caregivers are faced with the task of choosing the best treatment for their child. Caregivers turn to a number of different sources to find information about available treatments not all…

The teacher leaders who get the best results are the ones who explore the role's full potential, but it can be a challenge to get beyond a basic understanding of the responsibilities involved. The National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) wants to make it easier. "Unleashing Teacher Leadership" presents best practices and…

Some researchers have taken evidence-based practices (EBPs) as the main solution for enhancing the learning outcomes of students with disabilities. The manner in which the application of EBPs assumes teaching strategies to be aligned with students' learning problems or disability situations betrays a mechanical approach to dealing with issues of…

Research-based science curriculum has become a common means of supporting best practices in science teaching. In response to his middle school's transition from one such commercially available science curriculum to another, a seventh-grade science teacher elected to make certain changes to the newly adopted curriculum in its first year of use.…

Calls for evidence-based policy often fail to recognise the fundamentally political nature of policy making. Policy makers must identify, evaluate and utilise evidence to solve policy problems in the face of competing priorities and political agendas. Evidence should inform but cannot determine policy choices. This paper draws on theories of…

Human resources (HR) represent the most significant investment on most of our college campuses in terms of time and financial resources. The importance of good data about the workforce begins with establishing a need for a new position. That need for data continues with recruiting, hiring, training, promoting, retaining (or not), and retiring…

Teacher evaluation systems are essential in tracking the quality and effectiveness of teachers and education systems. This dissertation examines the teacher evaluation system in Saudi Arabia through multiple perspectives, including research-based frameworks for teacher evaluation, norms and best practices from OECD countries, and established Saudi…

Student success is dependent on teacher quality; therefore, it is imperative that principals hire the teachers most likely to experience success as measured by the impact on student outcomes. This study investigated teacher hiring processes to determine the extent to which practices that are supported by selection science and teacher quality…

Teachers' engagement with and understanding of educational research and data is an increasing concern for policy-makers around the globe. With unprecedented access to, and new forms of, 'data' in schools, concerns for its 'best practice' use in classroom decision-making have come to the fore. In academic spaces, these developments have also been…

Given the authority of state government over public education, one means of narrowing the best-practice to actual-practice gap in education is by putting forth clear state guidance and recommendations to schools. To date, however, little is known about the national landscape of procedural guidance that is readily available to practitioners looking…

Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) is a data reduction technique used to condense data into smaller sets of summary variables by identifying underlying factors potentially accounting for patterns of collinearity among said variables. Using an illustrative example, the 5 general steps of EFA are described with best practices for decision making…