Teachers are often bombarded with a wealth of claims about classroom teaching techniques, but it can be difficult to figure out whether these are actually effective or not, and whether there is any research evidence behind them. Read more in the topic summary and join the conversation at 8pm tonight with other teachers and the following researchers:

• Talk with Richard about randomised controlled trials, evidence-based practice in education and teacher training.
• Chat with Alex about about how he makes research into spatial thinking relevant for the primary school classroom.
• Talk with Paula about using psychological theory to develop and evaluate teaching and intervention strategies.
• Converse with Courtney about the challenges and benefits of research that links neuroscience, psychology, and education.

Log in to the Learning Zone and head to the Live Chat Page for 8pm to dive into the discussion and ask anything you like about evidence in the classroom.

In the news

Bringing scientific evidence to the classroom – Blog on Learning and Development

Connecting the Dots between Education Research and Classroom Teachers – Education Week

What have teachers been asking?

We’ve already had a number of questions relating to evidence and research. Help our researchers understand your views and needs by adding a comment:

• What pieces of research from your respective research areas do you think could have the biggest impact on teaching/learning if more people knew about them?

• Is there a generally-accepted set of guidelines for what evidence-based research in education is? I have seen papers without statistical analysis, with inadequate sample sizes, etc. Alternately, is there a blog or a twitter feed devoted to pointing out good or bad examples of education research?

• Should we consolidate learning by regular revision of past topics throughout the year? For example, I have heard that to fully remember something you should revisit it after a few hours, few days, a few weeks and then a few months? Is there any evidence to support this idea and is it time dependant?

• I find myself hesitating to give rewards at times as I don’t want to give too many and devalue them. Is there any evidence that this is can be the case?

• What evidence is there for the degree to which marking of children’s work in books influences their progress? Many schools put such an emphasis on marking…

Live chat

Join the live chat tonight at 8pm.

Can’t make it tonight? Make a note of the next live chat date – Tuesday 13th March, 8-9pm.