Research Engaged Schools:

How your school can (and should) determine for itself what is right
Who should attend?
Administrators; researchers; program leaders; deans of curriculum & instruction, teaching & learning,
professional development, and/or assessment.

What you will learn:

The Research Engaged Schools interest group led a pre-conference at ECIS 2014 in which each of its
members shared the particular model our schools use to incorporate research into school life
(professional development, decision making, community building, etc.) We agreed at our annual
meeting that our ECIS 2014 session provided a good overview, but that future participants would
benefit more from an orientation that provided individual work time, with interest group members
serving as consultant-peers further along the learning curve, to construct individualized models that
are the right scope and emphasis for each individual school.
Therefore, the proposed schedule includes overview materials sent to participants in advance,
including suggested paths for the pre-conference depending on the current state of schools and their
perceived needs. A majority of time is dedicated to participants, so that they may work on a
framework for their school while the presenters are physically available to answer questions about
their own models and the on-going implementation of those models. It is, more more than less, a
flipped classroom.
Participants will finish the pre-conference with realistic school-based research models, recognizing
the constraints and opportunities of their own schools, based on the expertise of those of use who
have been fiddling with research in schools for several years.
How is the workshop linked to Designing on Purpose?
Schools that include teachers and staff in researching their own programs are less likely to adopt new
programs and/or new material resources based on the latest reform or educational trend. They are
also less likely to become, in the words of Michael Fullan (1997), Christmas Tree Schools, a term he
used for schools with lots of glitter but overall incoherent programs.
Schools informed by research Research Engaged Schools are more likely to base program and
material adoption, as well as professional development and school policy, on activities that add value
to the students educational experience. Research Engaged Schools form a base on which schools can
intentionally, with information collected locally, design on purpose, whether an initiative be
classroom-based, program-based, or school-wide.
Fullan, M. (1997) Whats Worth Fighting for in the Principalship? (2nd ed), Toronto,
Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario; New York, Teachers College Press.

Research Based Schools Interest Group Facilitators

Paul Magnuson (chair) LAS, Switzerland
Latifa Hassanali, ACS, England
Mark Dilworth, ZIS, Switzerland
Rob Fens, Wolfert Borselen Group, Netherlands
and additional facilitators
Ben Hren, ACS, England
Christina Hinton, Harvard University, USA
The Research Based Schools (formerly Professional Learning and Action Research) Interest Group is in
its sixth year, first chaired by Chad and now by Paul. The members led a successful pre-conference at
ECIS 2014, with the invited guests Ben and Christina Following ECIS 2014, a majority of the group met
at LAS. In addition, Latifa and Ben have been working with Christine on the Research Schools
International program at Harvard. In other words, were a connected, highly functioning group with
multiple perspectives (and on-going leadership experience) using research for professional
development and continuous improvement.

Materials shared with registrants via website that outline the use of research in schools by ACS, LAS, Wolfert van
Borselen, and ZIS schools. Materials also will include a needs analysis (for school administrators to determine an
appropriate starting point and scope), log of questions to ask regarding on or more of the research-in-schools
models, guidance for an implementation timeline emphasizing sustainable change, and additional checklists to
prepare for the pre-conference.
Agenda outline:
Wednesday

Introductions of participants and facilitators

Elevator pitch introduction of school models
Office hours time for in-depth information exchange of one or more of the school models, starting with
questions participants generated when using pre-materials.
Individual school plan creation time
Check in / Feedback to the group from facilitators based on participant work so far
Questions and answers for the day
Participants leave copy of work (hard copy or other, as participants are comfortable) with facilitators for
commenting

Thursday

Short recap of Wednesday

Individual feedback sessions between participants and facilitators, based on Wednesdays work and
Wednesday evenings facilitator comments to work achieved so far
Individual school plan creation time
Check in / Feedback to the group from facilitators based on participant work so far

Individual school plan creation time with an eye toward presenting to other schools
Presentations as participants are comfortable
Wrap-up, next steps.

Post-conference
Follow up by email group with participants who choose to remain in touch, including linking to schools that get
programs up and running.