Research-informed teaching: The case of Musical Futures

Abstract

Drawing on descriptions of research-into-practice initiatives, this article presents a new framework to aid understanding of how research findings influence educational practice at scale. The framework focuses upon five areas: trustworthiness of the findings and generalisability; implications and instructions for practice; support for implementation; fidelity of the implementation; and accountability. Green's informal learning model for music education is focused upon as one example of how research findings influence classroom practice, explored through the lens of the framework. The empirical research was conducted in two phases: (1) semi-structured interviews were conducted with key figures relating to the initiative; (2) four case studies were undertaken, involving secondary school music teachers and their pupils. The research examined the extent to which research-informed teaching was evident in the schools, and what factors might influence this. Methods used within the case studies included observation, interviews and document sources. Data was analysed thematically. It was found that Green's model was evident in the case study schools to some extent, but there was a gap identified between Green's underpinning research and its implementation. Furthermore, data showed that the five aspects proposed in the framework influenced the success and longevity of the approach. It is therefore proposed that the findings of this study might inform future research-into-practice initiatives in education—by informing researchers of key considerations to be made when aiming to develop research-informed teaching.