Policy and research engagement is a timely topic for researchers, decision-makers, and higher education institutions that aim to promote engagement and impact. Examination of the complex research-policy relationship in the higher education sector has been largely overlooked. This paper addresses this issue by presenting findings from in-depth…

Previous comparative research has revealed recent high and rising school exclusion rates in England and a contrasting picture of much lower and reducing rates in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. In this paper, we examine findings from new research into school exclusion policies across the four countries of the UK. This interrogates for the…

This study presents some of the current methodological issues regarding the analysis and comprehension of educational policy transfer, with particular emphasis on the issue of structure and agency. It suggests some shortcomings of current educational policy transfer research in dealing with the complex interaction between structure and agency. To…

This article engages in evidence-based policymaking by addressing (a) how civil servants endeavor to link evidence and policy and (b) examining how political bias influences this knowledge work in the ongoing digitalization of the Norwegian school. More specifically, it looks at the "uncertainties" civil servants encounter in their…

Although there is increased need for closing the gap between educational research and policy to better enable effective practice, addressing the problem remains a challenge. A review of current literature reveals a lack of systematic guidelines which clarify how collaboration between researchers and policy-makers can actually be achieved.…

How is the academic community conceptualizing and approaching the integration of AI in education, considering its potential, complexities, and challenges? This study addresses this fundamental question by employing a multifaceted approach that combines co-occurrence network analysis, latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA), and sentiment analysis on a…

This study aimed to contribute to knowledge about research on educational superintendents as decision-maker through a systematic review of research on this topic undertaken between 2000 and 2022. A literature search followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach. Of the 313 articles identified, 36…

In Sub-Saharan Africa, efforts are being made to promote the use of research to improve education quality. Networks of researchers are being developed, improving the dissemination of knowledge and good practices. Regional associations, such as the ADEA ("Association pour le Développement de l'Éducation en Afrique -- Association for the…

The use of research evidence is increasingly seen as critical to improving practice across many areas of public policy. At the same time, the role of relationships and relational work have become far more widely recognised in many fields of professional practice. This paper brings together these two developments by focusing on the relational…

How causation is approached has, for some time now, been a central debate within the archives of educational research. Despite rich discussion in broader literature, the influence of what has been described as the 'methodology wars' has rarely featured within the field(s) of outdoor and environmental education (OEE). This paper explores causation…

In this paper, I explore the current state of higher education with particular--although not exclusive--reference to the issue of neutrality in research, revealing its ambivalences and contradictions. My main concern is less with the complex details of the politics of higher education than with the milieu of the dominant higher education…

Ann Oakley, pioneering social researcher for nearly 60 years, is Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at IOE (Institute of Education), UCL's Faculty of Education and Society (University College London, UK). This article explores the innovation and influence of her work and the work of her close colleagues at the Social Science Research Unit…

Digital footprints (DF) offer relevant information about educational activities and processes related to strategies of academic assessment, identification of skills and psychological traits of students, and permanence and dropout trends, etc. This study analyzes scientific evidence on the use of DF in education, and shows the results of a…

This article discusses what we know about the underlying social and political conditions shaping research evidence use in education and how this applies to Research-Practice Partnerships (RPPs). It discusses types of use, political dynamics and processes, brokers and intermediaries, and racial dynamics and lenses. It also recommends strategies for…

Education policies are increasingly characterized as complex and dynamic, involving a multitude of actors and policy networks. As a result, there is a growing demand in education for research approaches that can help make sense of this complexity. This paper examines the applicability of multi-level governance (MLG) framework as a tool of…