Building teachers’ research literacy: integrating practice and research

Supporting early career teacher (ECT) research literacy is essential in promoting research-integrated professional practice, however it remains an area in much need of development. This article discusses the importance and process of developing ECTs’ research literacy, through establishing strong collaborative links between universities and practising teachers in schools. It is located within an English policy and educational context in which the role of higher education and schools in teacher education has been substantially altered in recent times. Two programmes, the NQT and Beyond and Developing Resilience in Learning and Teaching, are used to illustrate how ECTs can actively engage in and with research as they enter the teaching profession, and thus develop their research literacy. The design principles of these projects are used to demonstrate the potential of how a research-informed pedagogical framework based on the Personal Learning Styles Pedagogy, aspects of self-regulation and resilience, can facilitate research-informed learning and teaching. In supporting ECTs’ research literacy, universities, in collaboration with schools, play an important role in supporting the sustainability of research and in enabling teachers to connect their own practice with the broader body of research knowledge. Teacher and pupil ownership of research is crucial in developing research-integrated learning.