Abstract:

Academics have discussed the gap between research and practice in the educational field, and its implications on the progress of the teaching practices (Farley-Ripple et al., 2018), with calls for evidence-based practices becoming more common (Levin, 2004). Approaches to bridging the gap include collaborative communities of inquiry (Christie et al., 2007); creating partnerships between schools and universities (Smith, 2007); collaborative professional development (Szteinberg, 2014); and research-practice partnerships (Coburn & Penuel, 2016). Despite all efforts, the reality still reflects the divide and disconnect between work being done in the research ivory towers and the implementation of teaching practices in the actual classroom (Laletas et al., 2022). Most efforts to bridge the gap follow a top-down approaches with a mandate from educational leaders and limited representation from the practitioners on the ground. Seldom are the teachers empowered to voice their needs and share their wealth of knowledge beyond their own working space. This case study presents insights from the edubridges initiative, a project launched by the author as an academic who has been on both sides of the fence, the schoolteacher, and the university researcher. With a strong belief in grass roots movements, the power of communities of practice, and the benefits of technological affordances in our current times, the initiative creates bridges between the prevailing silos in the academic arena through providing community members with a platform to voice their concerns and share their knowledge and expertise. At edubridges we have developed the infrastructure; created the online presence; and invested in building the extensive academic network and outreach needed to bridge the gap between strong professionals and academic practitioners who are interested in bridging the current gap. The presentation will offer an overview of the initiative; the connections it enables; and insights from users and community members about advantages, areas of improvement, and future recommendations.

References:
[1] Farley-Ripple, E., May, H., Karpyn, A., Tilley, K., & McDonough, K. (2018). Rethinking connections between research and practice in education: A conceptual framework. Educational Researcher, 47(4), 235-245.
[2] Levin, B. (2004). Making research matter more. Education policy analysis archives, 12(56), n56.
[3] Christie, D., Cassidy, C., Skinner, D., Coutts, N., Sinclair, C., Rimpilainen, S., & Wilson, A. (2007). Building collaborative communities of enquiry in educational research. Educational Research and Evaluation, 13(3), 263-278.
[4] Smith, K. (2007). Empowering school-and university-based teacher educators as assessors: A school–university cooperation. Educational research and evaluation, 13(3), 279-293.
[5] Coburn, C. E., & Penuel, W. R. (2016). Research–practice partnerships in education: Outcomes, dynamics, and open questions. Educational researcher, 45(1), 48-54.
[6] Szteinberg, G., Balicki, S., Banks, G., Clinchot, M., Cullipher, S., Huie, R., ... & Sevian, H. (2014). Collaborative professional development in chemistry education research: bridging the gap between research and practice. Journal of Chemical Education, 91(9), 1401-1408.
[7] Laletas, S., Grove, C., Sharma, U., OToole, T., & Kaukko, M. (2022). Breaking down the walls of the ‘Ivory Tower’: critical reflections on how co-teaching partnerships can bridge the gap between inclusive education theory and practice. Teachers and Teaching, 1-21.

Keywords:

Online communities of practice, lifelong learning, teacher empowerment.