Research Mobilities in Primary Literacy Education: Interrogating How Teachers Encounter Research in an Age of Evidence-based Teaching

This book delves into the intriguing question of why certain types of literacy research gain more traction than others in educational settings.

It draws upon findings from Research Mobilities in Primary Literacy Education, an innovative and interdisciplinary study conducted in England and supported by the Economic and Social Research Council [ES/W000571/1]. The study investigated the types of literacy research that reach teachers, the ways in which human and non-human actors mobilise research and the transformation of research as it circulates. The book argues that, for teachers to foster genuinely inclusive literacy classrooms, they need to be equipped to draw on understandings associated with a variety of theoretical perspectives and research traditions. It further explores the dynamics of research dissemination and the factors that influence the uptake and application of research findings in educational contexts. This work is an original and groundbreaking contribution to debates about the scope and focus of literacy education, the role of evidence-based teaching and approaches to professional learning.

This book is of vital interest to scholars, researchers and students with interests in Literacy Education, Professional Development and the Ethics of Research. It challenges conventional wisdom, provokes thoughtful discussion and inspires readers to rethink the role and value of research in shaping literacy education that is inclusive, effective and meaningful.

Cathy Burnett is Professor Emerita at Sheffield Institute of Education, Sheffield Hallam University.

Gill Adams is a Reader in Education at Sheffield Institute of Education, Sheffield Hallam University.

Julia Gillen is Professor of Literacy Studies in the Department of Linguistics and English Language, Lancaster University.

Terrie Lynn Thompson is a senior lecturer in Digital Media & Professional Learning, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Stirling and adjunct faculty at the University of Alberta, Canada.

Anna Cermakova is a senior research associate at the Department of Linguistics and English Language and ESRC Centre for Corpus Approaches to Social Science at Lancaster University.

David Ben Shannon is a lecturer at University of Sheffield and worked on the Research Mobilities in Primary Literacy Education project as a researcher at Sheffield Hallam University.

Parinita Shetty is an early career researcher, public library assistant and children’s book writer and worked on the Research Mobilities in Primary Literacy Education project as a researcher at Sheffield Hallam University.