Abstract
This symposium explores the transformative potential of professional development initiatives to drive educational renewal within teacher education across Ireland. It proposes three approaches that support continuous professional growth. Scholars from the Educational Studies Association of Ireland (ESAI) lead the session, sharing insights of three unique professional development programs. The presentation highlights policy recommendations advocating lifelong professional learning and emphasizes professional development as a collaborative, critically reflective response to educators needs. Case studies include the T-REX Project, the Hypatia Programme and NEARI, each offering diverse, innovative and sustainable models of professional growth that contribute to the learning of educators, students and communities. Learning and recommendations from these initiatives, are applicable to global teacher professional development programs and educational contexts.
T-REX Paper: Initially established in 2015, the Teachers’ Research Exchange (T-REX) is the national digital platform in the Republic of Ireland to support teachers (primary and post-primary) to collaborate, create and share research to enhance their classroom practice: www.t-rex.ie. Wiliam (2019) highlights the challenges faced in endeavouring to support translational research in schools, especially considering the intrinsic complexity of diverse classrooms: “Classrooms are just too complicated for research ever to tell teachers what to do.” Nonetheless, bridging the research-practice divide in schools remains an imperative for educational systems globally. Importantly, a recent, international systematic literature review in the field (Jones et al., 2022) has identified five key themes that need to be addressed to create infrastructures that support teachers to engage with, and deploy translational research in classrooms. These include: building teacher-researcher collaboration; teachers as researchers; research cultures in schools; teacher agency; sharing; and accessing and utilizing research.
T-REX Paper: Initially established in 2015, the Teachers’ Research Exchange (T-REX) is the national digital platform in the Republic of Ireland to support teachers (primary and post-primary) to collaborate, create and share research to enhance their classroom practice: www.t-rex.ie. Wiliam (2019) highlights the challenges faced in endeavouring to support translational research in schools, especially considering the intrinsic complexity of diverse classrooms: “Classrooms are just too complicated for research ever to tell teachers what to do.” Nonetheless, bridging the research-practice divide in schools remains an imperative for educational systems globally. Importantly, a recent, international systematic literature review in the field (Jones et al., 2022) has identified five key themes that need to be addressed to create infrastructures that support teachers to engage with, and deploy translational research in classrooms. These include: building teacher-researcher collaboration; teachers as researchers; research cultures in schools; teacher agency; sharing; and accessing and utilizing research.
| Original language | English (Ireland) |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | American Educational Research Association (AERA) |
| Place of Publication | Denver, Colorado |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Apr 2025 |
Authors (Note for portal: view the doc link for the full list of authors)
- Authors
- Máirín Glenn, Tony Hall, Aideen Hunter & Aimie Brennan