The Education Endowment Foundation is seeking 1,500 schools to take part in 11 research projects aimed at boosting maths, writing, communication and language.
The projects are part of the organisation’s work to “build the evidence base and give the education sector trustworthy information about how to boost outcomes”.
They will test different approaches to improving outcomes. These include peer-to-peer coaching to build maths skills in secondary school pupils, and professional development for reception class teachers to support skills through play and structured activities.
Each project “has been selected because of its potential impact on the attainment of socio-economically disadvantaged pupils and will be independently evaluated to give a reliable estimate of its impact”, the EEF said.
Signing up “gives schools the opportunity to access promising education approaches at a heavily reduced cost, many of which include high-quality professional development and resources”.
In one of the new projects, Rehearsal Room Writing, teachers will receive five training sessions with the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) in Stratford-Upon-Avon.
They will learn how to use the same techniques that RSC actors use in rehearsals to “unlock texts and bring them to life”.
Emily Yeomans, the charity’s co-CEO, said: “It is no secret that most schools across the country are struggling under tight budgets, concerned about the impact this may have on supporting effective education and motivated teachers.
“These projects offer a way for school leaders to explore new teaching approaches in their settings, bolstering professional development for their staff all while helping to build a wider evidence base on what works. It really is a win-win situation.”
Schools can check their eligibility here.
The full list of projects is as follows…
Secondary
Action Tutoring’s secondary maths programme, which provides small group tutoring for years 7, 10 and 11, aimed to support students in achieving a grade 4 or higher in GCSE maths.
Peer-to-peer coaching developed by CoachBright which aims to empower year 7 pupils to improve their maths attainment by pairing them with year 10 students.
Making Fluent and Flexible Calculators, delivered by HFL Education, is a whole class intervention that runs alongside the KS3 curriculum, focusing on addressing foundational gaps in maths knowledge for year 7 pupils with low prior attainment.
Specialist Knowledge for Teaching Mathematics, developed by The National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM), is a professional development course to enhance subject knowledge and pedagogical skills among non-specialist KS3 teachers of maths.
Primary
The Power of Reading, delivered by the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education, trains teachers and supports schools to develop a high quality English curriculum.
Writing Roots, delivered by Literacy Tree, consists of daily one-hour lessons in which pupils engage with diverse texts, developing their writing skills via interactive activities, grammar teaching, and opportunities for authentic writing experiences.
Rehearsal Room Writing, developed by the Royal Shakespeare Company, involves teachers attending five immersive training days in Stratford-upon-Avon, integrating techniques such as role-play, choral readings, and embodied learning into their lessons.
Pathways Literacy, developed by The Literacy Company, Pathways Literacy is a whole-class writing programme for year 3 pupils, aiming to improve writing outcomes by combining metacognitive strategies, targeted intervention and teacher training.
The OTTO Club is a whole-class handwriting programme for year 1 pupils, developed by Occupational Therapists. The programme aims to improve the quality of their writing by training teachers to develop their underlying necessary skills.
Early years
Reception Jigsaw, delivered by White Rose Maths, is a professional development programme for reception teachers, using training and coaching to improve early years maths teaching through play and structured activities.
Plan, Do, Review, designed by Wingate Community Nursery School, is a 25-week small-group intervention aimed at improving the communication and language skills of three to four-year-olds.
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