What Works?

We love to rush to the big picture and ignore the details, the conditionals and the fine print. Major and Higgins present the nuanced stories about what works best in schools. They deal with the implications, the actions and the messages from the many thousands of studies in a convincing, readable and enjoyably digestible manner. * John Hattie, Laureate Professor, Melbourne Graduate School of Education *
The authors call for an "expertise model" of teaching where professional judgement is informed by evidence from research. This book supports teachers to engage with the best known evidence and tailor this knowledge to support their teaching, thereby providing the opportunity to build learning capacity for all. * Professor Dame Alison Peacock, Chief Executive of The Chartered College of Teaching *
This book comes from a reliable source which has shaped English education over the last decade, warts and all! With a book such as this, it is only a matter of time before EVERY teacher and school leader is asking, "Show me the evidence." * Ross Morrison McGill, @TeacherToolkit *
What Works? is a must-read for class teachers and school leaders: an in-depth analysis of a range of teaching approaches, the research behind them, and how to effectively implement them to improve pupil outcomes. * Jenna Lucas, Primary Teacher and English Specialist Leader of Education, @JennaLucas81 *
This new work offers discussions of 21 sets of research relating to approaches to teaching and learning. Classroom realities are centre stage throughout, with a clear understanding of the complexity of teachers’ and leaders’ roles in making improvements. Ways of evaluating research are clearly presented and are useful starting points for workplace discussions. The book is useable by a wide audience: individual teachers, departments or year teams over different phases, CPD organisers, leadership teams, teacher trainers and school governors. * Lisa Pettifer, English Teacher, CPD Leader and Founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching, @Lisa7Pettifer *
This fascinating book provides teachers with both the cutting-edge science on teaching excellence and the debates behind the science. Evidence on best practice is distilled in an accessible way, building out from the now world-famous Teaching and Learning Toolkit designed by Major and Higgins, which sits at the heart of the book. As well as focusing on the research evidence for different practices, the authors provide insight on the respective strengths and limitations of the meta-analytic approach, and the challenges of applying "what works" in diverse contexts. This is a book for all those professionals wishing to become even better teachers and to understand research evidence rather than simply consume it. * Professor Becky Francis, Director of the UCL Institute of Education (IOE) *
As a resource that can be used on multiple levels by individual teachers, departments or phase teams and senior leaders, this book offers serious value for money. A must have for every school CPD library! * 5* Winner at the Teach Primary Awards *
The book summarises very succinctly what we all aspire to be. It is not what you do, but the way that you do it, that is important. This book would be brilliant for CPD or an inset training in any school and a valuable asset to any staffroom book shelf. -- LoveReading4Schools
‘This is a well-constructed text that synthesises a vast amount of research into manageable bite-sized chunks for anyone seeking information and guidance on best practice.’ * SEN Magazine *