ChapterPDF Available

Design-Centric Research-Practice Partnerships: Three Key Lenses for Building Productive Bridges Between Theory and Practice

Authors:
Yael Kali at University of Haifa
Yael Kali
Bat-Sheva Eylon at Weizmann Institute of Science
Bat-Sheva Eylon
Susan Mckenney at University of Twente
Susan Mckenney
Adi Kidron at Weizmann Institute of Science
Adi Kidron
Download full-text PDFDownload full-text PDFDownload full-text PDFDownload full-text PDF
Read full-text
Download citation

Abstract and Figures

The last decade has witnessed a strong increase in research that moves toward mutually-beneficial collaboration between researchers and practitioners. This chapter focuses on such collaborations that aim to design resources for use in schools, while also advancing theoretical understanding of the dynamics within such partnership. We refer to such endeavors as Design-Centric Research Practice Partnerships (DC-RPPs). To guide the development of productive DC-RPPs we synthesize insights from three theoretical lenses: (1) scholarship of teaching and practitioner research (2) change laboratory formative interventions, and (3) multi-level boundary crossing. These lenses, together with a framework that characterizes DC-RPPs based on the practical constructs of (1) processes, (2) roles and (3) habits-of-mind, are used in a 3X3 theory-practice matrix to elicit and articulate nine design principles that can support productive DC-RPPs. We describe two cases that illustrate how the design principles come to life in authentic DC-RPPs (one with 3 middle schools, focusing on interdisciplinary learning, and the other with 22 high-schools, focusing on physics) and conclude with a discussion of emerging work that could support DC-RPPs, and recommendations for future research.
Figures - uploaded by Yael Kali
Author content
All figure content in this area was uploaded by Yael Kali
Content may be subject to copyright.
Kali_Eylon_McKenney_Kidron_AECT_MRW_preprint (
2).pdf
Content uploaded by Yael Kali
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Yael Kali on Sep 22, 2018
Content may be subject to copyright.
KaliEylonMcKenneyKidron20
18.pdf
Content uploaded by Yael Kali
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Yael Kali on Jun 20, 2018
Content may be subject to copyright.
Kali_Eylon_McKenney_Kidron_2018_ReferenceWorkEntry_Design-CentricResearch-Pract
ic.pdf
Content uploaded by Yael Kali
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Yael Kali on Jun 20, 2018
Content may be subject to copyright.
Kali_Eylon_McKenney_Kidron_2018_ReferenceWorkEntry_Design-CentricResearch-Pract
ic.pdf
Content uploaded by Yael Kali
Author content
All content in this area was uploaded by Yael Kali on Jun 19, 2018
Content may be subject to copyright.
A preview of the PDF is not available
... To reach these goals, we adopted an RPP paradigm. RPP is a collaborative, mutually beneficial alliance between educational researchers and practitioners (Kali et al., 2018). Coburn and Penuel (2016) emphasized that RPPs focus on mutual engagements, where the work is jointly negotiated, and intentional strategies foster these partnerships through designed roles, routines, and protocols. ...
... In this study, the emphasis on the teachers' participation in the research process and its iterative nature led to the adoption of the DC-RPP method. DC-RPPs represent a collaborative endeavour that bridges the gap between theoretical research and practical application, with a strong emphasis on innovative design methodologies (Kali et al., 2018). These partnerships are characterized by their focus on addressing real-world problems through the lens of design, facilitating a symbiotic relationship where design principles and practices inform research and vice versa. ...
... Conversely, for students, the focus is on understanding AI principles, ethical usage, and practical interactions with AI tools, fostering critical thinking and responsible use (Miao & Holmes, 2023). This dual approach ensures that while the framework serves a common purpose of promoting AI competence, it respects and addresses the distinct educational and developmental needs of each group (Kali et al., 2018). ...
An Artificial Intelligence Competency Framework for Teachers and Students: Co-created With Teachers
Article
Full-text available
  • Dec 2024
Artificial intelligence (AI), especially generative AI (GenAI), is rapidly permeating every aspect of our lives, driving an accelerated evolution of how we work, play, and learn, thus necessitating new competencies for teachers and students. This study develops and validates an AI competency framework tailored for teachers and students, with an emphasis on researcher-teacher co-creation. The researcherteacher collaboration highlights the importance of teacher involvement in the design process, ensuring the framework’s alignment with real-world educational practices. The framework identifies four key skills: identification of AI mechanisms and their operation; effective and informed use of AI; AI agency: proactive and value-generating utilization of AI; and ethical use of AI, each with specific abilities and components. It also outlines necessary values, attitudes, and knowledge for engaging with AI in education, aiming to prepare teachers and students for an AI-saturated world. This study discusses the need for assessment indicators and assimilation models.
View
... Refs. [11,14] state that RPPs' main aims are (1) generating research findings to inform practice or policy, (2) increasing schools' capacities to implement sustained improvement, and (3) designing resources for school practices. ...
... In addition to professional development, working on the operational environmental structures and strategic educational development was a goal for all the actors. These results related to Kali et al.'s [14] notion of RPPs aiming to further schools' ability to sustainably improve practices. In addition, although the jointly stated goals were clearly discernible, their more precise meaning varied for the actors. ...
... The reported experiences regarding the goal-setting process and commitment to goals are in line with previous research results. Joint and collaboratively implemented participatory goal setting with stakeholders [11,27] and needs-and research-based goal setting [14] offer a good starting point and help actors commit to the RPP. However, a concern remains about the participation of all stakeholders for the entire duration of the process [12]. ...
Creating Transformative Research–Practice Partnership in Collaboration with School, City, and University Actors
Article
Full-text available
  • Apr 2024
Traditional educational research has been criticized for the gap between the research and practice communities, meaning that outcomes do not transfer to educational praxis. To meet this challenge, policymakers, funders, and researchers are developing research–practice partnerships (RPPs). The purpose of this research is to study the research–practice partnership as a strategy for educational transformation in the Finnish educational context. This study highlights the multifaceted perspectives of key RPP stakeholders: teachers, principals, municipality administrators, and researchers. Their experiences were explored through semi-structured interviews. The data were examined through content analysis and categorized into themes depicting the goals and goal-setting process in RPPs, the experiences of RPP activities, and the factors facilitating and challenging RPPs. The results show that stakeholders viewed the goals through the perspectives of professional development; supporting the growth and learning of students; and developing school, municipality, and research practices. Regular participation solidified the commitment to the RPP process. Horizontal interaction worked well between stakeholders, but challenges arose with vertical interaction. We found multiple roles for researchers and municipality administrators. Researchers found that they take on a new role in RPPs as change agents and facilitators. Regarding the facilitating or challenging aspects of RPPs, an open and flexible attitude and atmosphere and readiness for change are demanded on all actor levels. Mutual appreciation and sensitivity facilitate RPP activities. We propose taking all stakeholder perspectives into account when designing RPPs aimed at systemic change and that RPP processes should facilitate both horizontal and vertical interaction.
View
... Scholars further note it can be efficacious for RPPs learning to engage in DBIR to begin by focusing a centralized team of researchers and practitioners on a discrete, user-centric problem of practice (e.g., student knowledge in a particular content domain; see Fishman et al., 2003;Kali et al., 2018). ...
... Such findings align with the insight of Henrick and colleagues (2015) about the utility of specifying explicit, high-quality visions or goals for teaching and learning at the outset of DBIR work. Moreover, such findings reflect the power of focusing RPPs on discrete user-centric problems of practice (e.g., Fishman et al., 2003;Kali et al., 2018) and how shared visions can provide a basis for beginning cycles of inquiry (Nelson et al., 2010). In contrast, Hamilton's DMLT quickly narrowed its focus to a problem of practice without devoting significant attention to goal development and/ or understanding associated frameworks that could help guide data collection/analysis of the problem. ...
View
... Such a concerted effort ensures that RPPs are effective in their pursuit of practical solutions and community improvement. This unique intersection between representatives of academia and the community is a multifaceted endeavor, necessitating the cultivation of fresh perspectives and behaviors among partners to realize mutual benefits [13][14][15][16]. Within RPPs, research serves various functions, both as a knowledge-generation tool and as a means of accessing existing evidence. ...
Research–Practice Partnership in a Professional Development Program: Promoting Youth at Risk
Article
Full-text available
  • Jan 2024
Research–Practice Partnerships (RPPs) embody enduring collaborations between practitioners and researchers that systematically address practical challenges to enhance education. This study describes research conducted within the framework of an RPP in which researchers were united with an educational association tasked with leading a professional development program (PDP) for teachers serving youth at risk. This study focuses on demonstrating a model for evaluating the implementation of the program’s educational philosophy among PDP participants. This comprehensive model comprises three interlinked components: cultivating awareness of the educational philosophy, fostering a profound comprehension of its principles, and facilitating the application of practices aligned with this philosophy. To investigate these dimensions, we drew upon data gathered through a survey administered to 140 educators and through in-depth interviews with 22 members of the educational staff. By examining these three pivotal components, we not only dissect the implementation process but also identify strengths and weaknesses, paving the way for a tailored intervention strategy. Beyond the immediate implications for program improvement, this research underscores the program’s reciprocal benefits for both researchers and practitioners. It holds the potential to influence the professional development of those involved, concurrently enriching the broader research community with invaluable insights gained from real-world educational contexts. Keywords: Research–Practice Partnership (RPP); youth at risk; evaluation model; educational change; educational community
View
View
Investigating the relationship between collaborative design, online learning and educator integrated professional development
Article
  • Feb 2025
  • Internet High Educ
The global expansion of university-level online programmes has heightened the demand for educators to design and facilitate meaningful learning experiences. However, many educators lack the necessary expertise and experience, highlighting the urgency for contextually relevant professional development opportunities. This paper investigates the collaborative design processes of novice online educators and digital learning professionals when designing online learning and the conditions promoting educators’ development. A multiple case study methodology was employed, recruiting six interdisciplinary design teams from five UK-based universities. Data collection involved two phases of semi-structured interviews and design meeting observations. Findings evidence three key processes: (1) framing the design inquiry, (2) sharing and integrating insider knowledge and expertise, and (3) anticipating the future. Emotional support, skilled facilitation and valuing diverse perspectives acted as enabling conditions. We propose network-enabled and boundary-crossing capabilities as novel dimensions of educators’ development. This paper emphasises the need for purposeful collaborative design initiatives for integrated professional development.
View
דוח מחקר - כשירות בינה מלאכותית למורים ולתלמידים
Research
Full-text available
  • Jul 2024
מחקר זה - 'כשירות מורים ותלמידים בעולם רווי בינה מלאכותית' - שם לו למטרה לפתח ולתקף מסגרת תיאורטית ופרקטית לכשירות בינה מלאכותית המותאמת למורים ולתלמידים. שאלות המחקר הן: מהי כשירות בינה מלאכותית? מהם המיומנויות, הידע, הערכים והגישות הנדרשים ממורים ומתלמידים בעידן רווי בינה מלאכותית? באמצעות אילו פרקטיקות ניתן להשיגם? כיצד ניתן להעריך את רמת הביצוע של המורים והתלמידים?
View
דו״ח מחקר - פרסונליות בקורסים הדיגיטליים במתמטיקה -יישומי בינה מאלכותית
Research
Full-text available
  • Jul 2024
הניסוי "פרסונליות בקורסים הדיגיטליים במתמטיקה - יישומי בינה מלאכותית" נערך בשנה"ל תשפ"ד, במטרה לחקור את השפעת השימוש בקורסים דיגיטליים - הוראה מבוססת נתונים ובינה מלאכותית (AI) על הוראת המתמטיקה בחטיבות הביניים ובתיכונים בישראל. מטרות המחקר היו לפתח מודל תיאורטי ופרקטי להוראה מותאמת אישית ודיפרנציאלית, להעצים את המורים בשימוש בהוראה מבוססת נתונים ובאנליטיקות למידה (Learning Analytics), ולקדם לומד עצמאי ופרסונלי באמצעות יישומי בינה מלאכותית במודל של המורה בכיתתו ובהוראה מרחוק.
View
Initiating and sustaining partnerships between research and practice: Lessons learned from school and district leaders
Article
  • May 2024
Purpose Many researchers partner with schools but may be unfamiliar with practices for initiating contact and sustaining relationships with school leaders. Partnering with schools requires significant effort from the researcher to nurture communication and trust. This can pose challenges for researchers who are new to the field, have relocated to a new university or need to rebuild relationships due to transitions in school staffing. Design/methodology/approach In this mixed-methods study, we interviewed and surveyed school and district leaders in Delaware to learn how researchers can best communicate and form relationships with schools and districts. Findings We found no singular best method exists to initiate contact with schools and districts. Rather, researchers should consider the unique needs of the local context. Leaders’ decision to participate in research was most influenced by their own interest in the research topic, alignment with schools’ needs and researchers’ willingness to build a relationship with the local education agency. Originality/value Despite broad acknowledgment about the importance of school–university partnerships, few studies directly engage educators in discussing their goals, preferences and needs when working with researchers. We sought to formalize an understanding of best practices researchers can consider when initiating contact and building relationships with schools, directly from the perspective of school and district leaders. Developing these understandings from practitioners ensures the information authentically represents the perspectives of those who researchers seek to connect with, rather than assumptions of the researcher.
View
Designing measures of complex collaborations with participatory, evidence-centered design
Article
Full-text available
  • Aug 2024
An increasingly popular form of collaboration involves forming partnerships among researchers, educators, and community members to improve or transform education systems through research inquiry. However, not all partnerships are successful. The field needs valid, reliable, and useful measures to help with assessing progress toward partnership goals. In this community case study, we present a participatory, mixed-methods approach for creating measures to assess the progress of education research-practice partnerships (RPPs). The case illustrates a novel approach to measurement design, driven by perspectives and feedback of over 300 members of 80 partnerships. As a result, the measures align with the values and practices of the very collaborations the measures were intended to assess.
View
Transformative Learning in Design Research: The Story Behind the Scenes
Presentation
Full-text available
  • Jun 2016
The current article originated from an invitation I received to give a keynote about the role that design research can play in prompting innovation within teacher-researcher partnerships. As I was reflecting on my research from the past 20 years to prepare for the talk, it struck me that the published record of this work was missing what I had recalled as the most exciting aspect of conducting the research with the various teams involved. Although the publications present innovative learning environments, and ways to understand student learning within these environments, they fail to reveal the adventurous nature of design research. Especially missing from the formal articles are those "eureka moments", in which things that seemed confusing about the phenomena studied, all of a sudden became clear. Until these moments of revelation, we often pursued directions of research that frustratingly turned out as nonproductive. The moments of revelation, and the new research trajectories that had emerged from them, often made the frustrating part of the research worthwhile, and turned the research into a gratifying and exciting experience. Nonetheless, the non-linear parts of the stories in many of those research projects, which were full of dilemmas and dead-end trajectories, stayed behind the scenes and were never published. As a learning scientist, I became curious in retrospectively examining the learning processes that enabled us to eventually understand things in different, more productive ways in those research projects.
View
Extending the Applicability of Design-based Research through Research- Practice Partnerships
Poster
Full-text available
  • Apr 2018
AERA 2018 - Learning Sciences SIG Poster Session This research explored the implementation of a technology-enhanced instructional model for interdisciplinary learning, which was developed for higher education. Our aim was to extend its applicability by implementing it in three secondary schools. Therefore, a research-practice-partnership was established, and three practitioner-teams collaboratively designed technology-enhanced interdisciplinary learning environments, in which they adapted the model. This paper presents a new type of principled practical knowledge (PPK) —enhanced principled instructional model— which was obtained by comparing the practitioners' designs and the higher education design. The PKK broadened our understanding of ways to promote interdisciplinary learning. This study illustrates how productive research-practice partnerships can serve as a powerful strategy for implementing and scaling educational innovations beyond the original research context.
View
Extending the applicability of design-based research through research-practice partnerships
Article
Full-text available
  • Nov 2017
This research explored the implementation of a technology-enhanced instructional model for interdisciplinary learning. The model was developed in a previous phase of this research via DBR in the context of higher-education. Our aim in the current phase was to extend the applicability of the model and refine its underlying design principles based on their implementation in three secondary schools. For this purpose, a research-practice partnership was established, which included researchers, practitioners from an educational non-governmental organization, school principals, and teachers. Three practitioner-teams, facilitated by one of the researchers, collaboratively designed their own technology-enhanced interdisciplinary learning environments, in which they adapted the instructional model. This paper presents a new type of principled practical knowledge (PPK) —enhanced principled instructional model— which was obtained by comparison between the practitioners' designs and the original, higher-education context design. The PPK broadened the partnership's understanding of ways to promote interdisciplinary learning. Furthermore, it has raised new perspectives that were not considered during the development of the model, thereby allowing deeper understanding of the notion of interdisciplinary learning. Thus, this study illustrates how the establishment of productive research-practice partnerships can serve as a powerful strategy for implementing and scaling educational innovations beyond the original DBR context.
View
Formative Interventions for Expansive Learning and Transformative Agency
Article
Full-text available
  • Jun 2016
The article examines formative interventions as we understand them in cultural-historical activity theory, and reflects upon key differences between this intervention research tradition and design-based research as it is conceived in the learning sciences tradition. Three projects, including two Change Laboratories (CL), are analyzed with the help of conceptual lenses derived from basic epistemological principles for intervention research in activity theory. In all three interventions, learners expansively transformed the object of their activity. The CL cases, however, show that this learning process included productive deviations from the researchers’ instructional intentions, leading to significant outcomes, both practical and theoretical, that were not anticipated by the interventionists. Together, these cases illustrate that an activity-theoretical formative intervention approach differs from design based research in the following ways: 1) formative interventions are based on design done by the learners; 2) the collective design effort is seen as part of an expansive learning process, including participatory analyses and implementation phases; 3) rather than aiming at transferable and scalable solutions, formative interventions aim at generative solutions developing over lengthy periods of time in both the researched activities and in the research community.
View
The SERP Approach to Problem-Solving Research, Development, and Implementation
Article
  • Nov 2013
Education researchers are increasingly working in practice-based partnerships in order to direct their research efforts toward important problems of practice. We argue for the creation of an infrastructure to support routine and sustained interaction among researchers, practitioners, and designers in order to make partnership efforts more efficient and effective over time. We describe SERP's efforts to initiate such an infrastructure through the creation and operation of “field sites”—long-term research, development, and implementation partnerships with school districts. We describe principles for field site operation and for product design that are emerging through our “learning by doing” approach. And we argue that the field site partnerships have produced work that is fundamentally different in character and content because of the SERP rules of engagement. SERP work is also more coherent because of its interdisciplinary character, and the sophistication of the partnership's work grows over time as related lines of work become integrated and as those engaged in sustained collaboration learn from each other.
View
Researcher–Practitioner Collaboration in Educational Design Research: Processes, Roles, Values, and Expectations
Chapter
  • Jan 2016
This volume offers a historical and critical analysis of the emerging field of the learning sciences, which takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding and improving how children and adults learn. It features a wide range of authors, including established scholars who founded and guided the learning sciences through the initial turbulence of forming a new line of academic inquiry, as well as newcomers who are continuing to shape the field. This diversity allows for a broad yet selective perspective on what the learning sciences are, why they came to be, and how contributors conduct their work. Reflections on the Learning Sciences serves both as a starting point for discussion among scholars familiar with the discipline and as an introduction for those interested in learning more. It will benefit graduate students and researchers in computer science, educational psychology, instructional technology, science, engineering, and mathematics.
View
View
View
A better research-practice partnership
Article
  • Nov 2016
District leaders often feel that working with researchers is not mutually beneficial. Researchers don’t provide enough practical guidance, and they’re often unable to present their findings in time to inform district decision making. Research-practice partnerships (RPPs) are a potential new strategy for addressing these challenges. RPPs are long-term, mutual collaborations between practitioners and researchers that are organized to investigate problems of practice and solutions for improving district outcomes. By focusing on real-time district challenges, RPPs can lead to research that is informative, timely, and relevant to district stakeholders.
View
Institutional Ecology, 'Translations' and Boundary Objects: Amateurs and Professionals in Berkeley's Museum of Vertebrate Zoology
Article
  • Jan 1989
  • SOC STUD SCI
Objets fronti_re = s'adaptent pour prendre en compte plusieurs points de vue et maintenir une identité entre eux Cet espace de travail se construit grâce à des objets-frontières tels que des systèmes de classification, qui relient entre eux les concepts communs et les rôles sociaux divergents de chaque groupe professionnel. Les objet-frontière contribuent à la stabilité du système de référence en offrant un contexte partagé pour la communication et la coopération. Les objets peuvent être considérés comme frontière (Star et Griesemer, 1989) en tant qu’ils contribuent à la stabilité du système de référence en offrant un contexte partagé pour la communication et la coopération.
View