Research School Partnership
Park Primary – Working in Partnership with Somerset Research School
At Park Primary School, we are proud to work in partnership with Somerset Research School, part of the national EEF Research Schools Network.
The Research Schools Network exists to support schools in making effective use of educational research and evidence to improve teaching, learning and outcomes for children. Somerset Research School works with schools across the South West to help teachers and leaders understand the evidence behind effective practice and, importantly, how that evidence can be translated successfully into everyday classroom teaching.
For The Park Primary, this partnership reflects an important part of our approach to school improvement. We want the decisions we make about teaching and learning to be informed by the best available evidence, while always considering the needs of the children and community we serve.
What does being a Research School partner mean for The Park Primary School?
Our work with Somerset Research School provides opportunities for The Park Primary to both learn from and contribute to evidence-informed practice.
This includes engaging with EEF guidance and research, developing our approach to professional development, sharing effective classroom practice and contributing to wider professional learning across the region.
A key principle of this work is that research should not simply sit in reports or guidance documents. It should help teachers make informed decisions about what happens in classrooms every day. This means carefully identifying areas for improvement, selecting approaches supported by evidence, providing high-quality professional development and evaluating how successfully changes have become embedded in practice.
This approach closely reflects the EEF’s guidance on effective implementation, which emphasises that sustainable school improvement is a process rather than a one-off initiative.
Sharing expertise beyond Park Primary
Our Head of School, Mr Gamble, is part of the extended Somerset Research School team as an Evidence Lead in Education for Early Years and Primary Reading.
In this role, Mr Gamble supports other teachers and school leaders in connecting educational research with effective classroom practice. His work particularly focuses on Early Years, Early and Primary Literacy, Reading and Evidence-Informed Professional Development.
The Somerset Research School describes Mr Gamble’s work as including the implementation of research-informed approaches and professional development in Early Years and Key Stage One, alongside leading evidence-based developments in reading fluency and comprehension across the Mosaic Partnership Trust.
Mr Gamble has also contributed to professional development delivered through the Research School, sharing our experience of putting evidence into practice with colleagues beyond Park Primary.
Contributing to the evidence conversation
Mr Gamble has written a number of articles for Somerset Research School which draw upon both educational research and the practical experience of implementing evidence-informed approaches in schools.
Teaching Primary Children to be Fluent Readers explores the importance of explicitly teaching reading fluency and describes the development of a structured approach to guided oral and repeated reading. The work draws upon EEF literacy guidance and has helped shape the approach to reading fluency used across our Trust schools.
https://researchschool.org.uk/somerset/news/teaching-primary-children-to-be-fluent-readers
Talk First: Closing the Early Literacy Gap in the Early Years considers the crucial role of communication, vocabulary and high-quality classroom talk in children’s early literacy development. It explores how research has influenced approaches to shared reading, vocabulary instruction and structured talk in Early Years practice.
Closing the Gap Through Great Teaching, Not More Interventions considers how schools can best support disadvantaged pupils. It argues for a strong universal offer built around high-quality everyday teaching, including explicit modelling, purposeful classroom talk and effective feedback, alongside carefully planned professional development.
These contributions allow us not only to learn from the wider evidence base but also to share what implementation looks like in a real primary school.
Park practice featured nationally
We are also proud that classroom practice from Park has contributed to the Research Schools Network’s Clips from the Classroom resources.
Our Deputy Head of School Mr Nicholls has contributed classroom practice demonstrating scaffolding as part of the EEF’s ‘5-a-day’ approach. The resource explores the use of visual, verbal and written scaffolds to support pupils’ learning while developing their independence.
Clips from the Classroom are designed to give teachers authentic examples of evidence-informed teaching in action and to provide a stimulus for professional development and reflection. Somerset Research School’s contribution to the national collection focuses on practical cognitive and metacognitive approaches that can help pupils become increasingly effective and independent learners.
What does this mean for our children?
Ultimately, our involvement with Somerset Research School is about improving the education our children receive.
Being closely connected with the Research Schools Network helps us continually ask important questions:
- What does the strongest available evidence tell us?
- How does this apply to the children at Park Primary?
- How can we support teachers to develop their expertise?
- How will we know whether a change is making a difference?
- How can we share effective practice with others?
We are proud that The Park Primary is both using evidence and contributing to it. Through our partnership with Somerset Research School, our staff have opportunities to learn from research, work alongside other professionals, share effective practice and contribute to the wider educational community.
Most importantly, this work supports our continuing commitment to providing every child at The Park with the highest possible quality of teaching and the strongest foundations for future learning.
Find out more:
Visit the Somerset Research School website to explore its training, resources, blogs and wider work across the South West. Home Page | Somerset Research School