Across many countries, national, federal and district level governments are increasingly pursuing approaches to school improvement that seek to achieve so-called 'bottom-up' change. That is, improvements to teaching and learning that are generated by teachers, and subsequently shared horizontally and vertically within educational systems. Often such change relies on educators engaging in 'evidence-informed practice': improvements to teaching in learning that are grounded in data and research. Within this context, this handbook examines how to bring about more consistent, evidence-informed practice in education globally. To do so, chapter authors have employed Hood's (1998) social regulation/cohesion matrix, combined with an institutional theory analytic lens, to provide detail on their specific contexts, including perspectives from every continent. Insights are subsequently analysed comparatively to provide generalisable insights that can be applied to any country, across the globe. Generating understanding into how to more routinely foster evidence-informed teaching practice globally, this ground-breaking handbook is vital reading for educational researchers, and especially those working close to practice, in all settings. It is hoped that there are also lessons from education that can be applied to other areas such as social care, justice or health.

The potential for research evidence to improve educational policy and practice is immense. Yet internationally, research used by teachers and governments is currently sporadic rather than systematic. In response, this book brings together seven chapters that encompass a range of research projects and ideas in relation to evidence-informed policy and practice (EIPP) in education. These projects and ideas all share a single overarching purpose: providing insight into how EIPP in education can be achieved. Underpinning each chapter is the notion that the world is complex. If we are to introduce change in any meaningful way into it, we therefore have to understand and respond to this complexity. This means then that we cannot simply assume that, because it seems rational or common sense for teachers and policy-makers to use research to help improve their decision making or acts of praxis, that they will do so. Correspondingly, the book represents a holistic journey of discovery and experimentation: of an engagement with the work of thinkers and authors from Eco to Flyvbjerg, via Habermas, Foucault and Aristotle; of ideas ranging from phronesis to trust and social relations; and with diverse research methodologies, including social network analysis and decision tree predictive modelling. The result is both descriptive and prescriptive: as well as outlining the research and its findings, practical suggestions and strategies for achieving evidence use both in educational policy and practice are provided throughout.

“The establishment of professional learning networks can be transformational for you personally and professionally. This book takes you step by step through the process of developing an effective Professional Learning Network (PLN) to create and realise a new status quo!� Catherine Carden, Canterbury Christ Church University, UK “The book impressively underscores the relevance and opportunities of Professional Learning Networks for innovation in school, while also addressing the challenges and pitfalls of successfully establishing, running and sustaining PLNs from the perspective of teachers.� Colin Cramer, University of Tuebingen, Germany “This book is a must read for practitioners, policy makers and researchers interested in Professional Learning Networks! [It] provides readers with concrete recipes with all the necessary ingredients, including leadership, trust and collaboration, to ensure PLN success.� Prof. Dr. Kim Schildkamp, University of Twente, the Netherlands The Teacher’s Guide to Successful Professional Learning Networks supports educators with practical guidelines developed from the authors’ practical and research-based experience in this area. Taking a step-by-step approach, the book guides readers through the different stages of inquiry and influencing factors involved with successfully running a PLN. The authors explore how teachers can participate in networks to achieve deep reflective inquiry and make positive changes in teaching and learning. The book: -Builds on international research into professional learning networks (PLNs) -Uses illustrative case studies from a range of contexts across the world -Provides step-by-step guidance to help readers establish sustainable PLNs  Drawing from a diverse range of international contexts and with content stretching from early years to secondary, this book is essential reading for any educator looking to create, expand or enhance their Professional Learning Network. Cindy Poortman is Associate professor at the University of Twente in the Netherlands. Her research and teaching focus is teacher and school leader professional development in Professional Learning Networks (PLNs). She has co-founded and is coordinating the PLN network within the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement. Chris Brown is Professor and Director of Research at the University of Warwick’s Department of Education Studies. He has co-edited two books on Professional Learning Networks, is co-editor of the Emerald’s Professional Learning Networks Book Series; and is co-founder and co-convener of the ICSEI Professional Learning Networks research network.

This book provides a semiotic analysis of 'scenes', powerful vehicles for introducing new ideas, perspectives and behaviours, as a concept. In particular, it examines the types of scene that exist; explores their effectiveness in spreading new ideas; and considers their vital role in introducing originality and difference in modern society.

This book supports teacher trainees as they help students develop maths reasoning skills. It uses the Causal Connectivity Framework and enhances the knowledge and skills of trainees in sequencing teaching content with cumulative knowledge and understanding. It covers a variety of contexts from primary education up to GCSE level and includes practical examples of what is possible. The book offers maths teachers an alternative way of incorporating reasoning as a critical component of maths learning – a part of continuous professional development based on strong subject and curriculum content knowledge. 

Civilizations and World Order: Geopolitics and Cultural Difference examines the role of civilizations in the context of the existing and possible world order(s) from a cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary perspective. Contributions seek to clarify the meaning of such complex and contested notions as "civilization," "order," and "world order"; they do so by taking into account political, economic, cultural, and philosophical dimensions of social life. The book deals with its main theme from three angles or vectors: first, the geopolitical or power-political context of civilizations; secondly, the different roles of civilizations or cultures against the backdrop of "post-coloniality" and "Orientalism"; and thirdly, the importance of ideological and regional differences as factors supporting or obstructing world order(s). All in all, the different contributions demonstrate the impact of competing civilizational trajectories on the functioning or malfunctioning of contemporary world order.

Democratic societies thrive when citizens actively and critically engage with new ideas, developments and claims to truth. Not only can such practices result in more effective choice-making, but they can also lead to widespread support for progressive beliefs, such as social justice. With Western societies in the midst of environmental, social and political crises, it seems more pertinent than ever that citizens become ‘ideas-informed’. Presenting concepts from academia, industry, and practice, The Ideas-Informed Society closes the gap between the ideal of the ideas-informed society and the current reality. By exploring what it means to be ideas-informed and the benefits for both individuals and society, the chapters conceive what an ideal ideas-informed society would look like, what are the key ingredients of an ideas-informed society, and how to make it happen.

De-Whitening Intersectionality: Race, Intercultural Communication, and Politics re-evaluates how the logic of color-blindness as whiteness is at play in the current scope of intersectional research on race, intercultural communication, and politics. Calling for a re-centering of difference by exploring the emergence and inception of intersectionality concepts, the coeditors and contributors distinguish between the uses of intersectionality that seem inclusive versus those that actually enact inclusion by demonstrating how to re-conceptualize intersectionality in ways that explicate, elucidate, and elaborate culture-specific and text-specific nuances of knowledge for women of color, queer/trans-people of color, and non-western people of color who have been marked as the Others. As a feminist of color tradition, intersectionality has been appropriated through increasing popularity in the discipline of communication, undermining efforts to critique power when researchers reduce the concept to a checklist of identity markers. This book underscores that in order to play well with and illustrate a nuanced understanding of intersectionality; scholars must be attentive to its origins and implications.

The post-pandemic world provides all of us with the opportunity to think differently about what we want for society. In Educating Tomorrow, Chris Brown and Ruth Luzmore explore what a post-Covid 'blank slate' education system could look like. Taking you on a journey which considers the past and present to inform their prediction of the obstacles and opportunities posed by a post-pandemic future, the authors present a new vision for the future of education which might not have been possible without the eruption of Covid-19. Offering up a range of proposals for how education can begin to emerge anew, and ultimately reach an improved destination, Brown and Luzmore showcase how even in the midst of unprecedented global challenges, it might be possible for us to revolutionise education systems for the better.

Chris Brown is a prominent international political theorist who has contributed to debates on pluralism, justice and human rights. This book draws together seventeen of his most important and influential articles from the last twenty years. These essays include influential statements on the role of normative theory and international ethics, the so-called 'cosmopolitan-communitarian debate' and anti-foundationalist thought in international relations, as well as important contributions to Rawlsian and Post-Rawlsian theories of international and global justice. The most recent papers address subjects such as the notion of global civil society, and controversies over the ethics of pre-emptive warfare, and the inevitably selective nature of humanitarian interventions. The book includes a framing introduction written for this volume, in which Brown discusses his own influences, and the evolution of his thinking throughout his career. Although this evolution has involved a progressively less critical viewpoint towards liberal thought and liberal internationalism, and a greater commitment to universal values, some things have remained constant - in particular a focus on the importance of political judgement and scepticism directed towards the idea that there are simple solutions to complex problems. The collection ends fittingly with a critique of the popular cosmopolitanism of figures such as Bono and Bob Geldof. This collection will be essential reading for all scholars and graduates with an interest in international political theory.

Creating Engagement between Schools and their Communities: Lessons from Educational Leaders addresses how educational leaders have made efforts to reconnect their schools to their communities and the varied goals they achieved. The contributors of this book are educational leaders who have stayed committed to their neighborhoods and who have seen the moral imperative to provide equal opportunity to all students. This book shares their experiences, particularly looking at community-based schools in urban, impoverished, or immigrant communities-communities that often are disconnected from the political and economic centers of the country.

Evidence use is now part of the rhetoric of educational research, policy and practice. Grounded in the contention that using evidence can help educationalists develop better solutions to the key issues facing teaching and learning today, Chris Brown seeks to develop a complex, rich and socially situated framework to aid researchers, practitioners and policy-makers to better understand how evidence-informed policy and practice can be successfully conceived and enacted. In Evidence-Informed Policy and Practice in Education, Brown journeys through his past empirical work while also employing the ideas of a number of key social theorists and philosophers, including Baudrillard, Eco, Flybjerg, Kant and Aristotle, in order to give 'research on evidence use' a more rigorous conceptual underpinning. Examining and critiquing evidence use both by schools and government and critically engaging with topics as wide ranging as consumption and rationality, Brown concludes by setting out an overarching model of evidence-informed policy and practice. In doing so, he also provides a compelling vision for the future role of researchers both within this model and for the promotion of evidence generally.

Civilizations and World Order: Geopolitics and Cultural Difference examines the role of civilizations in the context of the existing and possible world order(s) from a cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary perspective. Contributions seek to clarify the meaning of such complex and contested notions as "civilization," "order," and "world order"; they do so by taking into account political, economic, cultural, and philosophical dimensions of social life. The book deals with its main theme from three angles or vectors: first, the geopolitical or power-political context of civilizations; secondly, the different roles of civilizations or cultures against the backdrop of "post-coloniality" and "Orientalism"; and thirdly, the importance of ideological and regional differences as factors supporting or obstructing world order(s). All in all, the different contributions demonstrate the impact of competing civilizational trajectories on the functioning or malfunctioning of contemporary world order.

Educational researchers, policy-makers and practitioners are increasingly focusing their attention on Professional Learning Networks in order to facilitate teacher development and encourage school and school system improvement. However, despite the understanding that PLNs can contribute significantly to improving teaching practice and student achievement, there are key challenges regarding their use. These challenges include: ensuring PLNs can provide opportunities for generating and sharing knowledge within schools enabling teachers and professionals to direct their own development helping individuals change their practices through inquiry-led approaches facilitating partnerships which work across a variety of stakeholders In this new edited volume, Brown and Poortman evaluate these challenges from both a theoretical and practical approach. A multitude of perspectives from a team of international contributors covers: the importance of Professional Learning Networks the use of evidence within PLNs the impact of inter-school networks international cases of networks and communities the promotion and sustainability of PLNs Also featuring case studies and exemplars to contextualise sustainable learning networks, Networks For Learning is an accessible and thoroughly-researched book, which will be essential reading and a valuable resource for researchers, teachers and school leaders who are interested in developing professional learning networks.

Educational researchers, policy-makers and practitioners are increasingly focusing their attention on Professional Learning Networks in order to facilitate teacher development and encourage school and school system improvement. However, despite the understanding that PLNs can contribute significantly to improving teaching practice and student achievement, there are key challenges regarding their use. These challenges include: ensuring PLNs can provide opportunities for generating and sharing knowledge within schools enabling teachers and professionals to direct their own development helping individuals change their practices through inquiry-led approaches facilitating partnerships which work across a variety of stakeholders In this new edited volume, Brown and Poortman evaluate these challenges from both a theoretical and practical approach. A multitude of perspectives from a team of international contributors covers: the importance of Professional Learning Networks the use of evidence within PLNs the impact of inter-school networks international cases of networks and communities the promotion and sustainability of PLNs Also featuring case studies and exemplars to contextualise sustainable learning networks, Networks For Learning is an accessible and thoroughly-researched book, which will be essential reading and a valuable resource for researchers, teachers and school leaders who are interested in developing professional learning networks.

Chris Brown is a prominent international political theorist who has contributed to debates on pluralism, justice and human rights. This book draws together seventeen of his most important and influential articles from the last twenty years.

These essays include influential statements on the role of normative theory and international ethics, the so-called 'cosmopolitan-communitarian debate' and anti-foundationalist thought in international relations, as well as important contributions to Rawlsian and Post-Rawlsian theories of international and global justice. The most recent papers address subjects such as the notion of global civil society, and controversies over the ethics of pre-emptive warfare, and the inevitably selective nature of humanitarian interventions.

The book includes a framing introduction written for this volume, in which Brown discusses his own influences, and the evolution of his thinking throughout his career. Although this evolution has involved a progressively less critical viewpoint towards liberal thought and liberal internationalism, and a greater commitment to universal values, some things have remained constant - in particular a focus on the importance of political judgement and scepticism directed towards the idea that there are simple solutions to complex problems. The collection ends fittingly with a critique of the popular cosmopolitanism of figures such as Bono and Bob Geldof.

This collection will be essential reading for all scholars and graduates with an interest in international political theory.

In the seventh part of PeKo Publishing s photo-monograph series, we deal with the popular German heavy tank, the Tiger I. This publication shows the tank s major and minor changes through the 105 black-and-white photographs in the book.

Evaluations of school-based interventions are and should be conducted in order to examine the programme effectiveness and whether and how these programmes should be implemented in schools. Over the last century Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) have been seen as the 'gold standard' for evaluation, however How to Evaluate the Effectiveness of a School-Based Intervention presents a multi-dimensional evaluation framework, which is not only based on measurable outcomes. According to this framework, the evaluation of a programme should combine different methods and perspectives, and should examine the impact of the programme on many student's skills prior to reaching a conclusion of whether and how a programme should be implemented. Suggesting a cost-effective method of conducting a multi-dimensional evaluation research study, in order to include the examination of the impact of the programme on students' thinking skills, this book investigates how these skills can be defined and assessed effectively and presents a step-by-step guide by demonstrating how the multi-dimensional evaluation of the Philosophy for Children programme was conducted. Evaluating the programme from an independent standpoint, this book is essential reading for researchers conducting evaluations in education; researchers who are interested in Philosophy for Children research; and teachers and trainers who internationally implement P4C in their classrooms.

A distinguished selection of contributors provide the theoretical background to the restructuring of Europe that is currently underway. It attempts to situate the ethical debates in a historical, legal and constitutional context, considering important and topical issues such as the rights to seccession and self-determination of minorities in Eastern Europe, and the question of whether national movements are justified in using force to achieve their ends.
The authors number legal and constitutional scholars, political philosophers and international relations theorists. There are contributions from Poland and Croatia.

This collection of chapters from established thinkers and emerging scholars provides a series of unique insights into collaboration between schools and the means by which the policy context influences such activity. Taking a global perspective, the chapters within this book follow a common framework to explore how macro-level factors help to create the conditions in which school-to-school collaboration is likely to succeed or fail 'on the ground'. The result is a nuanced and original analysis that explores why and how collaborative activity between schools is intrinsically linked to broader policy contexts. School collaboration and networking is a rapidly growing area of interest. This book will appeal to the increasing number of emerging scholars and established experts with an interest in this area and other related sub-fields including school effectiveness and improvement, critical policy studies and educational leadership and management. It will also be of interest to policymakers seeking to capitalise on the potential of collaboration between schools and to educational professionals seeking improvement through partnership and dialogue.

The Fall of Singapore remains a crushing defeat that sent shockwaves around the British Empire during the Second World War. Singapore had always been seen as an impenetrable fortress that would protect the British Empire's stake in the Far East - a legacy of the great days of global dominion. The British Army were aware of the threat to Singapore and Malaya from the first days after Pearl Harbor, but they viewed the Japanese Army as an inferior fighting force, incapable of standing up to the defences and trained troops of the British. Yet, in December 1941 the Japanese launched a swift attack on the Singapore airfields, nearly wiping out the entire fleet of RAF frontline aeroplanes. On 10 December the Japanese also destroyed two of the Royal Navy's premier battleships off the Malay coast. Suddenly, the fate of Singapore rested solely in the hands of the Army. Despite having 90,000 British soldiers posted in Singapore they were quickly overwhelmed by the speed and ferocity of the invading Japanese forces, numbering 75,000 men. The brutality of the Japanese tactics and their sheer ferocity shocked the British and they were soon forced to retreat. By January/February 1942 the British last stand melted away and the Japanese swept into the city, slaughtering those who stood in their way. Over 100,000 men were taken prisoner and many thousands (possibly up to 50,000) residents of the city were massacred. To understand what happened and why read Battle Story.

Looking at the potential for research-use by educators to improve schools for all young people, An Ecosystem for Research-Engaged Schools presents a range of ground-breaking research and fascinating case studies. It carefully explores the elements and dimensions of research-engaged schools using an ecosystems perspective to study the layers and interconnections that occur amongst the people and institutions that exist within the ecosystem. Allowing the reader to consider how to ensure independent elements of the ecosystem are maintained to ensure an effective balance, this book brings together contributions from international experts working in a variety of fields such as school leadership, professional development and accountability. Key issues facing the research-use ecosystem both theoretically and empirically are covered, with examples of innovative practice, new theories and value systems. The book also provides an insight into the exciting possibility of such a system of learning and innovation in our schools where structures, cultures, practices and policies align to promote research-informed school improvement. With chapters bringing together issues from different aspects of the system, this book: expands the analysis of evidence and research-informed practice, considering the wider environment within which it is undertaken shows the interplay and tensions between aspects of the ecosystem and illustrates how different aspects of the ecosystem affect evidence use reconciles all aspects of the ecosystem within an overarching framework which attempts to explain the complex totality of the ecosystem. Designed to both challenge and inspire, An Ecosystem for Research-Engaged Schools truly bridges the gap between theory and practice. It will be an invaluable asset to those currently working in the area, allowing them to think more deeply about their work and the theoretical mechanisms that underpin it. Policy makers, practitioners and teachers will also find this book a fascinating read.