Schools2030
Global Research Grants 2023

Schools2030 seeks to cultivate more inclusive learning environments and ultimately improve holistic learning outcomes by introducing human-centred design approaches that encourage innovative, child-centred pedagogical practices in the classroom. Teachers are trained and supported with a suite of tools, including AKF’s Inclusive Classroom Guide and a Learning Environment Assessment Tool (the BEQI at preschool level) to encourage them to self-reflect on their practice. Along with learning outcome data, this then helps to inform their human-centred design process with the aim of generating more inclusive classroom innovations that are relevant to the learning needs of their students. As Schools2030 predominately works in schools, educators have focused on nurturing inclusive environments inside the classroom, and therefore our existing dataset comes from school environments. However, we recognise that holistic learning is activated beyond the realms of the classroom – this may be in non-teaching time at school, during times of play at breaks or during after school activities, at home in the family, or in the wider community. For this reason, we are interested in understanding how our existing offering of teacher-oriented tools and resources, and our model for engaging with schools and teachers may better acknowledge and interact with holistic learning opportunities outside the classroom. We welcome creative approaches to investigating this – this may encompass integrating the classroom environment data already being collected through the programme with wider environment data. We ultimately hope that research can offer practical recommendations for the programme on better supporting teachers and schools to foster quality, inclusive learning environments that promote holistic skills development. Existing classroom learning environment data from the programme would be made available to successful research teams under this sub-theme if relevant. 

 We conceptualise holistic learning as a blend of contextually relevant knowledge, skills, values and attitudes. In each Schools2030 country, a specific set of holistic learning domains spanning academic and non-academic skills has been selected in partnership with Ministries of Education, local education authorities, teachers and other school stakeholders for each age cohort to ensure contextual relevance and alignment to policy and curriculum priorities. Schools2030 National Assessment Partners in each programme country have worked together with the Global Assessment Partner, Oxford MeasurEd, to design contextualised, teacher-led holistic learning assessment tools to measure student learning outcomes in the selected domains. Teachers are using these assessment tools in the classroom to understand the learning levels of their students, and then using this data to inform the development of classroom innovations through human-centred design. Building on the work Schools2030 has already led on conceptualising and measuring holistic learning in the given country contexts, we recognise an opportunity to further investigate how the different holistic learning domains interact, and how this varies in different contexts. Existing holistic learning assessment data would be made available to successful research teams under this sub-theme if relevant.  

Our key research questions under this sub-theme include: 

1. How does the classroom environment impact students’ holistic learning outcomes (which we define as contextually relevant knowledge, skills, values and attitudes)? 

a. What is the nature of the relationship between learning outcomes and the classroom environment data emerging from Schools2030? What role does the school environment play on learning outcomes?  

b. How do variables in the wider learning environment (eg. time outside the classroom at school, at home and in the community) correlate with holistic learning outcomes?  

c. What implications does this have for the way the Schools2030 model engages with schools as part of a broader learning eco-system that includes parents, families and communities? 

2. Schools2030 focuses on different holistic learning domains (5 domains per age group in each country that have been selected at the country level to reflect national education priorities) encompassing academic and non-academic skills. How might these combinations of learning domains relate to or reinforce each other? 

a. What interlinkages exist between the holistic learning domains? How does this vary over time/age cohort? (Eg – what happens to maths ability when we simultaneously nurture creativity? What happens to a child’s capacity for empathy when we nurture leadership? Please note these are illustrative examples only)  

b. May some domains be considered “gateways” to improved outcomes in other holistic learning domains? Are there some domain combinations that are particularly beneficial to overall improved holistic learning outcomes?  

c.When examining holistic domains, how can we consider contextual nuance where the same combinations of domains are being addressed in different contexts? (Schools2030 holistic domains are contextually defined, so “critical thinking” in Kyrgyzstan and in Portugal will not necessarily be defined in the same way, “self-awareness” in Brazil and in India will not be defined in the same way, etc.) 

3. How can we support teachers to intentionally foster inclusive learning environments and effectively respond to their students’ diverse learning needs? 

a. To what extent do teachers understand what an inclusive learning environment looks like in relation to the varied and intersecting needs of different children? 

b. How do leadership/organisational structures (at school, district, regional and national levels) hinder or enable teachers to foster more inclusive learning environments in low-resource and/or conflict affected settings, such as those Schools2030 is working in?  

c. To what extent are teachers adapting their practice based on the Inclusive Classroom Guide and intentionally using the Schools2030 Learning Environment Assessment Tools (including the BEQI in preschools) and resulting data to inform their human-centred design process? 

d. How might we aggregate classroom-level data on both learning outcomes and the learning environment so it can be used by teachers to inform their HCD process?  

e. What further support do teachers need to beable to effectively use this data to address the varied and intersecting needs of their students in the classroom? 

f. What implications does this have for teacher professional development provision? How aligned are education systems to teachers’ initiatives in fostering inclusive learning environments? How might we work better with the different organisational structures at school, district, regional and national levels in Schools2030 programme countries to ensure teachers are supported to foster inclusive learning environments?  

We believe that enhancing teachers’ capacity to measure, design and implement education innovations in the classroom, as well as increasing opportunities for teachers to engage in education sector dialogue are key pathways to achieving SDG4. We recognise and seek to amplify teachers as leaders, innovators and active agents in education reform. In our Theory of Change, we connect teacher agency to professional shifts in mindsets and the adoption of innovative practice, which we posit to be conducive to improving holistic learning outcomes for all children. Nevertheless, there is a need to delve deeper into what is meant by “teacher agency”, how this is valued and perceived in different contexts, and how teacher agency does (or does not) lead to improved classroom practice. 

Our key research questions under this sub-theme include: 

1. What does teacher agency look like in Schools2030 countries?

a. How do leadership/organisational structures (at school, district, regional and national levels) hinder or enable teachers to have agency? What are the policy and school leadership enablers and constraints shaping the status of teachers in low-resource and fragile settings, such as those Schools2030 is working in?  

b. What influence does the relationship between the political environment and teacher status have on education innovation in the classroom and teacher practice? 

c. What value is assigned to teachers having agency? How should we define teacher agency for the contexts in which Schools2030 is working? 

d. How should we define and understand teacher wellbeing in relation to teacher agency in the different Schools2030 contexts?  

e. What are the pathways to promoting teacher agency in Schools2030 contexts? What partnerships are critical for teachers to be able to have agency and be innovative – at school, district, regional and national levels?  

2. How does teacher agency lead to teacher mindset shift, and in turn to innovative practice in the classroom?  

a. Under what conditions do teachers adopt and embrace new ways of teaching that can lead to education innovation? What are the enabling cultural, professional, and personal factors that promote long term behaviour change among teachers in Schools2030 contexts? How does this vary by context? 

b. What aspects of the Schools2030 programme (whether this be tools, resources and training, or the more affective elements such as affiliation to the programme, opportunities for showcasing and peer/stakeholder networking) support teacher agency? How can we improve existing Schools2030 tools, training and other aspects of the programme to better up-skill teachers for new ways of thinking, particularly where there is no internet access?  

c. How can we better support teacher readiness for change as a long-term vision over the course of the Schools2030 programme? 

d. Does participation in Schools2030 activate more positive teacher self-perception? If so, does this lead to improved practice? 

e. What implications do the above questions have for current pre-service and in-service teacher training programmes? How might teacher training programmes need to change to ensure levels of teacher agency increase in the future generation of educators?

We are also interested in the interaction between the two sub-theme topics:  

3. What is the nature of the relationship between teacher agency and inclusive learning environments? 

a. What happens to the learning environment when teacher mindsets shift towards new ways of teaching?