Two teachers have just completed action research projects as part of their school’s commitment to being “evidence informed”. The findings of these two projects are anecdotal but interesting, and the core takeaways are that the teachers enjoyed the process and developed some useful research skills. All in the school, including the head, feel that they have achieved what they set out to do: bring research into their practice.

But is that actually what has happened in this case? Were these projects really a demonstration of being research-informed, or were they more about being research-active?

I’d argue they were the latter. The projects were isolated from wider context, and impact was measured in terms of completion of the exercise and the added skills for the teachers, rather than their effect on ongoing practice in the school.

Action research can be motivating and empowering for teachers. Small-scale, teacher-led projects can help staff to explore questions about their classroom practice and build an evidence base to support day-to-day decision-making. Over time, this can improve research confidence across a school and contribute to teacher retention and recruitment strategies.

But for action research to properly help create a research-informed organisation, it has to be much more than a tick-box exercise for teacher professional development. It must be a practical driver of whole-school improvement, generating systematic and robust evidence that informs practice across subjects, departments and year groups.

It should also give power back to teachers. Instead of being told “this works, do this”, the message becomes “you’re the expert”. Through structured enquiry and reflection, teachers should be encouraged to question ideas, orthodoxies and practices, rather than adopt them uncritically.

So, how do we ensure we achieve all of this?

Based on my experience, there are five key questions that schools need to consider if they want action research to be truly worthwhile.

1. Who should be involved?

As with most initiatives in schools, staff buy-in is critical. When action research is first introduced, it’s often best to start with willing volunteers. These will probably be the teachers who are curious about research and keen to explore its potential for improving their practice. The chances of ongoing commitment to - and completion of - the research are, therefore, increased.

These early adopters can help to champion the approach and share its value with others.

To this end, collaboration should play an important role from the start. Small research teams, working across year groups or departments, can help to sustain momentum and support professional dialogue, ensuring that all feel involved and that the research is relevant beyond certain subjects or year groups.

And while starting with a small number of projects allows schools to test and refine the approach, practitioner research should not be seen as something reserved for a select few. In time, all teachers should have the opportunity to be involved.

2. What should teachers research?

Allowing teachers some autonomy over their research focus can spark interest and motivation, but it can also lead to a scattered or uncoordinated set of projects.

Aligning research projects with school development priorities helps to ensure that findings are relevant beyond individual classrooms.

One approach is to identify shared areas of focus - for example, upskilling students who are reading at levels below age-related expectations - and run several related projects simultaneously. This can help to strengthen the overall evidence base and make patterns easier to spot.

Another powerful option is to use action research to scrutinise existing research and training in which the school has already invested.

For example, one school I worked with used action research to evaluate the impact of training on a scaffolding framework. Staff investigated the extent to which changes to interactions between pupils and teaching assistants led to greater pupil independence.

Rather than assuming that the training was effective, they used structured inquiry to test, refine and adapt the approach within their own context. This allowed leaders to judge whether the investment of time and resources was worthwhile.

3. How should research be carried out?

For many teachers, research can feel intimidating. It is often associated with academic jargon and processes that feel far removed from everyday classroom life. Without the right support, even enthusiastic staff can quickly lose confidence.

This means that the right training is a crucial part of successful action research. Support needs to be practical, accessible and explicitly connected to classroom realities. Teachers will need guidance in shaping a clear research question, planning a manageable project and deciding how to collect data and make sense of the results.

This must fit alongside the day job, but it also needs enough structure to ensure that findings are meaningful.

Poorly designed projects can lead to unclear data and inconclusive outcomes, making analysis difficult and frustrating. Given how precious teachers’ time is, investing in and providing the right support from the outset is essential, be that from local universities, experienced colleagues in the same (or an outside) school or trust, or other external experts.

4. What conditions need to be in place?

Embedding action research across a school requires careful attention to the conditions that support success.

This includes asking practical questions, such as how much time teachers will need, whether timetables need to be adjusted, what existing data can be drawn on, and what resources or expertise are required.

Clear leadership from middle and senior leaders is also vital. If action research is only seen as a teacher endeavour, projects are more likely to lose momentum.

5. What happens to the findings?

Teachers are more likely to engage with action research if they can see it has the potential to influence change.

While a single small-scale project is unlikely to justify immediate whole-school change, promising findings can provide a starting point for refinement or further investigation.

Sharing what has been learned across the school is an important part of the process. This helps to spread ideas, strengthen professional relationships and build a shared sense of purpose.

Where possible, schools may also want to look beyond their own context, sharing findings through networks or partnerships with other schools that have similar priorities.

Teacher-led research has clear value, but building a whole-school culture of enquiry takes more than enthusiasm - it requires leadership, clarity of purpose and a commitment to aligning projects with wider school priorities.

When schools foster curiosity, provide the right support and systematically test and refine practice, action research can become more than a “nice to have”; it can strengthen professional trust, improve decision-making and transform approaches to school improvement - grounded in what works in real classrooms.

Sally Franklin is co-founder of Research Box and an associate researcher at University College London

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