Case Study

Maths & English Subject Leadership

Education & Training Foundation

Maths & English Subject Leadership

England

2 months

The Brief

The Education and Training Foundation appointed The Research Base to conduct a research project on maths and English subject leadership in the secondary and post-16 further education sectors. The aim of the project was to determine best practice across both sectors, with a particular focus on how best practice learning could be shared between sectors. The research project also sought to identify any gaps in current knowledge and practice and/or specific needs for maths and English subject leadership within the further education (FE) sector.

Project Approach

To gain both theoretical and practical insights into maths and English subject leadership across both the secondary and FE sectors, our research team designed a project toolkit comprising an online survey with FE colleges participating in ETF’s Maths and English Pipeline CPD course; interviews and field visits with a cross-section of high performing secondary schools and FE colleges; and a literature review on leadership structures in secondary schools and FE colleges.

Impact

The Foundation was provided with evidence-based recommendations on best practice in maths and English subject leadership tin order to support its work to raise standards in FE colleges. To enable the client to achieve effective dissemination of the project findings to a range of stakeholders, the final deliverables comprised an online best practice guide to share with FE colleges, a matrix mapping key findings from the secondary and FE sectors, and a comprehensive written report to present research findings, analysis and recommendations.