The Science of Learning Zone was a place for teachers to send questions to, and have conversations with neuroscientists, psychologists and education researchers on topics around the science of learning.
This report summarises the project, and the impact on teachers, participants and researchers.
Download the report: The Science of Learning Zone 2018, Evaluation Report [PDF]
- The Zone attracted teachers: 87% of registered users were school teachers — two-thirds of whom had more than 10 years experience of teaching — or were involved professionally in education. 54% of the 2,220 visitors who completed a pop-up question without registering declared themselves to be teachers.
- Registered teachers told us they knew about education research but not about neuroscience and psychology. They were hoping to improve their confidence as a professional (86%) and make more informed decisions about teaching (89%). Those teachers who responded to the post-activity survey told us they benefited as expected.
- Site page views were double the 2015 levels, though spread over a longer period, and site engagement was at a similar level to 2015. This was disappointing to the project team. We expected much higher levels.
- We asked teachers about their reasons for engaging or not. Those who had registered, but did not ask a question or participate in a live chat seemed to be happy as passive consumer of information. Topic summaries were viewed 4,064 times. Teachers told us they enjoyed the live chat transcripts and the ability to dip in and out as it suited their time availability. Those teachers who had shown an interest but did not register or engage with the site mostly stated that they didn’t have the time to participate. We also got the impression that when compared to 2015 there were many more opportunities for teachers to satisfy their curiosity about research.
- The project team is disappointed by the level of engagement. It is not commensurate with the investment from Wellcome, and nor with the effort made by all members of the team. However it is clear that the concept does attract the right people for the right reasons and gives them the right benefits. It is possible that the engagement levels we saw reflect the interest from teachers at the moment and we need to find the correct, lower level of resource required to meet that demand.
Download the report: The Science of Learning Zone 2018, Evaluation Report [PDF]
