Evidence into Action

Defining disadvantage

In this instalment, host Alex Quigley is joined by Kirsten Mould and expert guests to discuss how best to support pupils from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Guests include:

• Dr Rebecca Montacute, Head of Research and Policy, Sutton Trust (Start - 30:32)
• Marc Rowland, Pupil Premium Adviser, Unity School’s Partnership (30:32 - 53:26)
  
• Gill Fearns, Director, Lancashire Research School (53:26 - End)

Further Resources:

• Contextual Admissions, Sutton Trust
• The COVID Social Mobility and Opportunities (COSMO) study
• Elitist Britain, Sutton Trust
• The EEF Guide to the Pupil Premium, Education Endowment Foundation (Updated September 2024)

For quick and easy access to future episodes, search for 'Evidence into Action' in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts and make sure you subscribe there.

Personal Social and Emotional Development (PSED) in the early years

In this instalment, host Alex Quigley is joined by co-host Nicola Cherry, EEF Early Years Content Specialist and Early Years Delivery Manager for North Somerset Council, alongside expert guests. They discuss PSED and how we can support how early years practice can be enriched through evidence-use.

• Claudia Coussins, Deputy Head of Early Years - Policy and Practice, Anna Freud Centre (Start - 20:45)
• Ruth Coleman, Headteacher, Highfield Nursery School (20:45 - 38:44)
• Louise Jackson, Independent Consultant, Author, Trainer and Teacher, Wye Early Years (38:44 - End)

For quick and easy access to future episodes, search for 'Evidence into Action' in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts and make sure you subscribe there.

Further Resources:

• EEF Early Years Hub
• Since this episode was recorded there have been updates to the Early Years Evidence Store, including the Personal, Social & Emotional Development theme, the Self-Regulation & Executive Function theme and the ‘Supporting children’s mental health and wellbeing in the early years’ guide.

    

   

SEN in mainstream and adaptive teaching

In this instalment, host Alex Quigley is joined by co-host, Kirsten Mould, EEF Senior Content Specialist, and expert guests to discuss how best to support pupils with SEND, outlining the current challenges and opportunities in schools.

• Gary Aubin, EEF Associate content specialist for SEND and Head of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities at Future Academies (3:10 - 23:47)
• Rebecca Gonyora, Director of Inclusion (MAT) Every Child, Every Day Academy Trust and Deputy Regional SEN Lead for East of England and East London (WSS) (23:47 - 43:07)
• Jon Eaton, Director of Kingsbridge Research School and Research Lead at Kingsbridge Community College (43:07 - End

For quick and easy access to future episodes, search for 'Evidence into Action' in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts and subscribe.

Further reading

• EEF’s Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools guidance report
• EEF resource: reflecting on your practice
• EEF blog: Assess, adjust, adapt – what does adaptive teaching mean to you?
• EEF blog: Moving from ‘differentiation’ to ‘adaptive teaching’
• Whole School SEND

Metacognition

In this instalment, host Alex Quigley is joined by co-host, Hannah Heron, Learning Behaviours Content Specialist for the EEF, and expert guests, to discuss metacognition, with particular focus on putting study strategies into practice.

• Professor John Dunlosky, Professor of Psychology and Director of the Science of Learning Center at Kent State University (Start - 34:16)
• Jo Ashcroft, CEO of the CLIC Trust (34:16 - 49:34)
• Freya Morrissey, Head of English at Teign School (49:34 - End)

Further Resources:

• EEF Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning Guidance Report (Published April 2018)

 

Vocabulary and Language

In this instalment, host Alex Quigley is joined by co-host Alex Reynolds, Literacy Content Specialist for the EEF, and expert guests to discuss vocabulary instruction, connections to reading and the curriculum.

• Professor Jessie Ricketts, Director of Language and the reading acquisition research group for the Department of Psychology at Royal Holloway University of London (Start - 27:25)
• Marcus Jones, Literacy Lead at Huntington Research School and English Teacher (27:25 - 50:32)
• Host and co-host reflections (50:32 - End)

Further Resources:

• EEF Vocabulary in Action Classroom Strategies Resource
• EEF Vocabulary in Action: Misconceptions Resource
• EEF Blog, Through the Keyhole of the Reading House, Part 1: Vocabulary, Comprehension and Word Reading

English as an Additional Language

In this instalment, hosts Alex Quigley and EEF Senior Content Manager Kirsten Mould are joined by expert guests in linguistics and education, alongside education leaders, to discuss how best to support pupils with English as an Additional Language.

Guests include:

• Prof Victoria Murphy, Director of the Department of Education & Professor of Applied Linguistics, University of Oxford (Start - 27:45)
• Diana Sutton, The Bell Foundation (27:45 - 42:27)
• Karl Rogerson, Principal of Billesley Primary School and Director of Billesley Research School (42:27 - End)

Evidence-informed Leadership

In this instalment, hosts Alex Quigley and EEF Senior Content Manager Kirsten Mould are joined by expert guests to discuss evidence informed leadership.

Guests include:

• Nick Brook, Deputy General Secretary at NAHT and Chair of the School Improvement Commission (Start - 24:00)
• Asima Iqbal, Vice Principal of Billesley Research School (24:00 - 40:50)
• Alex Samways, Director of Research School and Teaching School Hub, Unity Schools Partnership (41:02 - End)

Supporting pupils during exams

In this new instalment, our expert panel discuss the evidence around how to prepare pupils for exams effectively.

Regular host Alex Quigley is joined by our Learning Behaviours Content Specialist, Kirsten Mould, in discussion with:

• Prof. David Putwain of Liverpool John Moores University (Start – 26.55);
• Sadie Thompson, Deputy Director of HISP Research School and Modern Foreign Language teacher (26.55 – 40.23); and
• Simon Cox, Director of Blackpool Research School and Maths teacher (40.23– End).

Teaching reading: The Reading Comprehension House

In this new instalment, our expert panel discuss how reading teaching can be supported using the reading comprehension house, which featured in our updated guidance report, Improving Literacy in Key Stage 2.

Regular host Alex Quigley is joined by our Literacy Content Specialist, Sarah Green, in discussion with:

• Kate Cain, Professor of Language and Literacy Development at Lancaster University (Start – 30:25);
• Caroline Bilton, Deputy Headteacher at Cragside C of E Primary School (30:25 – 36:50); and
• James Siddle, Primary School Headteacher and Director of Kyra Research School (36:50– End).

Further Resources:

• This episode is the counterpart to a previous episode on teaching reading fluency, which featured Professor Tim Rasinski, Julie Phazey and Louise Quinn.
• EEF Improving Literacy in KS2 Guidance Report (Published November 2021)
• EEF Blog, The 'Reading Comprehension House' and foundations that support word reading

Teaching reading: Developing fluency

In this latest instalment of the EEF's 'Evidence into Action' podcast, our expert panel discuss the evidence around the importance of fluency in teaching children to read.

Regular host Alex Quigley is joined by our Literacy Content Specialist, Sarah Green, in discussion with:

• Tim Rasinski, Professor of Literacy Education and author of “The Megabook of Fluency” (Start – 29:50);
• Julie Phazey, Primary School Headteacher (29:50 – 39:52); and
• Louise Quinn, Secondary School Deputy Headteacher and Senior Leader in Education (39:52 – End).

Further Resources:

• The EEF Reading Fluency Glossary
• EEF Blog, Why Focus on Reading Fluency?