An Evidence Ecosystem for Education: Norway as Case

• In Event: Equity in Education: The Role of Syntheses and Knowledge Centers in Sweden and Norway

Abstract

Objectives
This case study furthers our understanding of evidence ecosystems by studying the continually evolving Norwegian ecosystem for the use and production of research evidence in education. In all countries there is an implicit or explicit ecosystem in which research evidence may or may not be efficiently used and produced. The ecosystem consists of national, regional and local actors with complex and not necessarily clearly defined relations. In Norway a national Knowledge Center for Education was created with a mandate to enhance the use of systematic reviews (SRs) in the education sector to promote high quality research use. This is done by producing SRs, by making SRs published elsewhere accessible, by providing courses in systematic reviewing, and enhancing research literacy in ECECs and schools. The Center can be seen as an infrastructure intervention into the pre-existing evidence ecosystem.
The main research questions are: What characterizes the Norwegian evidence ecosystem for education, what role does a Knowledge Center for Education play in knowledge movement for equity in education and what are the challenges encountered?
Perspectives
Based on a theoretical conceptualization of evidence ecosystems for education, we analyze the Norwegian system to highlight and characterize the actors involved, the linkages between them, what evidence is produced, by whom and how this knowledge is “moved” through the system and used.
During the past two decades, we have seen an increase in private and public knowledge actors involved in different knowledge movement activities. The Ministry of Education has invested in several parts of the evidence ecosystem such as Centers for instruction, Centers for research, as well as the national Knowledge Center for Education. Our case study will highlight the linkages to and from this center, how it has contributed to the advancement of an evidence ecology and which challenges there are for a Knowledge Center to reach out and connect with educators in classrooms and schools.
We ask: How efficient is the system? Does it achieve what different actors want or assume is happening?

Methods and data
The design includes three approaches to mapping and understanding the evidence eco-system for research in education in Norway:
1) Identify systems, actors and linkages such as:
• Producers: Universities; research organizations; government and foundation funders
• Users: Central, regional, and local government; unions; school leaders; teachers (users)
• Identify gaps between the use and production of research and how research is ‘used’ and not used and why.
2) Identify perceptions of decisions that are made and research that might be useful (relevant, trustworthy and understandable) for teachers and school leaders
The Knowledge Center for Education is a part of this ecosystem with its specific goals, and it will be studied as an element of the system for enhancing equity in education.

Significance
Main outcomes:
- A framework for studying evidence eco-systems for education
- A deeper understanding of how they function and what the challenges are for future work to enhance the production and use of relevant and trustworthy evidence.

Authors

• Elaine Munthe, University of Stavanger

• David Gough, University College London