What Really Happened? A Critical Sensemaking Analysis of a Research-Practice Partnership

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 8:00 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: School-University Partnership Research Roundtable: Research-Practice Partnerships (Table 4)

Abstract

This comparative case study explores the outcomes of a four year Research Practice Partnership designed to assist three K-8 school districts to implement a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) that was culturally sustaining, restorative, trauma informed, and student centered. Districts engaged in a design based approach, identifying problems and implementing solutions, in partnership with students, staff, and families. The university partners provided professional development and coaching. The analysis is framed through a critical sensemaking and sensegiving approach, considering the stakeholders’ different perspectives regarding the project’s implementation, outcomes, successes, and failures. Implications indicate a need for explicit work to ensure shared understanding of the depth of the change and how participants make sense of it.

Authors

• Shelley Zion, Rowan University

• Jordana Simmons Berwise, Rowan University

• Lorena Silva de Andrade Dias, Rowan University

• Charles A. Barnes, Rowan University