This book presents the doctoral dissertation process as not just a way of getting a qualification or even a method of learning how to do research better, but as a substantial and significant piece of research in its own right. The book will inspire current and prospective PhD scholars to take up ambitious and large-scale study projects, dedicating this most important time to a worthy piece of research.

This edited collection provides real and outstanding examples of multiple research design methodologies which will allow doctoral researchers to develop a wide set of research skills, leading to the development of a high-quality academic thesis from which peer reviewed research papers and books can emerge. Each main chapter presents the summary of a doctoral thesis, followed by focused aspects from the projects where the contributors highlight the development of a research design, the process involved in executing the design, and present selected findings with their implications. Each chapter concludes with the researchers’ experiences of learning through this journey and the implications of the process for the development of the discipline and their own career.

Ideal reading for doctoral students and supervisors, this book is a source of encouragement and motivation for new researchers seeking to challenge general perceptions in the social sciences that PhD or other doctoral research projects must be small-scale rather trivial studies, but can instead produce robust findings that have real-world implications.

This book presents the doctoral dissertation process as not just a way of getting a qualification or even a method of learning how to do research better, but as a substantial and significant piece of research in its own right. The book will inspire current and prospective PhD scholars to take up ambitious and large-scale study projects, dedicating this most important time to a worthy piece of research.

This edited collection provides real and outstanding examples of multiple research design methodologies which will allow doctoral researchers to develop a wide set of research skills, leading to the development of a high-quality academic thesis from which peer reviewed research papers and books can emerge. Each main chapter presents the summary of a doctoral thesis, followed by focused aspects from the projects where the contributors highlight the development of a research design, the process involved in executing the design, and present selected findings with their implications. Each chapter concludes with the researchers’ experiences of learning through this journey and the implications of the process for the development of the discipline and their own career.

Ideal reading for doctoral students and supervisors, this book is a source of encouragement and motivation for new researchers seeking to challenge general perceptions in the social sciences that PhD or other doctoral research projects must be small-scale rather trivial studies, but can instead produce robust findings that have real-world implications.

*2023 BERA Educational Research Book of the Year*

Around the world, governments, charities, and other bodies are concerned with improving education, especially for the lowest-attaining and most disadvantaged students. Making Schools Better for Disadvantaged Students presents detailed research into how poverty affects student segregation and underachievement in schools. It contains the first ever large-scale evaluation of how funding can best be used to lower the poverty attainment gap for disadvantaged students.

Drawing on a wealth of empirical research from England, India, and Pakistan as well as worldwide reviews of relevant studies, the book presents high-quality evidence on the impact of funding policy initiatives, such as the Pupil Premium funding in England, and the many variations of similar schemes worldwide. It analyses education measures which have been put in place and discusses ways in which these can be used efficiently and fairly to allocate funding to students who are persistently at risk of underachievement. The book is unique in synthesising many forms of evidence from around the world and finding a definition of educational disadvantage that can be used fairly across different contexts.

Offering significant implications for ways to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged students, the book will be essential reading for students of education policy, sociology of education and educational practices, and all researchers, school leaders, and policy-makers working in this area.

*2023 BERA Educational Research Book of the Year*

Around the world, governments, charities, and other bodies are concerned with improving education, especially for the lowest-attaining and most disadvantaged students. Making Schools Better for Disadvantaged Students presents detailed research into how poverty affects student segregation and underachievement in schools. It contains the first ever large-scale evaluation of how funding can best be used to lower the poverty attainment gap for disadvantaged students.

Drawing on a wealth of empirical research from England, India, and Pakistan as well as worldwide reviews of relevant studies, the book presents high-quality evidence on the impact of funding policy initiatives, such as the Pupil Premium funding in England, and the many variations of similar schemes worldwide. It analyses education measures which have been put in place and discusses ways in which these can be used efficiently and fairly to allocate funding to students who are persistently at risk of underachievement. The book is unique in synthesising many forms of evidence from around the world and finding a definition of educational disadvantage that can be used fairly across different contexts.

Offering significant implications for ways to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged students, the book will be essential reading for students of education policy, sociology of education and educational practices, and all researchers, school leaders, and policy-makers working in this area.

This edited volume illustrates the idea of a successful research capacity model, critically addressing preconceived notions of early career research projects’ impact and drawing together insights and implications around the encouragement of newer researchers to conduct useful, robust studies with real-world effect.

Centring on research undertaken at the UK Durham University Evidence Centre, the volume features contributions from authors based at universities in the US, China, India, and Pakistan. The book discusses 15 substantial studies which explore themes such as children’s wider outcomes in school; disadvantage in education; and the supply of professionals for the teaching workforce. Novel in approach and highly interdisciplinary in nature, the book showcases a broad range of experience and knowledge sharing, from experienced researchers and policymakers to new academic staff, current doctoral students, and masters’ students conducting ambitious large-scale projects, thereby giving voice to those just starting out in their career.

Illustrating powerful studies that are feasible for students and beginners with limited or no resources, this book will appeal to new researchers, scholars and academics involved in the fields of educational research and research methods, continuing professional development, and education policy more broadly.

This edited volume illustrates the idea of a successful research capacity model, critically addressing preconceived notions of early career research projects’ impact and drawing together insights and implications around the encouragement of newer researchers to conduct useful, robust studies with real-world effect.

Centring on research undertaken at the UK Durham University Evidence Centre, the volume features contributions from authors based at universities in the US, China, India, and Pakistan. The book discusses 15 substantial studies which explore themes such as children’s wider outcomes in school; disadvantage in education; and the supply of professionals for the teaching workforce. Novel in approach and highly interdisciplinary in nature, the book showcases a broad range of experience and knowledge sharing, from experienced researchers and policymakers to new academic staff, current doctoral students, and masters’ students conducting ambitious large-scale projects, thereby giving voice to those just starting out in their career.

Illustrating powerful studies that are feasible for students and beginners with limited or no resources, this book will appeal to new researchers, scholars and academics involved in the fields of educational research and research methods, continuing professional development, and education policy more broadly.

Drawing from original research and recent developments in theory, Researching Social Inequalities in Higher Education brings together insights from multiple national contexts and phases to consider a diverse range of equity issues in higher education.

Authored by current and recently graduated PhD students, chapters examine the socioeconomic, ethnic and gender equalities at play within each of the following components:

An essential read for anyone researching higher education, or wishing to address social inequalities within higher education, this volume unpacks how higher education is becoming more accessible, inclusive and beneficial to an increasingly diverse population of students and staff.

Drawing from original research and recent developments in theory, Researching Social Inequalities in Higher Education brings together insights from multiple national contexts and phases to consider a diverse range of equity issues in higher education.

Authored by current and recently graduated PhD students, chapters examine the socioeconomic, ethnic and gender equalities at play within each of the following components:

An essential read for anyone researching higher education, or wishing to address social inequalities within higher education, this volume unpacks how higher education is becoming more accessible, inclusive and beneficial to an increasingly diverse population of students and staff.

The Trials of Evidence-based Education explores the promise, limitations and achievements of evidence-based policy and practice, as the attention of funders moves from a sole focus on attainment outcomes to political concern about character-building and wider educational impacts. Providing a detailed look at the pros, cons and areas for improvement in evidence-based policy and practice, this book includes consideration of the following:

In this well-structured and thoughtful text, the results and implications of over 20 studies conducted by the authors are combined with a much larger number of studies from their systematic reviews, and the implications are spelled out for the research community, policy-makers, schools wanting to run their own evaluations, and for practitioners using evidence.

This book presents the doctoral dissertation process as not just a way of getting a qualification or even a method of learning how to do research better, but as a substantial and significant piece of research in its own right. The book will inspire current and prospective PhD scholars to take up ambitious and large-scale study projects, dedicating this most important time to a worthy piece of research.

This edited collection provides real and outstanding examples of multiple research design methodologies which will allow doctoral researchers to develop a wide set of research skills, leading to the development of a high-quality academic thesis from which peer reviewed research papers and books can emerge. Each main chapter presents the summary of a doctoral thesis, followed by focused aspects from the projects where the contributors highlight the development of a research design, the process involved in executing the design, and present selected findings with their implications. Each chapter concludes with the researchers’ experiences of learning through this journey and the implications of the process for the development of the discipline and their own career.

Ideal reading for doctoral students and supervisors, this book is a source of encouragement and motivation for new researchers seeking to challenge general perceptions in the social sciences that PhD or other doctoral research projects must be small-scale rather trivial studies, but can instead produce robust findings that have real-world implications.

This book presents the doctoral dissertation process as not just a way of getting a qualification or even a method of learning how to do research better, but as a substantial and significant piece of research in its own right. The book will inspire current and prospective PhD scholars to take up ambitious and large-scale study projects, dedicating this most important time to a worthy piece of research.

This edited collection provides real and outstanding examples of multiple research design methodologies which will allow doctoral researchers to develop a wide set of research skills, leading to the development of a high-quality academic thesis from which peer reviewed research papers and books can emerge. Each main chapter presents the summary of a doctoral thesis, followed by focused aspects from the projects where the contributors highlight the development of a research design, the process involved in executing the design, and present selected findings with their implications. Each chapter concludes with the researchers’ experiences of learning through this journey and the implications of the process for the development of the discipline and their own career.

Ideal reading for doctoral students and supervisors, this book is a source of encouragement and motivation for new researchers seeking to challenge general perceptions in the social sciences that PhD or other doctoral research projects must be small-scale rather trivial studies, but can instead produce robust findings that have real-world implications.

*2023 BERA Educational Research Book of the Year*

Around the world, governments, charities, and other bodies are concerned with improving education, especially for the lowest-attaining and most disadvantaged students. Making Schools Better for Disadvantaged Students presents detailed research into how poverty affects student segregation and underachievement in schools. It contains the first ever large-scale evaluation of how funding can best be used to lower the poverty attainment gap for disadvantaged students.

Drawing on a wealth of empirical research from England, India, and Pakistan as well as worldwide reviews of relevant studies, the book presents high-quality evidence on the impact of funding policy initiatives, such as the Pupil Premium funding in England, and the many variations of similar schemes worldwide. It analyses education measures which have been put in place and discusses ways in which these can be used efficiently and fairly to allocate funding to students who are persistently at risk of underachievement. The book is unique in synthesising many forms of evidence from around the world and finding a definition of educational disadvantage that can be used fairly across different contexts.

Offering significant implications for ways to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged students, the book will be essential reading for students of education policy, sociology of education and educational practices, and all researchers, school leaders, and policy-makers working in this area.

*2023 BERA Educational Research Book of the Year*

Around the world, governments, charities, and other bodies are concerned with improving education, especially for the lowest-attaining and most disadvantaged students. Making Schools Better for Disadvantaged Students presents detailed research into how poverty affects student segregation and underachievement in schools. It contains the first ever large-scale evaluation of how funding can best be used to lower the poverty attainment gap for disadvantaged students.

Drawing on a wealth of empirical research from England, India, and Pakistan as well as worldwide reviews of relevant studies, the book presents high-quality evidence on the impact of funding policy initiatives, such as the Pupil Premium funding in England, and the many variations of similar schemes worldwide. It analyses education measures which have been put in place and discusses ways in which these can be used efficiently and fairly to allocate funding to students who are persistently at risk of underachievement. The book is unique in synthesising many forms of evidence from around the world and finding a definition of educational disadvantage that can be used fairly across different contexts.

Offering significant implications for ways to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged students, the book will be essential reading for students of education policy, sociology of education and educational practices, and all researchers, school leaders, and policy-makers working in this area.

This edited volume illustrates the idea of a successful research capacity model, critically addressing preconceived notions of early career research projects’ impact and drawing together insights and implications around the encouragement of newer researchers to conduct useful, robust studies with real-world effect.

Centring on research undertaken at the UK Durham University Evidence Centre, the volume features contributions from authors based at universities in the US, China, India, and Pakistan. The book discusses 15 substantial studies which explore themes such as children’s wider outcomes in school; disadvantage in education; and the supply of professionals for the teaching workforce. Novel in approach and highly interdisciplinary in nature, the book showcases a broad range of experience and knowledge sharing, from experienced researchers and policymakers to new academic staff, current doctoral students, and masters’ students conducting ambitious large-scale projects, thereby giving voice to those just starting out in their career.

Illustrating powerful studies that are feasible for students and beginners with limited or no resources, this book will appeal to new researchers, scholars and academics involved in the fields of educational research and research methods, continuing professional development, and education policy more broadly.

This edited volume illustrates the idea of a successful research capacity model, critically addressing preconceived notions of early career research projects’ impact and drawing together insights and implications around the encouragement of newer researchers to conduct useful, robust studies with real-world effect.

Centring on research undertaken at the UK Durham University Evidence Centre, the volume features contributions from authors based at universities in the US, China, India, and Pakistan. The book discusses 15 substantial studies which explore themes such as children’s wider outcomes in school; disadvantage in education; and the supply of professionals for the teaching workforce. Novel in approach and highly interdisciplinary in nature, the book showcases a broad range of experience and knowledge sharing, from experienced researchers and policymakers to new academic staff, current doctoral students, and masters’ students conducting ambitious large-scale projects, thereby giving voice to those just starting out in their career.

Illustrating powerful studies that are feasible for students and beginners with limited or no resources, this book will appeal to new researchers, scholars and academics involved in the fields of educational research and research methods, continuing professional development, and education policy more broadly.

Drawing from original research and recent developments in theory, Researching Social Inequalities in Higher Education brings together insights from multiple national contexts and phases to consider a diverse range of equity issues in higher education.

Authored by current and recently graduated PhD students, chapters examine the socioeconomic, ethnic and gender equalities at play within each of the following components:

An essential read for anyone researching higher education, or wishing to address social inequalities within higher education, this volume unpacks how higher education is becoming more accessible, inclusive and beneficial to an increasingly diverse population of students and staff.

Drawing from original research and recent developments in theory, Researching Social Inequalities in Higher Education brings together insights from multiple national contexts and phases to consider a diverse range of equity issues in higher education.

Authored by current and recently graduated PhD students, chapters examine the socioeconomic, ethnic and gender equalities at play within each of the following components:

An essential read for anyone researching higher education, or wishing to address social inequalities within higher education, this volume unpacks how higher education is becoming more accessible, inclusive and beneficial to an increasingly diverse population of students and staff.

The Trials of Evidence-based Education explores the promise, limitations and achievements of evidence-based policy and practice, as the attention of funders moves from a sole focus on attainment outcomes to political concern about character-building and wider educational impacts. Providing a detailed look at the pros, cons and areas for improvement in evidence-based policy and practice, this book includes consideration of the following:

In this well-structured and thoughtful text, the results and implications of over 20 studies conducted by the authors are combined with a much larger number of studies from their systematic reviews, and the implications are spelled out for the research community, policy-makers, schools wanting to run their own evaluations, and for practitioners using evidence.