Increasing Capacity in STEM Education Research: A Study Exploring the Potential for a Fellowship Programme

Overview & Synopsis

The National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) was commissioned by the Royal Society to complete a study exploring the potential of a Fellowship programme for early- to mid-career education researchers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). The study was set within the broader context of increasing capacity in STEM education research and was intended to assist the Royal Society in its aim to ensure that the next generation of leading STEM education researchers are recruited and sustained in their careers. Hence the study scopes perceptions around relevant issues in this arena, including: (1) career routes into STEM education research; (2) the drivers of STEM education research; (3) the distribution of expertise within STEM education research; (4) the interactions between STEM education research, and policy and practice; (5) aspects of international collaboration and competitiveness; and (6) the enabling factors and barriers to building and sustaining expertise in STEM education research. The study was organised into four phases of data collection, beginning with a rapid response search of literature. This was followed by collecting the views of 16 policy and practice representatives via telephone interviews/proforma. The third strand of data collection involved interviews with 30 STEM education researchers across the UK (25 from England and the remainder from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales). Towards the end of the project a focus group was held to discuss emerging findings and consider in more depth the possible contribution of a fellowship programme. (Contains 1 footnote.)