Evidence based education policy in Ireland: insights from educational researchers

In Ireland as elsewhere, the value of putting evidence and scientific advice at the centre of public policy-making, has rarely been more evident. The prominence of the science-policy interface has renewed interest in the prospects for evidence based policy (EBP) in education. Notwithstanding the political rhetoric around EBP in education, little is known about the nature and extent of research use in Irish education policy. This paper reports results from a survey of educational researchers in Ireland (n = 69) which involved them completing a survey based on a reliable measure of research utilisation. Results show a poor record in the reported uptake of educational research by policy-makers. Twenty-two independent variables were identified and tested for their association with reported levels of research use. Results indicate that eleven variables have a statistically significant correlation with research utilisation. Regression analysis indicates that four variables can significantly predict variance in the dependent variable (research utilisation) they are, researcher-policymaker collaboration; institutional affiliation of researcher; policy orientation of researcher; and researcher reputation (Adjusted R-2 = .545, p < .001). Findings lend empirical support to the argument that many educational researchers in Ireland struggle to influence central policy and offers some explanatory insights.