Research Fellow

About Us

The National Institute of Teaching (NIoT) is a school-led and research-informed organisation operating across England providing teacher and leadership training, from initial teacher education (ITE) to a dedicated course for CEOs of multi-academy trusts. The NIoT is among the largest national provider of ITE and trains thousands of teachers a year, across four regional teams and six campuses.

We are committed to high quality, evidence-informed teacher education, and are on a mission to improve the quality of teacher and leader development across the system. Part of this mission involves producing rigorous, impactful, and cutting-edge school-led research.

We have a dedicated in-house research team who work with our programme-delivery teams to develop and test new methodologies, address critical challenges, and meet the evolving needs of our partner schools and organisations in the wider education sector. This is a new and exciting approach to embedding research within practice in education, and we work collaboratively to continually evolve and strengthen our approach to making research useful in teacher education practice.

The Evaluation and Observational Research team sits within the overall Research team, and designs and implements primary research projects in collaboration with the Programmes team at the NIoT.  

About the Role

The Research Team is recruiting a Research Fellow to join our team and play a crucial role in the generation of high-quality and cutting-edge evidence on effective teacher professional development. You will work alongside the Head of Evaluation and Observational Research and a team of Research Fellows and Research Assistants to design and implement primary research in collaboration with the Programmes team at the NIoT.  

Embedding rigorous and experimental research within programme delivery in teacher education is a ground breaking task, and our work is driven by questions such as: What does evidence-based really mean in education? How can we understand the effectiveness of approaches to teacher training and development, while also being curious about their complexities? How can we maintain the highest standards of research ethics and methodological rigour, while also being adaptable to meeting the needs of schools? How can we involve our colleagues in schools as key collaborators in research, when teachers’ and leaders’ time is so short? If these challenging and important questions motivate you we want to hear from you! This Research Fellow role will play a key role in grappling with these challenges, and in doing so, establishing a new approach to embedding research and practice in education.  

The role involves co-designing new observational and experimental quantitative research, alongside Research and Programmes teams colleagues; managing primary research projects, including randomised-controlled trials, quasi-experimental research, and observational research; conducting quantitative analyses; liaising with stakeholders in teacher education (e.g., academics, schools, teachers, policymakers); producing high-quality written outputs for academic audiences and policymakers; and generating and sustaining research-practice dialogues with schools and teachers using generated evidence.

This role also includes opportunities to shape future research directions of the NIoT; be supported to raise your own research projects; expand your research skills and expertise; contribute to teaching, design and delivery of teacher education programmes; and explore innovative ways to make teacher education research accessible and useful for teachers and leaders in schools. In addition to being a specialist in designing and conducting primary observational and/or experimental quantitative research, you will be an innovative and practice-minded researcher who strives to make cutting-edge research relevant, engaging, and useful for practitioners in teacher education.

Corporate Responsibilities

• To ensure that the responsibilities of the role are carried out in a way which reflects the mission and the values of the NIoT.  
• To be aware of and observe all policies, procedures, working practices and regulations, and in particular to comply with policies relating to Equal Opportunities, Health and Safety, Confidentiality, Data Protection and Financial Regulations, reporting any concerns to an appropriate person.  
• To comply with all reasonable management requests. 

Key Responsibilities

• Design and project manage quantitative and/or experimental research projects. 
• Manage data collection in educational settings, working closely with education stakeholders and collaborators. 
• Manage Research Assistants. 
• Conduct quantitative analyses. 
• Prepare high-quality written outputs, such as reports, presentations, and academic papers. 
• Design dissemination resources and activities for a range of audiences. 
• Communicate and liaise with the teams designing and delivering teacher professional development programmes at NIoT, school staff, and other education stakeholders throughout the project life cycle. 
• Contribution to the academic environment at the NIoT, which may include teaching at Masters’ degree level. 

Essential Criteria

• Doctoral degree in social science, education, research methods, or other relevant field. 
• Experience designing and conducting quantitative and/or experimental research projects. 
• Experience or prior study with designing and/or conducting randomised or non-randomised experiments in the context of programme design and delivery improvement. 
• Enjoys working collaboratively and flexibly, and approaches problem-solving with curiosity. 
• Experience managing research projects, including collaborative projects to tight timelines. 
• Commitment to upholding high ethical standards and best practices in educational research. 
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills. 
• Excellent organisation skills and attention to detail. 
• Commitment to the aims of the NIoT. 

Desirable Criteria

• Proven interest and/or experience in teacher training and professional development. 
• Experience working in or with educational settings. 
• Prior record of publishing high-quality written outputs. 

This is an exciting opportunity for researchers looking to make a tangible and immediate impact on practice, and who wish to utilise their skills and expertise to design and conduct primary evaluation research on topics most relevant to teachers and teacher educators, and engage in dialogues with practitioners based on new and cutting-edge evidence. This is an opportunity to grow your skills as an independent and innovative researcher.  

Working at the National Institute of Teaching

Contract: Permanent - Part Time - FTE0.8 (potential for alternate FTE) 

Salary:   £29,867 actual salary. (£37,336 per annum)

Key benefits available to all National Institute of Teaching staff: 

• Highly competitive pay and pay progression opportunities.
• Flexible start and end working times.
• Flexible working opportunities, including hybrid working.
• At least 27 days’ holiday a year (plus 8 bank holidays) rising to 33 days after five years’ service.
• Entry to the Local Government Pension Scheme
• A stimulating, supportive and rewarding working environment with a dedicated team of likeminded professionals. 

Further Information:

We think a wide range of different work and educational experiences could support you to be successful in this role. We encourage applications from all backgrounds, communities and industries, and are committed to employing a team that has diverse skills, experiences and abilities. 

Notes:  

This post requires a satisfactory enhanced disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) with a Children’s Barred List Check and Occupational Health Check is required as a condition of employment.   

How to Apply

Submit your application online

Closing Date: 15 September 2024

Contact Us: If you have any queries about this role, please email us at recruitment@niot.org.uk