Mapping the evidence: a meta-review of global teacher education and professional development research

Project overview

Educational research is an ever-expanding field, requiring evidence to be collated and synthesised, providing up-to-date and relevant information to researchers, educators, and policy makers. In the field of teacher education and professional development, such secondary reviews can lead to evidence-based reform, with the potential to improve educational outcomes.

However, as the number of evidence synthesis papers increase, so does the risk of ‘research waste’ where multiple reviews are conducted on overlapping or similar topics. The National Institute of Teaching has conducted a thorough ‘meta-review’, combining and evaluating secondary reviews on teacher education and professional development, allowing policy makers and educators to consider all the available evidence from around the world.

This meta-review aims to synthesise and evaluate the existing global evidence on Initial Teacher Education (ITE) and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to support evidence-based decision-making for educators, policymakers and researchers. By combining findings from systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and other evidence syntheses, the project identifies key trends, effective interventions, and persistent gaps in teacher education research. The review focuses on understanding the impact of ITE and CPD on teacher outcomes, such as confidence, instructional practices, and retention, as well as student outcomes, including academic achievement, engagement, and social-emotional well-being. It also maps the geographical and temporal scope of research, assesses methodological rigor using the QuEST quality appraisal tool, and highlights areas where evidence is sparse, such as targeted SEND interventions or underrepresented regions like South America and Africa.

The review also underscores the importance of evidence synthesis in minimising "research waste" by consolidating overlapping studies while identifying actionable insights for educators.

Research aims

The review addresses six key questions:

What topics and sub-topics in initial teacher education and in-service professional development have been reviewed?

• When, where, and with whom has research on ITE and CPD been conducted?
  
• What types of evidence syntheses (e.g., systematic reviews, meta-analyses) have been carried out?
  
• What topics and interventions in ITE and CPD have been reviewed over the past decade?
  
• What are the key reported findings on the impact of ITE and CPD on:
  1. Teacher outcomes
  2. Student outcomes

• What is the quality of the existing ITE and CPD reviews?
  
• What research gaps have been identified in ITE and CPD?

Summary of findings

The meta-review in teacher education synthesises global evidence to inform policies, focusing on initial teacher education (pre-service) and in-service professional development (post-qualification). It examines topics, participant demographics, evidence synthesis methods, interventions, key findings, and evidence quality. Using thematic synthesis and systematic mapping, it categorises evidence into actionable themes while ensuring rigorous quality appraisal with adapted AMSTAR 2 and DARE tools.

Key takeaways

• Diverse Topics and Subtopics: The review identified a wide range of topics in both initial teacher education and in-service professional development, covering areas such as STEM, classroom management, equity-focused interventions, and ICT-driven strategies.
• Global and Contextual Variability: Participant demographics varied significantly, with studies spanning diverse educational settings, phases (primary, secondary, higher education), and geographical regions, highlighting the need for tailored approaches to teacher development.
• Methodological Approaches: The synthesis revealed the use of various evidence synthesis methods, including systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and narrative reviews, with varying levels of rigor in quality and reporting.
• Evidence Gaps: Key gaps were found in demographic coverage (e.g., underrepresentation of specific regions/education levels), certain intervention types & longitudinal evidence, indicating areas for future research & funding priorities.

Project team

• Professor Sin Wang Chong, Honorary Research Professor & Head of Evidence Synthesis, NIoT
• Dr Emily Oxley, Research Fellow, NIoT
• Dr Melissa Bond, Research Fellow, NIoT
• Dr Violeta Negrea, Research Fellow, NIoT
• Dr Evie Smith, Research Fellow, NIoT
• Dr Bronte Mckeown, Research Fellow, NIoT
• Mr Shaun Dillon, Director of Data, NIoT

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