The Bridge Project
▶Summary
The BRiDGE project supports the European Union aim to bridge the gap between research and policy. To be effective, education policy research and development needs to be supported by collaboration ...
▶Objectives
The BRiDGE project supports the European Union aim to bridge the gap between research and policy. To be effective, education policy research and development needs to be supported by collaboration and critical reflection. The project addressed existing gaps between the knowledge and expertise of Higher Education institution-based researchers, practitioners in civil society organisations, and policy-makers, that prevent the effective connection of evidence with policymaking.
▶Activities
The project developed a collaborative pan-European professional learning community to support development of competences for policy research. It used the Joint Research Centre’s (JRC) Science for Policy Competence Framework as a foundation for piloting stakeholder seminars and a bespoke training programme for Early Career Researchers in five European HE institutions. It has also developed online publications, including working papers and academic articles in an open access journal, targeted to all three parts of the research-civic-policy knowledge triangle.
▶Impact
The project has contributed to more active civic engagement in education policy by supporting collaboration between and among different stakeholder groups. It has built their capacity to critically reflect on, interpret and contribute to education policy research. In addition, with its focus on Early Career Researchers and on civil society actors, the project has promoted Higher Education international connectivity and future capacity for innovative, high-quality research grounded in principles of open science. The concrete project results include: - curriculum and original case studies developed for early career researcher training; - establishment of an interprofessional learning community; its development documented in three Working papers and experience shared in “How to Guide” on stakeholder collaboration; - two thematic issues of the newly established European Journal of Education Policy & Practice, following themes of learning community – global citizenship education and internationalisation of education. - a meta-analysis on open science; - a longer-term sustainability plan for the network, and establishment of a shared mission, vision and values for future work together.