Professor Andreas Demetriou,

Minister of Education and Culture,
Cyprus

Educational Research and Educational Policy
Can they be Bridged?

In this address I will first outline the aspects of educational research that are of relevance to educational policy. Specifically, I will discuss research that relates to (1) learning a such, which is mainly concerned with the individual student; (2) curriculum development and planning, that is concerned with both individual students and educational institutions; and (3) organizational and functional aspects of education that are primarily related to policy making. Then I will discuss political and institutional decision making mechanisms and practices that relate to the readiness and ability of education to make use of and be inspired by educational research. The aim will be to show that these mechanisms and practices are some times inconsistent with the need of education to be informed and affected by educational research. Finally, I will make suggestions that may improve the relations between educational research and policy formation in education.