ABSTRACT
This chapter examines in detail what happens when teachers meet together in groups, to read and discuss research, and to try out ideas from the research in their own practice. It explains why research groups are important, how they are set up and how they can go about their work. Well coordinated discussion groups can enable teachers to articulate, examine and revise their theories about teaching, in the light of their colleagues’ theories. In reality most research today, including most published educational research, is undertaken by teams where team members can discuss, argue and critique each other, to their mutual benefit. The ability to ‘think together’ explains why the most powerful work we have done in schools has been with groups, not individuals. The teachers reported that they have little opportunity to reflect in the general busyness of school life, and that the research gave them this opportunity.
