ABSTRACT
This chapter further explicates the notions of normative practice and knowledgeable practice by using these to unpack prevalent assumptions about the relationship between evidence and practice in education. The chapter will assert that in ‘evidence-based’ or ‘evidence-informed’ practice conceptualisations of both ‘evidence’ and ‘practice’ are reductive and limited, overlooking the need for a normative notion of practice to develop criteria by which evidence can be judged against existing knowledge and understanding. The chapter provides some illustrations by examining some prominent contemporary conceptualisations of evidence-informed practice in England and the United States, which do not support the development of systematic educational knowledge, knowledgeable practice or deeper educational understanding amongst teachers and other educational practitioners.
