Contexts for Teacher Practice - (Re)Considering the Role of Context in Interventions in Early Childhood Teacher Engagement with New Approaches to Shared Book Reading

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by ahduag

Randomized controlled trials are often treated as the standard for education research, yet they may not fit complex educational settings. This paper argues that understanding the contexts shaping teacher practice is critical when implementing interventions. Using a “context out” lens, it describes an empirical study examining constraints and affordances created by varied contexts for teachers. Five early childhood centers in high-poverty neighborhoods are examined with mixed methods to identify what supported or thwarted practice change, showing that context strongly influences educational practice and implications for evaluating “what works.”

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages23

Reading Time58 min

AccessFree to download

Contexts for teacher practice

Role of context in interventions

Intervention implementation and teacher engagement

Study design and methods

Findings and implications for “what works”

| education policy analysis archives
A peer-reviewed, independent, open access, multilingual journal | | | --- | --- | | Arizona State University | | | Volume 24 Number 89 August 22 , 2016 ISSN 1068-2341 | | Contexts for Teacher Practice: (Re)Considering the Role of Context in Interventions in Early Childhood Teacher Engagement with New Approaches to Shared Book Reading Katherine K. Delaney University of Toledo & Susan B. Neuman New York University United States Delaney, K. K., & Neuman, S. B. (2016). Contexts for teacher practice: (Re)considering the role of context in interventions in early childhood teacher engagement with new approaches to shared book reading. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 24(89). [http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/epaa.24.2166](http://dx.doi.org/10.14507/epaa.24.2166) [Abstract:](Abstract: Although the randomized controlled trial has been regarded as the sine qua non in recent)[ Although the randomized controlled trial has been regarded as the](Abstract: Although the randomized controlled trial has been regarded as the sine qua non in recent)[ sine qua non](Abstract: Although the randomized controlled trial has been regarded as the sine qua non in recent)[ in recent](Abstract: Although the randomized controlled trial has been regarded as the sine qua non in recent)[ ](Abstract: Although the randomized controlled trial has been regarded as the sine qua non in recent)years, we argue that understanding contexts for teacher practice is a critical factor in the implementation of intervention, but has often been overlooked in educational research design. In this paper, we argue that randomized trials may not be ideal for educational contexts that are multifaceted, complex and often part of other community-based initiatives. To make this argument, we describe a study from “the context out,” a different lens than is typical in education research. In doing so, we consider how varied contexts create both constraints and affordances for teachers to engage in an intervention. Examining how teachers engage with new curricular practices, we focus closely on five early childhood centers in high poverty neighborhoods, using mixed methods to understand both the influence of the intervention as well as the conditions that either supported or thwarted changes in practice. Our findings suggest that context plays a major role in educational practice, which has important implications for approaches to research in the future. Given this reality, we argue that an understanding of the context in which an intervention takes place must be considered in any calculation of “what works” in classrooms. Keywords: Context, intervention, professional development, randomized controlled trials, early childhood education Contextos de práctica docente: (re) pensando el papel del contexto en intervenciones condocentes de educación infantil y nuevos enfoques para la lectura compartida Resumen: Aunque los experimentos controlados aleatorios han sido considerados como condición sine qua non en los últimos años, argumentamos que la comprensión de los contextos de la práctica docente es un factor crítico en la implementación de intervenciones, pero a menudo se han pasado por alto en los diseños de investigación educativa. En este trabajo, argumentamos que los experimentos controlados aleatorios pueden no ser ideales para los contextos educativos que son defacetas múltiples, complejas y con frecuencia parte de otras iniciativas basadas en la comunidad. Para sustentar este argumento, describimos un estudio "fuera de contexto," un objetivo no típico en la investigación en educación. Tenemos en cuenta como contextos variados crean tanto restricciones como posibilidades para que docentes participen en una intervención. Examinamos cómo los docentes se comprometen con nuevas prácticas curriculares, focalizando particularmente en cinco centros para la primera infancia en barrios con altos niveles de pobreza, usando métodos mi

FAQs

Why do the authors question the suitability of randomized controlled trials for education research?

They argue that educational contexts can be multifaceted, complex, and part of wider community-based initiatives, so randomized trials may not be ideal for capturing how these contexts shape implementation.

What is the “context out” perspective used in the study?

It is described as a different lens than is typical in education research, focusing on how varied contexts create both constraints and affordances for teachers engaging with an intervention.

What settings and methods does the paper use to study teacher practice?

It focuses closely on five early childhood centers in high-poverty neighborhoods, using mixed methods to examine both the influence of the intervention and the conditions that supported or thwarted changes in practice.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by ahduag