EduPort

NATIONAL WEB-BASED PORTAL FOR EVIDENCE ON EDUCATIONAL METHODS AND STRATEGIES: PROTOCOLS OF FUTURE STUDIES

The development of evidence-based education has become an increasingly important priority within contemporary educational research, policy and practice. Whilst considerable progress has been made in generating research evidence on educational interventions, the effective implementation of evidence-based education requires substantially more than the production of research findings alone. Educational evidence must be systematically synthesised, critically appraised and translated into practice through effective knowledge translation processes. Only then can research evidence meaningfully inform teachers, school leaders, policymakers and other stakeholders. In countries with educational systems strongly oriented towards evidence-informed decision-making, these objectives are often supported through national evidence portals that provide accessible summaries and interpretations of educational research. Among the most influential examples is the Teaching and Learning Toolkit developed by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) in the United Kingdom. The EEF Toolkit has become a widely recognised source of information regarding the effectiveness, implementation costs and strength of evidence associated with a broad range of educational methods and strategies. However, the direct transfer of findings generated within one educational system to another remains challenging because educational interventions are inherently shaped by national, curricular, institutional and sociocultural contexts. Consequently, educational evidence requires contextualisation before it can effectively support decision-making in different countries. These considerations have motivated efforts to develop a Czech adaptation of the EEF Toolkit and to establish a broader evidence infrastructure capable of serving the needs of the Czech educational community. This paper presents a protocol for a coordinated programme of research and development activities aimed at creating a national web-based portal providing evidence on educational methods and strategies. The portal will function as a publicly accessible resource synthesising current educational evidence whilst contextualising this information for educational practice and policy in the Czech Republic. It will build upon the structure and principles of the EEF Toolkit whilst extending its scope through the incorporation of additional sources of evidence, methodological innovations and mechanisms designed to address the specific needs of Czech users. The proposed programme is guided by four core principles: scientific rigour, contextual relevance, methodological transparency and accessibility for end users. To operationalise these principles, five interconnected studies have been designed. First, a nationwide cross-sectional analytical survey will examine the perceived relevance of educational methods and strategies included in the EEF Toolkit across educational levels, school types, subject areas and teacher characteristics within the Czech educational system. Secondly, subgroup analyses of studies included in the EEF Toolkit will be conducted to provide more precise information regarding the effectiveness of individual educational interventions across different populations, intervention characteristics and educational outcomes. Thirdly, a series of methodological reviews will identify, map and critically appraise existing systematic reviews in selected educational domains, including foreign language education, early childhood education, educational technologies, generative artificial intelligence and inquiry-based learning. Fourthly, new systematic reviews will be undertaken in areas where robust evidence syntheses are currently unavailable, particularly for educational approaches strongly represented within the Czech educational context, such as the Hejný method, reading instruction methodologies, differentiated instruction and other nationally relevant approaches. Fifthly, a qualitative study will investigate the needs of potential end users and evaluate the comprehensibility, usability and practical value of the portal’s content. Through semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis, this study will explore how different stakeholder groups interpret educational evidence, identify their information needs and evaluate preferred modes of evidence communication that facilitate the practical application of research findings in educational settings. Methodologically, the programme combines quantitative, qualitative and evidence-synthesis approaches. Particular emphasis is placed on adherence to internationally recognised methodological standards, including PRISMA reporting guidelines, Joanna Briggs Institute methodologies, GRADE assessments of the certainty of evidence, and established procedures for systematic reviews, meta-analyses, methodological reviews and subgroup analyses. By integrating evidence synthesis, contextualisation and knowledge translation within a user-centred design, the programme seeks to address several limitations commonly associated with existing evidence portals, including insufficient adaptation to local educational contexts, incomplete coverage of educational methods and strategies, and limited responsiveness to end users’ needs. The anticipated outcome of this research programme is the establishment of a sustainable, transparent and methodologically rigorous national evidence portal capable of supporting evidence-informed educational decision-making in the Czech Republic. Beyond providing access to research findings, the portal is expected to facilitate communication among researchers, educational practitioners, school leaders and policymakers, thereby strengthening the broader culture of evidence use in education. By presenting transparent research protocols and predefined methodological procedures, this paper also contributes to the reproducibility, transparency and accountability of future studies. The proposed programme may serve as a model for the development of evidence-informed educational infrastructures in other national contexts. Furthermore, it may provide a foundation for future innovations, including interactive evidence-delivery systems and artificial-intelligence-assisted approaches to knowledge translation.

Keywords: evidence-based education, educational methods and strategies, systematic reviews, meta-analysis, evidence synthesis, Teaching and Learning Toolkit, EduArt Center, Schola Empirica z.s; knowledge translation; evidence-informed decision-making; national evidence portal.