Educational research has produced a substantial evidence base about effective practices. What we’ve learned, however, is that even well-established, research-backed interventions often fail when schools attempt to implement them. The reasons are complex: contextual factors matter enormously, organizational capacity varies widely, implementation support is often inadequate, and practitioners may lack the infrastructure to adapt research findings to their specific circumstances. Improvement Science approaches are specifically designed to address these implementation challenges. Rather than asking “What works?”—a question traditional research answers well— IS approaches ask “How do we make it work here?” and “How do we build capacity to sustain and continuously improve it?”. These are fundamentally different questions that require different methodologies.
How Improvement Science Approaches Bridge the Gap
Improvement Science approaches—including Action Research, Community-based Research, Education Design Research, Improvement Science Research —serve as critical connectors between research knowledge and educational practice. They accomplish this through several key mechanisms:
They translate research into implementable practices. Research findings often come in forms that are difficult for practitioners to apply. Improvement Science approaches work with educators to understand research evidence, adapt it to local contexts, and develop practical tools and processes for implementation. They transform abstract findings into concrete, actionable strategies.
They create partnerships that ensure relevance. By positioning researchers and practitioners as genuine partners, these approaches ensure that research questions align with real problems educators face and that solutions are designed for the contexts where they’ll actually be used. This partnership structure increases the likelihood that research-based practices will be adopted and sustained.
They build local capacity to use evidence. Rather than creating dependency on external experts, Improvement Science approaches develop practitioners’ capability to engage with research evidence, test practices in their contexts, measure results, and make evidence informed improvements. This capacity enables ongoing, sustained use of research rather than one-time implementation attempts.
They address implementation as rigorously as intervention effectiveness. While traditional efficacy research tells us what can work, Implementation Science and Design-Based Implementation Research systematically study how to make it work across diverse contexts They generate knowledge about implementation strategies, organizational conditions, and scaling processes that complement effectiveness research.
They create infrastructure for continuous learning. Approaches like Improvement Science establish routines for systematic inquiry, rapid testing, and data-informed refinement that become embedded in organizational practice. This infrastructure enables schools and districts to continuously draw on and apply research evidence rather than treating research as episodic inputs.
They accelerate knowledge spread through practitioner networks. Networked Improvement Communities and research-practice partnerships create lateral learning structures where practitioners share what they’ve learned about implementing research-based practices. This peer-to-peer knowledge exchange significantly accelerates the spread of effective implementation strategies.