This authoritative research distinguishes excellent classroom practice from the good or the poor and illustrates a range of effective teaching strategies used in primary schools. The closely observed and illuminating examples bring to life the findings on academic effectiveness and quality of pedagogy gathered from 82 focus primary schools examined in the prestigious 15 year longitudinal EPPSE (Effective Pre-school, Primary and Secondary Education) Study.


While previous EPPSE publications shared important insights into pedagogy and classroom practice through the analysis of the related quantitative data, this book presents the researchers' rich qualitative descriptions of classroom life. It draws on the detailed observations of Year 5 Literacy and Numeracy lessons to:

* describe the specific teaching behaviour and relationships that affected student learning outcomes advantageously - or not

* identify which were the most - and least - effective lessons, and why

* analyses aspects of lessons such as interactions, teacher-pupil dialogue and issues of (dis)organization and behaviour management.


Effective Teachers in Primary Schools offers a unique insight into successful pedagogy, and is an essential resource for all primary school leaders, classroom teachers, and those looking for practical and evidence-based approaches to improve pupil outcomes through classroom practice. It will also appeal to researchers and students interested in mixed method or longitudinal studies of education.


All the authors are Principal Investigators of the EPPSE study. Iram Siraj-Blatchford is Professor of Education at the Institute of Education, University of London, where Brenda Taggart is the EPPSE research coordinator. Pam Sammons is Professor of Education and Kathy Sylva Professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Oxford. Edward Melhuish is Professor of Human Development at Birkbeck.