Windsor Academy Trust is a family of schools in the West Midlands committed to unlocking students’ academic and personal potential. Windsor put children at the centre of everything they do, delivering excellent education to 7,000 students aged 2 to 18 driven by 1,000 committed, inspiring and talented staff.
Teaching and learning is at the core of their work. This is underpinned by a culture of continuous improvement and extensive professional learning. As a Trust they have developed exceptional teachers, leaders and professional services staff within their own family of schools, and for schools and school trusts across the country for over a decade.
Windsor Academy offers a Practitioner Research Programme, which rests on a belief that routine investigation of academic research provides a solid foundation on which to grow and develop pedagogy, and draws upon a range of suitable research evidence to support teachers in undertaking practitioner inquiry.
Over the course of an academic year, Windsor supports ‘Practitioner Researchers’ to develop themselves as both consumers and generators of research. Teachers engage with academic literature to provide a springboard to design, test and amend new strategies, ready for them to be disseminated across their school communities.
Windsor Academy’s Practitioner Research Programme supports candidates working towards the Education Research and Inquiry Certificate on the Chartered Teacher, and Chartered Teacher (Mentor) pathways.
The Education Research and Inquiry Certificate is integrated into Windsor Academy’s Practitioner Research Programme, which offers 6x 1hr virtual sessions, led by the trust research lead, to help participants prepare for and undertake a practitioner inquiry project within their own classroom setting. Alongside opportunities for networking and professional dialogue with other participants through the virtual events, there are also 2x 1-1 sessions to support participants with their undertaking a literature review and project planning.
Windsor Academy Trust runs a complete programme that supports teachers towards the Classroom Practice Inquiry Project assessment. Upon successful completion of the assessment, individuals are awarded the Education Research and Inquiry Certificate, and 20 credits towards Chartered Teacher Status, or Chartered Teacher (Mentor) Status, depending on their pathway.
