The Evidence Institute believe we can enable an optimistic future by gathering and generating impactful evidence to support independent schools in providing excellent education opportunities.

The Institute has been established at a time when significant change and disruption are impacting a wide range of industries, including education. It recognises the importance of exploring the ways society understands the place of schools, teachers, and the role they play in shaping future generations.

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Enable evidence informed practice


Support school and sector insights


Build research skills and communities


Undertake and commission research


Meet the Evidence Institute

Growing Evidence Informed Practice

Growing Evidence Informed Practice brings together teachers and leaders across all career stages to learn, develop, and grow their understanding of using evidence, assessment and data.
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Perspectives: Your school in focus

Perspectives: Your school in focus is a whole school survey which enables schools to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement across a broad range of domains including School Environment, Teaching and Learning, Student Wellbeing, Leadership and Community.
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Moving Beyond Remote Learning

As schools and communities navigate the unprecedented circumstances presented by the pandemic, they continue to encounter unique challenges requiring them to identify and adopt new ways of supporting their learners.

AISNSW Primary Teacher Initiative Delivers Top Results

The AISNSW Research to Practice initiative is boosting the skills of primary teachers to deliver the Science and Technology Curriculum, leading to greater confidence and efficacy in teaching all KLAs.

NEW: AISNSW Remote Learning Rapid Literature Review

A unique report has been published identifying effective strategies in remote learning that all education practitioners can benefit from reading.



  Enable Evidence Informed Practice

Engaging in and with research is an essential component of independent schooling, but research alone does not change practice. Educators recognise that effective implementation of research and evidence based approaches can positively impact student outcomes and help to reduce the research to practice gap. The Evidence Institute supports independent schools in this process through targeted initiatives and activities specifically designed to integrate high quality evidence based practices into authentic educational environments.

Grounding education in evidence informed practice is an essential feature of assuring and enhancing educational excellence. Initiatives are informed by a variety of frameworks and research methodologies including Spiral of Inquiry, Action Research and Design Thinking. The Evidence Institute provides opportunities for independent schools to undertake, access and utilise educational research.

Opportunities out of Remote Learning

Schools and educators continue to be faced with unprecedented challenges as remote learning, in varying degrees and for different students, becomes more prevalent practice due to COVID-19. The Evidence Institute continues to explore these challenges and their impacts on the future needs of educators as they adapt to different ways of meeting individual learners needs.

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Research to Practice

Using the innovative Spiral of Inquiry, a disciplined and evidence-informed framework for collaborative professional inquiry, Research to Practice is designed to bridge the gap between research findings and what is happening in the classroom in order to optimise learning outcomes for students.


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Research Opportunities for Independent Schools

Working with researchers can be a powerful way to access relevant, context-specific, up to date evidence about a variety of educational topics of importance to your school. The Evidence Institute assists external researchers and independent schools in their research projects.


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   Support School and Sector Insights

Complex global and technological trends continue to impact the educational landscape. The Evidence Institute supports the collection and use of high quality evidence to empower schools as they navigate significant change.

The Institute offers a variety of services to support schools in their collection, analysis, interpretation and use of internal and external data for continuous school improvement. This includes:

The evidence based knowledge and insights gained through the activities of the Institute are designed to assist leaders in school planning, and classroom teachers to identify with precision their students’ strengths and opportunities. Support provided by the Institute will ultimately guide schools in improving student performance and pedagogical delivery.

  Build Research Skills and Communities

Connecting and engaging with similar or diverse perspectives can enhance thinking and provide new insights about information and areas of new knowledge. The Evidence Institute recognises the importance of developing research communities to support school leaders and teachers in their research. The Institute provides formal and informal opportunities to build these communities, support sustained engagement and bridge the research to practice gap.

The Evidence Institute offers a range of research-focused professional learning opportunities to support the development of research skills. These include face-to-face, online and blended programs and are designed to complement the suite of offerings provided by AISNSW. It also provides opportunities to showcase research conducted in independent school contexts, focusing on improving student, teacher and school outcomes. Together these help to create momentum to empower teachers and school leaders, both informing their practice and supporting sustainable change.

Online courses available include:


Getting ready for robust research

Designing surveys that work

Conducting interviews and focus groups

Making your numerical data work

Moving beyond numbers: Using qualitative data



 Undertake and Commission Research

The Evidence Institute undertakes and supports a range of research, independently, and through partnerships for mutual benefit, and the betterment of education. Commissioned research is undertaken with independent schools and organisations including universities, government and industry.

The Institute is committed to sharing the highest quality evidence from local, national and international research to help inform practice within the independent sector and beyond. Information is shared in a variety of ways to engage and support a wide range of stakeholders including teachers, school leaders, educational researchers, government and those across intersecting industries.

Strategic themes are identified through consultation with stakeholders and by monitoring the educational horizon. The Institute understands the evolving and diverse needs of the independent sector and seeks to support schools with evidence relevant to their diverse contexts.

School Based Research Projects

Each year member schools in NSW are invited to apply for funding and support to conduct a two year School Based Research Project. Successful projects are awarded in areas of education which ultimately impact student outcomes and make substantial contributions to new insights in and beyond individual schools. These Projects aim to build research capacity and cultures of research engagement in practicing teachers and/or school leaders in the independent sector.

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Quality Learning and Teaching in Primary Science and Technology

Research supports student inquiry as an effective pedagogical tool for the teaching of science and technology. There are numerous models available to educators. A number of those helpful in supporting student learning are featured in the Quality Learning and Teaching in Primary Science and Technology Literature Review (2015) and its recently released Supplement.

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Education Research Council

The AIS Education Research Council plays an important role in shaping the direction of The Evidence Institute. Established in 2014, the Council is made up of Heads from a variety of NSW independent schools, and has a mandate to investigate and support the research needs of independent schools in NSW.
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Meet The Evidence Institute

The Evidence Institute is staffed by a team of researchers and educators with a broad range of experience and expertise. They are committed to bridging the research to practice gap in the independent sector.
Meet the team