Duration
30h Th
Number of credits
Lecturer
Marie Housen, Mickaël Idrac, Doriane Jaegers, Marine Moyon, Stéphanie Peters
Coordinator
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
Teaching goes beyond the transmission of knowledge: it requires the capacity to reflect on one's own practices, to engage with research-based knowledge and, at times, to contribute to it, in order to design responses that are attuned to highly specific educational contexts. In today's rapidly changing school environment, drawing on research has become a core element of teachers' professional identity. As Bressoux (2017) argues, this connection should be embedded from the outset of initial teacher education and sustained throughout the career, enabling teachers to critically engage with research findings and to judge their relevance for their own professional practice.
It is within this perspective that the Decree of 7 February 2019 on initial teacher education was enacted. This decree strengthened the role of educational research within the curriculum. It specifies that teacher education must enable students to "develop a reflective stance" and to "draw on research to analyze and improve their practices" (art. 5). It also establishes a specific axis devoted to and through research in education and didactics (art. 19).
In this context, the course Research in Education serves as an entry point into the research track. Its objective is twofold:
- to support the completion of the master's thesis by providing students with methodological and conceptual tools for developing their research project;
- to contribute to the development of a professional identity that integrates the reflective and critical dimensions of the teaching profession.
This course is thus embedded in the perspective, supported by both the scientific literature and the RFIE decree, that teachers' professional identity is constructed and strengthened when it integrates a reflective and research-oriented stance. Its purpose is to enable each student not only to become a critical reader of scientific findings, but also a reflective practitioner capable of contributing actively to a learning organization.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
By the end of this course, students will be able to initiate their master's thesis project by drawing on research in education and didactics.
More specifically, upon completion of the course, students will be able to:
- Identify and problematize tensions or issues arising from the school context, and transform them into relevant research questions;
- Read and critically analyze scientific articles, distinguishing research postures, theoretical frameworks, and methodological choices;
- Explore and compare major research designs and tools in education, along with their respective strengths and limitations;
- Construct a theoretical framework grounded in scientific references, distinguishing these from contributions derived from professional practice or vocational publications;
- Anticipate ethical issues related to research in educational settings;
- Develop a preliminary draft of a research project that will serve as a foundation for the master's thesis.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
No administrative prerequisite is required for this course. However, it is recommended that students have:
- skills in reading and understanding texts;
- writing and argumentation skills;
- intellectual curiosity and a disposition toward reflexivity on their professional practice.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
- Lectures.
- Assigned readings.
- Practical exercises.
- Collaborative group work.
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Face-to-face course
Further information:
The course is taught primarily in person, with some occasional online activities, including video materials used as part of a flipped-classroom approach.
Course materials and recommended or required readings
Platform(s) used for course materials:
- eCampus
Further information:
- Course notes available on eCampus.
- Scientific articles in education and didactics.
- Reference works on research methodology in education (indicative bibliography provided at the beginning of the course).
Exam(s) in session
Any session
- In-person
written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire ) AND oral exam
Further information:
Assessment is based on two complementary components:
Individual component (50%): a multiple-choice questionnaire (MCQ) covering the key concepts of the course. The MCQ constitutes the baseline for validating individual learning outcomes. The points obtained for the collective work (see below) are only credited if the student has passed this individual test (absorbing grade system).
"For guessing" scale:
- Correct answer: +1
- Incorrect answer: -1 / (NPS - 1)
- Omission: 0
Collective component (50%): group production of a research poster. The poster must demonstrate the coherence of a research project (detailed instructions will be made available on eCampus).
In order to validate the course, both components (individual and collective) must be completed.
Further details regarding these assessment methods will be provided during the course.
The assessment arrangements for the resit session will be presented during the course.
Depending on the number of students enrolled in the 2026-2027 academic year, the teaching staff reserve the right to amend the assessment arrangements.
Work placement(s)
Organisational remarks and main changes to the course
The small-group sessions are devoted to activities that directly support the preparation and presentation of the research poster. Participation in these sessions contributes to the grade awarded for the group poster, which accounts for 50% of the final grade. Presenting the poster during the second small-group session forms part of the assessment and is required to complete the group component successfully.
Contacts
Doriane JAEGERS djaegers@uliege.be
Marie HOUSEN marie.housen@uliege.be
Mickaël IDRAC midrac@uliege.be
Stéphanie PETERS s.peters@uliege.be
Laura BEUKER laura.beuker@uliege.be
Pierre-Yves THIELEN PY.Thielen@uliege.be
Coline LEGROS coline.legros@uliege.be
Marine MOYON marie.moyon@uliege.be