The National Centre for School Research (NCS) is a collaborative venture established in 2016 between the Danish School of Education (DPU) at Aarhus University and VIA University College. The centre is home to a national research partnership whose aim is to:

• Strengthen Danish research into childcare centres and schools.
• Contribute to better coordination and closer cooperation.
• Ensure that this research benefits childcare centres and schools throughout Denmark, and is communicated to them.

Mission

The mission of the National Centre for School Research is to supply research which, in a binding collaboration between research institutions and between researchers and practitioners, helps to strengthen the professional practice and professional judgment of teachers, childcare professionals, managers, administrations and politicians – this being a prerequisite for strengthening the learning, development and well-being of children and pupils in childcare centres and schools.

Vision

The vision for the National Centre for School The vision of the National Centre for School Research is that, five years after the establishment of the centre in 2016, the work of the centre should contribute to closer and more binding collaboration between research environments than when the centre was established; and that the interaction between educational research, university colleges and professional practice in schools and childcare centres and in municipal and national educational administrations is just as constructive, natural and mutually respectful as it is in other professions.

The NCS as a project and collaboration facilitator

Besides coordinating and developing research projects, the NCS will act as a project exchange forum, match-maker and laboratory for project development:

• The NCS will encourage dialogue - including with relevant professional representatives - on prioritising research themes and on how best to organise research projects and research collaboration.
• The NCS will be a forum for further development of the school effectiveness paradigm. Danish researchers can contribute to refining and developing the theories and methods within this paradigm, which will also be relevant in an international perspective.
• The NCS will be a forum for the development of methods relevant to the school effectiveness approach, including the development of mixed-methods, i.e. the integration and interaction between qualitative and quantitative research methods.
• The NCS will take initiative to coordinate collection of education data. A current issue is that many big and small research projects collect their own data, which places a burden on data providers and means that data is not being utilised optimally by the research community.
• The NCS will ensure that the quality of research projects carried out under the auspices of the NCS maintains a high international standard. A scientific and expert committee will be established to ensure this.
• The NCS will contribute to project facilitation, project development and fundraising in collaboration with the rest of DPU.
• The NCS will facilitate an effort within talent development with, among others, many of the PhD students who are funded through the PhD Council for Educational Research.
• Recognising that many reform and policy activities in recent years have been relatively short-term, the NCS will provide research-based contributions and other forms of support to ongoing efforts centred on identifying long-term goals for the entire education system, e.g. in terms of what is referred to as 21st century skills and competencies.
• The NCS will strengthen the international profile of Danish education research through participation in international research projects, publication support and through the establishment of an international advisory board.