Abstract

For many years people have discussed the research-to-practice gap in education. Recently, increased attention has been devoted to creating opportunities for practitioners and researchers to engage in highly collaborative partnerships from design to implementation to dissemination (e.g., Institute for Education Sciences, 2016). In this article, we discuss the importance of building strong, respectful, and productive partnerships between researcher and practitioner communities. We will offer illustrations of successful partnerships across the PK-12 continuum, with comments and considerations focusing on: (a) respectful, mutually beneficial partnerships; (b) positive, productive playing fields for continual learning; and (c) responsible inquiry.

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