About the Project

Study Title

The Teacher Voice Project: RVE in the Curriculum for Wales

Who is the study aimed at?

This study is aimed at teachers in Wales. Participants must be practitioners teaching in Wales (within a 3 to 16-year-old school or setting context). This includes teachers in the following schools and settings: Nursery, Primary, Secondary, All-age School, Special, and PRU.

Who is responsible for the study?

With the support of the Wales Association of SACREs / SACs, this collaborative study is devised and undertaken by researchers from the St Giles’ Centre Wrexham, Bishop Grosseteste University, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Neath Port Talbot Education Support, and Llanishen High School, Cardiff.

What is the study about?

This study is designed to access directly teachers’ experiences of and engagement with curriculum change in Wales, with a focus on Religion, Values and Ethics (RVE). The aim of the study is to provide a ‘snapshot’ of teachers’ perspectives on RVE in the Curriculum for Wales, which can inform provision for professional learning and professional dialogue at both local and national levels. This research is being conducted in the public interest.

What will my participation in the study involve?

If you decide to take part in the study, once you have read this participant information, you then need to respond to the Consent questions which follow. You will then gain access to the survey, where you will be asked as an individual to provide some brief general information about yourself and then respond to a range of questions which invite you to share your professional views and experiences relevant to RVE in the Curriculum for Wales. These questions will take approximately 25 – 30 minutes to complete.

Do I have to take part?

No. Participation in this study is completely voluntary and choosing not to take part will not affect you in any way. You can also choose to withdraw your participation, without giving a reason, by contacting Dr Tania ap Sion (tania.apsion@bishopg.ac.uk). Further details about withdrawing from the study are provided below.

Will there be any possible benefits in taking part in this study?

Your participation in this study will help teacher perspectives on RVE in the Curriculum for Wales to be shared at local, national and international levels. This will help contribute to research-informed professional dialogue and professional learning.

What are the possible disadvantages, side effects or risks, of taking part in this study?

No disadvantages, side effects or risks to taking part in this study have been identified.

Will my taking part be kept confidential?

Your data will be collected via onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk on the JISC platform, which is GDPR compliant. These data will be stored securely at Bishop Grosseteste University on the University’s double-encrypted OneDrive , and will be accessible only by the research team using encrypted, password-protected computers. At no point in the survey will you be asked to provide any personal data such as your name or your school or setting name. Data will be anonymised should any identifiable information be included. Following the completion of data collection, all data will be kept confidentially and securely for up to 10 years.

What will you do with my data?

As data controller for this study, we are committed to protecting the rights of individuals in line with data protection legislation. Bishop Grosseteste University will keep your survey responses for 10 years after the end of the study, after which all data will be deleted. The anonymous responses of everyone who completes the survey will be written up in reports, academic articles, and research news articles, which will be made available indefinitely. They will also be presented at conferences, seminars and professional meetings. Your rights to access, change or move your information are limited, as we need to manage your information in specific ways in order for the research to be reliable and accurate.

What will happen if I don’t want to carry on being part of the study?

There is no obligation for you to participate in the study. If you decide to participate, you are free to withdraw from the study at any time, without giving any reason. If you choose to withdraw after you have submitted your survey response, you will need to provide your ‘Response ID’ which is randomly generated by the survey when you submit your response. This response ID allows your data to be identified and deleted. If you lose your response ID, you will not be able to withdraw from the study because no identifying personal data will be collected in the study. Should you choose to withdraw from the study, contact Dr Tania ap Sion (tania.apsion@bishopg.ac.uk)

What will happen to the results of the study?

Study findings will be shared with WASACRE, local SACREs/ SACs, local authorities, consortia, Welsh Government, and other professional bodies with an interest in RVE in the Curriculum for Wales. These findings will be disseminated through presentations at conferences, seminars and meetings as well as through publications. The study does not collect personal data such as names or school or setting names so the data are anonymous. Any quotations used will be anonymised and presented in a way to avoid identification of any individual, school or setting.

Who has reviewed the study?

This study has been reviewed and approval given by Bishop Grosseteste University research ethics committee and the Cardiff Metropolitan University research ethics committee (CSESP -Sta-323).

Who should I contact if I want further information?

Dr Tania ap Sion, Reader in Religions, Humanities and Education,

tania.apsion@bishopg.ac.uk

Who should I contact if I wish to raise queries or concerns?

In case of any need to raise queries or concerns about this research project, you are welcome to use these independent contact’s details:

Professor Caroline Horton, Chair of Bishop Grosseteste University’s Research Ethics Committee, caroline.horton@bishopg.ac.uk.

Consent