Evidence into Equity: A Three-Tier Inquiry Process for Social Justice-Focused Professional Practice

This resource package provides a ready-to-use example of a three-tier What / So what / Now what process designed to support student-teachers to identify social justice matters and apply research to practice during school placement. It includes: (1) a worked example illustrating how student-teachers can progress from defining a social justice focus (Tier 1), to selecting and unpacking six practice-relevant research articles (Tier 2), to designing, enacting, and reflecting on an evidence-informed action plan in placement (Tier 3); (2) a visual representation of the process adapted to a 12-week semester to support planning and pacing; and (3) an assessment rubric to evaluate the assignment, with criteria aligned to conceptual clarity, research engagement, translation of evidence into practice, documentation, and critical reflection. The resource is adaptable for use across teacher education programmes that aim to challenge student-teachers to foreground social justice and strengthen evidence-informed professional judgement.