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Investing
in the power of teachers
to improve teaching and learning. |
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History The STF saw teacher research as an important avenue for the professional development of teachers and extending teachers' influence over educational directions. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, it made a number of short-lived efforts to develop a strong research presence for teachers. Then in the 1980s, three significant developments led to a renewed drive to establish a solid foundation for teacher research: 1) The STF conducted a Study of Teaching that raised teachers' awareness of the opportunities research can provide to explore and discuss their classroom practices. 2)
The Competency Committee of the STF adjudicated a case that demonstrated the need
for the teaching profession to ask questions about the nature of teaching and
the quality of teaching practices.
Propelled by the momentum from these three events, the STF worked to create a national foundation for research into teaching and register it as a charitable organization. In 1991, it was decided to name the foundation after Dr. Stirling McDowell, an educational researcher and teacher advocate known and respected across Canada. Over the next few years, the governance structures and policies for the McDowell Foundation were developed and refined to include an independent Board of Directors, an Advisory Committee with representatives from the educational and business communities, and a Project Review Committee responsible for selecting projects for research grants. In addition, an intensive fund-raising campaign was initiated to build an endowment fund from which to fund the work of the McDowell Foundation. By 1994, the fund had grown to the point where the Foundation could issue its first annual call for research proposals. The following year, the first Learning from Practice conference was held to showcase the results of McDowell Foundation research projects. Many more milestones were to follow:
The Foundation continues to grow and develop as teachers express new research needs and opportunities are found to further their professional studies.
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The
McDowell Foundation was established in 1991 by the Saskatchewan
Teachers' Federation (STF). For decades the STF had included a core
of members that pushed the provincial organization towards greater
teacher involvement in educational research. These teachers wanted
their organization to take a leadership role in generating research
that was practical, relevant, and effective in improving teaching
practices. 
3)
The STF received a $150,000 grant from the Future Corporation, a
temporary agency set up by the Saskatchewan government to provide
seed money for projects that would position the province for success
in the 21st Century. The grant was intended to support the establishment
of a fund for research into innovative teaching.