In the United States, public trust is declining in both P–12 educational systems and higher education. At the same time, there’s a global crisis of confidence in the legitimacy of experts and expertise.

At this moment of precarity, colleges of education in research universities must keep generating both experts and expertise — so we can improve educational outcomes and experiences for all learners. To do that, we need to regain trust.

Education research affects how children learn and systems work all over the world

In a very real sense, then, the decisions we make about what matters in education — what questions we ask about teaching and learning, what kind of research we fund and pursue — will determine the intellectual, technological, and moral arc of humanity.

Our approach to education research must earn the interest and trust of the communities we serve

If we want to see research cut through the thickets of distrust, we need to approach research as something that scholars and universities do with communities, not for them (and certainly not to them). That means we have to come out of the ivory tower more often and engage with communities and educators and learners.

It is not simply a matter of ‘knowledge mobilization’ that brings the fruits of scholarly research to schools and communities. It should be — and be understood by all to be — a process of deep collaboration. Knowledge generation in the field of education should be as much about inviting practice to inform research as it is about developing and disseminating research-based practices.

Our conversations at the 2025 Yidan Prize Conference point us in the direction of establishing trust

The event brought together a roster of thinkers, leaders, and doers that exemplifies both rigor and relevance. The panels and conversations — about sustainable futures for education, leading for dynamic learning systems, adopting learner-centered practices, and catalyzing technology — featured Yidan Prize laureates from both categories that the prize recognizes: education research and education development. Discussion was rooted in scholarly rigor and turned resolutely toward the future in the spirit of asking ourselves: what do we need to do?

The Yidan Prize Foundation’s understanding of the double-helix of research and practice — thought and action — is very much in line with how we at ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton College approach our work. We strive to work at the intersection of knowledge generation, operational innovation, and scale.

To meet the future of teaching and learning and advance education for the greatest possible number of humans, we need to be both thinkers and doers.

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Carole G. Basile
Dean, Mary Lou Fulton College for Teaching and Learning Innovation, Arizona State University