Background: This paper explores the development of practice-based research skills among teachers to enhance inclusive education across primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland. Responding to both national and international calls for more practitioner-led, context-driven approaches to educational inclusion, the research examines how collaborative partnerships between schools and higher education institutions can foster reflective, evidence-informed teaching practices. In collaboration with lecturers from Mary Immaculate College (MIC), participating teachers engaged in structured professional learning activities, including collaborative inquiry cycles, mentoring, and school-based research projects. These activities aimed to support teachers in systematically investigating barriers to inclusion and developing effective, context-specific interventions.

Research Aim: This study investigated teachers' experiences of participating in a practitioner-based research project, with the aim of understanding how the partnership contributed to the development of their skills as teacher-researchers. Central to the project was the cultivation of teacher agency through iterative cycles of inquiry: planning, acting, observing, and reflecting, based on the action research model outlined by Kemmis, McTaggart and Nixon. MIC lecturers provided sustained mentorship on research design, data collection, and analysis, enabling teachers to carry out small-scale, meaningful investigations embedded within their everyday practice. These inquiries focused on areas such as transitions, learner voice, universal design for learning, and support for students with special educational needs.

Data Collection: Nine teachers from seven different schools in the West of Ireland participated in this project. Underpinned by an interpretivist paradigm, semi-structured interviews with participating teachers were undertaken following their engagement with the project. Qualitative coding using Saldana’s Framework (2016) framed analysis of data from the semi-structured interviews.

Initial Findings: Initial findings suggest that participation in practice-based research enhanced teachers’ confidence in using data to inform decision-making and fostered a deeper commitment to inclusive pedagogy. Evidence also points to increased collaboration among school staff and a stronger alignment between inclusive values and classroom practices. The co-construction of knowledge between academic and school-based educators was found to be particularly powerful, supporting the view that inclusive education is best understood as a dynamic, situated process rather than the application of a fixed set of strategies.

Conclusion: This research contributes to an emerging body of literature on school-university partnerships as vehicles for educational change. It aligns with recent Irish educational policy frameworks which emphaise teacher professional learning, collaborative practice, and inclusion. It also echoes international priorities around empowering teachers as researchers and innovators in their own contexts. By providing a practical model for embedding research within schools, the research offers insights for future professional development initiatives and contributes to broader policy discussions around inclusive and equitable education.

Keywords: Inclusive education, practitioner research, teacher agency, school-university partnerships, professional learning, Ireland.