Recently educational research in Britain has come under fierce public attack by politicians, policymakers and even by some members of the research community itself. One of the main criticisms has been that it lacks ‘usefulness’. This is generally taken to mean that educational research has insufficient relevance to and impact on classroom practice. Policy changes are now being introduced in Britain with the aim of enhancing the perceived usefulness of educational research.

The aim of this paper is to examine through documentary sources the background to the recent spate of criticism and then to explore the notions of usefulness, relevance and impact in the context of educational research. Comparisons are made with criticisms that have been made of educational research elsewhere, including in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. An historical review of criticisms of educational research in Britain is also presented.

The paper argues that, although the concepts of usefulness, relevance and impact have a common-sense appeal which has been ably exploited by some critics, the concepts are not straightforward and in fact may be used not only to promote particular political agendas but also to mask a dangerous anti-intellectualism. The paper makes the appeal that, despite rapid and significant changes in society and in the teaching and learning environment, traditional academic and research values should be firmly protected rather than denigrated or dismissed.