If you’re interested in evidence informed teaching, this page has loads of stuff to satisfy your curiosity:
- High Impact Teaching books
- Evidence Snacks newsletter
- Science of memory readers
- Science of motivation readers
- Teacher expertise readers
- Future of teaching readers
High Impact Teaching books
I’ve written 4 books for teachers. Each one stitches together the best available evidence on a key topic into a coherent and actionable framework that you can use to power up your teaching 💪 AND they’re super concise—you can read each in less than an hour.

“I doubt you’ll find an education book with more useful insights per minute of reading time.” — Dylan Wiliam, Emeritus Professor of Educational Assessment at UCL
“It’s not easy to write a book that is simultaneously brief, packed with ideas, and clear, but Peps has done it.” — Daniel Willingham, Professor of Psychology at University of Virginia
Which is best for you? Here’re my recommendations:
- Lean Lesson Planning → A solid introduction for those seeking some basic, evidence-informed principles for learning design.
- Memorable Teaching → Best for folks keen to understand how to apply ideas from cognitive science to the classroom.
- Motivated Teaching → Best for teachers interested in how social, emotional, and cultural research can guide our practice.
- Developing Expert Teaching → The cherry on the top, essential reading for anyone who helps other teachers to get better.
If you ever fancy ordering a batch for your school, just drop me a message… I can ship bulk orders (50+) at a hefty discount.
Evidence Snacks newsletter
I write a weekly 5-minute email for teachers keen to keep up-to-date with the latest research and thinking around effective teaching, read by 10k+ teachers. Check it out:

Science of memory readers
The following is a broad selection of readers for anyone interested in dipping their toe into the science of memory (aka ‘cognitive science’).
- CESE (2018) Cognitive load theory in practice
- Deans for Impact (2016) The science of learning
- Fletcher-Wood et al (2019) The learning curriculum
- Mccrea (2018) Learning: what is it, and how might we catalyse it?
- Weinstein et al (2018) Teaching the science of learning
Science of motivation readers
Here’s a selection of readers for anyone interested in dipping their toe into the science of motivation (* = a good place to start).
- Barron & Hulleman (2014) Expectancy-value-cost model of motivation
- Berridge (2017) Evolving concepts of emotion and motivation
- *Boekaerts (2010) The crucial role of motivation and emotion in classroom learning
- Cialdini & Goldstein (2004) Social influence: compliance & conformity
- *Cook & Artino (2016) Motivation to learn: an overview of contemporary theories
- *Damgaard & Nielsen (2018) Nudging in Education: a discussion paper
- Domenico & Ryan (2017) The emerging neuroscience of intrinsic motivation
- Feldon et al (2019) Cognitive load as motivational cost
- *Heath & Heath (2010) Switch: how to change things when change is hard
- Katz & Assor (2006) When choice motivates and when it does not
- Kenrick et al (2009) Deep rationality: the evolutionary economics of decision making
- Lavecchia et al (2014) Behavioral Economics of Education: Progress and Possibilities
- *Mccrea (2020) Motivated Teaching: leveraging the science of learning to boost attention and effort in the classroom
- Murayama (2018) The science of motivation
- O’Reilly et al (2017) Behavioural insights for education
- Samson (nd) An introduction to behavioural economics
- Service et al (2014) EAST: Four simple ways to apply behavioural insights
- Walton et al (2012) Mere belonging: the power of social connections
- Yeager et al (2013) Addressing achievement gaps with psychological interventions
And for those who want to go full geek, the legendary Kathryn Morgan has pulled together all the links from Motivated Teaching into one handy all-the-links-you’ll-ever-need spreadsheet!
Teacher expertise readers
Selected readers on teacher expertise.
- The Effects of High-Quality PD on Teachers and Students, by Fletcher-Wood
- Habit Formation Limits Growth in Teacher Effectiveness, by Hobbiss
- Cognitive Load and Classroom Teaching, by Feldon
- The Myth of the Performance Plateau, by Papay
- Conditions for Intuitive Expertise: A Failure to Disagree, by Kahneman
- Expert Performance: Its Structure and Acquisition, by Ericsson
- Parsing the Practice of Teaching, by Kennedy
- Toward a Multifactorial Model of Expertise, by Hambrick
- Expert Teaching: What is it, and how might be develop it? by Yours Truly
- Classroom Management Scripts, by Wolff
- Describing the Behavior and Documenting the Accomplishments of Expert Teachers, by Berliner
- The Development of Expertise in Pedagogy, by Berliner
- Characteristics of Effective Teacher Professional Development, by Sims (easily one of the best analyses of PD to date and a great accompaniment to my book)
- See A Mental Model of the Learner, by Willingham (one of my fav papers ever)
- The Effect of Teacher Coaching on Instruction and Achievement, by Kraft
- Understanding Teacher Effectiveness to Raise Pupil Attainment, by Burgess
- Modelling Evidence-Based Practice in Initial Teacher Training, by Sims (also a cracking example of experimental research in education)
- Innovation and Efficiency in Transfer, by Schwartz
- Fast Start: Training Better Teachers Faster, by TNTP
- Practice with Purpose: The Emerging Science of Teacher Expertise, by Deans for Impact
- The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance, by Ericsson
- Expertise Reversal Effect and its Instructional Implications, by Kalyuga
- Personal Best: Top Athletes and Singers Have Coaches, Should You? by Gwande
Future of teaching readers
Selected readers on the applied science of teaching.
- Why Education Experts Resist Effective Practices (and what it would take to make education more like medicine), by Carnine
- Teaching as a Research-Based Profession: Possibilities and Prospects, by Hargreaves
- Classroom Research and Cargo Cults, by Hirsch
- The Sciences of the Artificial, by Simon
- A Survey of Published Educational Research, by Tooley