This article (with Tomislav Tudjman as a co-author) is based on an international study of knowledge-exchange schemes
between schools and universities. It describes a number of such schemes in
European countries, and offers practical suggestions about factors to be borne
in mind when setting up a scheme. It combines the results of an online survey of
13 schemes in six EU countries and an analysis of 4 particular schemes in greater
depth. The latter include a generic online space, a city-based forum, a university–
school partnership and a rural collaboration on a specific issue. Based on these
4 cases, observations are made about factors that appear to help or hinder the
interplay of knowledge exchange and practice improvement. A sequence of
stages is suggested to describe the process.