An important issue Noel Entwistle raises is the relationship between research and practice. Colin Smith believes this to be a complex issue that is illustrated by a metaphor of a web of webs of educational theories. A simpler version influenced his thinking in a secondment from secondary school teaching to Edinburgh University, and in the context of the educational policy and academic 'moods' that impacted on him then (Smith, 2002). He hopes to respond adequately to Entwistle's concerns. As his main background is secondary school education, he draws mainly on this experience, but he hopes it is relevant to higher education. [This is in response to the article, "Contributions of Educational Psychology to Understanding Student Learning: What Has Been Discovered -- What More Could Be Done?" For that article, see EJ1247419.]