Sustaining communities of practice with early career teachers : supporting early career teachers in australian and international primary aand secondary schools, and educational social learning spaces

This book focuses on sustaining communities of practice in primary and secondary schools in Australia and internationally for the professional learning of all teachers, and particularly, early career teachers. Informed by the communities of practice research of Wenger-Trayner, it shows what factors are conductive to the sustainability of communities of practice, drawing particularly on a case study of an Australian regional secondary school, and explores how it has sustained support particularly for early career teachers over a three-year period. The first chapters of the book provide longitudinal perspectives using qualitative data and include perspectives from a variety of stakeholders, including the principal, the professional learning coordinator and the early career teachers who have experienced the school’s Communities of practice over three or more years. It offers practical suggestions on how to implement and improve communities of practice in schools and highlights the increasing importance of online communities to support early career teachers. Policy-makers, school principals, teacher educators and teaching practitioners find the book useful for implementing and sustaining communities of practice in schools. Subsequent chapters explore the value of online communities, such as Twitter communities; the role of collegial support networks in supporting early career teachers in Flemish primary education; and professional learning in Northern Ireland pre- and in-service teacher networked communities. Foreword 5 Preface 8 Our Focus 8 Book Development Process 11 Disclaimers 11 Acknowledgements 11 References 12 Contents 14 Authors and Contributors 19 1 What Is a Community of Practice? 21 Introduction 21 Theoretical Underpinnings of Communities of Practice 23 Evolution of the Concept of Communities of Practice 25 Phase 1—Apprenticeship Model 25 Phase 2—Communities of Practice as Learning Partnerships 26 Phase 3—Communities of Practice Operating Across Landscapes of Practice 26 What Are Communities of Practice? 27 Types of Communities of Practice 29 Learning Loops 30 Value Creation Framework 31 Life Cycles of Communities of Practice 32 Sustaining Communities of Practice 33 Evolving Social Learning Theory 36 Social Learning Spaces 36 Conclusion 37 Key Takeaways 37 References 38 2 The Value of Communities of Practice for Early Career Teachers 40 Introduction 40 The Value Communities of Practice for Early Career Teachers 42 The Tyranny of Distance: Locating Self Within a Vast Landscape of Practice 44 Early Career Teacher Identity in a Rural or Remote Context 45 Early Career Teacher Leadership Opportunities in Rural or Remote Contexts 46 The Research Context 47 Methodology 48 Research Findings 49 Three Years on—The Early Career Journey Within Communities of Practice 51 Thriving in a Supportive Environment 51 Learning New Skills and Strategies 53 Teacher Agency 54 Scaffolding Leadership 55 Conclusion and Implications 57 Key Takeaways 59 References 59 3 Leading and Sustaining Communities of Practice 63 Introduction 63 The Role of the Principal in Sustaining Communities of Practice 65 Holding the Reins 65 Ensuring All Voices Are Heard 66 Ethical Leadership 67 The Leader as Learner 67 Honouring People’s Histories and Contexts 68 Distributed Leadership 68 A Champion Role in Sponsoring Communities of Practice 70 The Role of Middle-Level Leaders in Sustaining Communities of Practice 71 The Research Context 71 Methodology 72 Findings 73 Holding the Reins 73 Distributed Leadership 76 Sustaining Communities of Practice 77 Conclusion and Future Research 78 Key Takeaways 79 References 79 4 Sustaining Online Teacher Networks 83 Introduction 83 Social Learning Communities 84 Sustaining Online Communities of Practice 91 Methodology 92 Findings 93 Ten “Super Passionate” Educators 94 Helping and Mentoring Start-Ups 95 Keeping the Flame Lit 96 Operational Requirements 96 Planning for the Chat 96 Advertising the Chat 98 Saving the Chat 98 Personal Requirements—Building Rapport 98 Taking a Genuine Interest in Participants 99 Building Community Within the Chat: Around the Campfire or Watering Hole 99 Twitter, the Great Leveller 102 Professional Learning in the Palm of Your Hand 102 A Very Social Community 103 Sustaining the Chat Facilitators 103 Conclusions 104 Key Takeaways 106 References 106 Online Twitter Chat Leader: Brett Salakas #AussieED 108 Online Twitter Chat Leader: Rachael Lehr #PrimarySTEMChat 110 Online Twitter Chat Leader: Craig Kemp #Whatisschool 111 Online Twitter Chat Leader: Dina Pham #includeEdau 112 Online Twitter Chat Leaders Steven Kolber #edureading 113 Online Twitter Chat Leader: Angie Taylor #pstchat 115 5 The Collegial Networks of Early Career Teachers in Primary Education 116 The research project 116 Problem statement and central concept 116 Teacher characteristics as important precursors of retention 117 Collegial Support 117 The Social Network Perspective 118 Research Context 120 Research Objectives 122 Social Network Methodology 123 The Social Network Perspective 123 Network Research Approaches 124 Network Research Methods 124 One Measurement Moment or Follow-up Design 125 Data Collection 125 Main Findings 128 Network Size, Frequency of Support and Perceived Usefulness (RO1) 128 Network Structure and Network Content (RO2) 130 Network Change (RO3) 133 General Discussion 134 Induction Support as a School-Wide Responsibility 134 ECTs’ Access to Professional Support 135 The Power of School Leaders’ Transformational Abilities 136 Links with Communities of Practice 137 Recommendations for Policy and Practice 138 Policy-Related Implications 138 Implications Directed Towards the Actors in the School 139 Implications Directed Towards Pedagogical Advisory Services and Providers of Teacher Education Programmes 140 Conclusion 141 Key Takeaways 142 References 143 6 Professional Learning in Networked Communities: Models and Methods—A Northern Ireland Reflection 149 Introduction-Defining Professional Learning 150 Reflective Inquiry as Part of the Professional Learning Model 151 Methodology 156 Community-Based Teacher Education 159 Review of Findings from Scoping Study Phase 1—Desk Research 162 Review of Findings from Scoping Study Phase 2—Participatory Action Research for Professional Learning 163 Critique of Existing and Emerging Models of Professional Learning 165 The Individual Professional Learning (IPL) Model—Level 1 169 The Mutual Professional Learning (MPL) Model 169 The L-PAR Embedded Model (Leadership-Participatory Action Research) 170 Conclusion 171 Key Takeaways 172 References 172 7 Conclusion 177 Introduction 177 Findings 179 The Transformative Role of the Leader 179 The Significant Role of Middle-Level Leaders Within a Distributed Leadership Model in Supporting and Encouraging Communities of Practice 181 The Importance of a Whole School Community to Support the Professional Learning and Social Well-Being of Early Career Teachers 181 The Ways in Which Early Career Teachers Can Be Supported Through Communities of Practice to Advance Their Professional Careers 182 The Ways in Which ECTs Can Support Themselves to Advance Their Professional Life and Remain in the Profession 184 The Value of Online Networks to Support a Wide Network of Teachers and How Twitter Chat Leaders Sustain Them 184 Recommendations, Further Opportunities and Challenges 186 References 187