Learner‐centered leadership: a mentoring model for the professional development of school administrators

The Learner‐Centered Leadership program is a new initiative that provides professional development opportunities to school administrators through a mentoring model. The focus on learner‐centered leadership reflects renewed attention to the primary role of teaching and learning in the development of school leadership expertise. With a focus on learning, the need to create collaborative structures where trust, respect and communication are promoted among the participants has been critical. In its first year, the project goal has been to develop the capacity for mentoring across districts. To create this capacity, the project has focused on building relationships among participants using a threefold process: formal workshops that introduce the districts and participants; informal gatherings that break down barriers and establish opportunities for networking; and a series of problem‐solving initiatives called a team challenge that require participants work together, communicate and cooperate to solve the challenging activities.     

Analysing teacher professional development through professional dialogue: an investigation into a university–school partnership project on enquiry learning

The paper considers data in one Higher Education Institution (HEI) from written reports and from interviews with trainee teachers and their teachers charged with the assessment of one training standard for secondary Initial Teacher Training in England: Professional Values and Practice. It explores the extent to which four elements of this standard can be measured as outcomes of performance. It reveals that assessment judgements draw on a wide range of evidence and are often subjective, context‐specific and broadly interpreted. In their current form these statements do not lend themselves easily to assessment. Recommendations include greater clarity in the statements about what might be expected of a beginning teacher in terms of particular professional competences as performance statements; opportunities for assessment in relation to a ‘developing professionalism’ rather than ‘managed professionalism’ (and compliance); and a broader framework that can take account of two dimensions in particular: (1) creating an environment for pupil learning and (2) teacher professionalism.     

A model of professional development: teachers’ perceptions of their professional development

This research aims to evaluate the manner in which teachers perceive their professional development process. Forty-three teachers from Israeli schools participated in the study. I used a semi-structured interview to understand the teachers’ perceptions about their professional development. The qualitative analysis identified two dimensions that teachers referred to in their professional development stories: the professional development motivation (intrinsic/extrinsic) and types of aspirations (lateral/vertical). Using these dimensions, four ‘professional development patterns’ emerged. Participants’ professional trajectories are described in terms of these patterns: Hierarchically Ambitious, Hierarchically Compelled, the Laterally Ambitious and the Laterally Compelled. This categorisation could serve as an essential tool to help principals and decision-makers analyse teachers’ personal course of professional development. Hence, the categorisation of the teaching staff according to individuals’ professional aspirations could be utilised to design professional development programmes and incentives that would correspond to teachers’ particular needs.     

Impacts of a university–school partnership on middle school students' fractional knowledge: A quasiexperimental study

In this quasiexperimental study, the authors investigated the effects of university within school partnership model, within which faculty members acted as teacher-researchers to improve fractional knowledge among middle school (Grades 5–8) students. Students in nine Grade 6 mathematics classes from two public middle schools in Turkey were assigned to two conditions: University within school model instruction and traditional instruction. Pre- and posttest data showed that the students exposed to instruction through the university within school partnership model significantly outperformed their traditional instruction peers on the fractions test. Results indicated that students made significant gains in fractional knowledge in the experimental classrooms and in different subgroup populations. It was suggested that a substantial amount of mathematical infusion through partnership could have a positive impact on middle school students' fractional knowledge. The educational implications of the study were also discussed.     

Competing views of teaching in a school–university partnership

This case study examines how differing views on the teacher's role in school reform affected the work of a school–university partnership. The school district and the university had a history of partnerships and shared common general goals. Yet, as the partnership progressed, conflicting perspectives about teaching and the purpose of professional development became evident and created dilemmas that influenced the nature of the work. We provide background information about each partner, describe the two views, and examine how the differing perspectives influenced the goals and activities of the partnership. This study highlights the complex issues embedded in school–university collaboration.     

A ‘Partnership in Teaching Excellence’: ways in which one school–university partnership has fostered teacher development

This paper reports on some of the factors that contribute to an effective partnership between an urban Australian university and a State Department of Education. The partnership, currently in its third year of implementation, entails as a key purpose the development of school Centres of Excellence which contribute to the preparation of pre-service teachers. The foundational aims of the partnership include addressing the gap between theory and practice, facilitating pre-service teacher recruitment and providing a guarantee of future employment for identified Faculty of Education students through the provision of pre-service teacher scholarships. Data for the study were collected via two program reviews, conducted at the end of the first and third years of the program. Findings point to ways in which the partnership has enhanced pre-service teacher engagement and learning and also indicate ways in which partners in both institutions might further strengthen the partnership.     

The role of school-based research champions in a school–university partnership

The value of teachers’ engagement in and with research is long recognised and it is acknowledged that school–university research partnerships are one way of enabling such engagement. But we know little about how research-based knowledge is negotiated into school practices. Here we draw on data from nine ‘research champions’, who are teachers in schools which are part of the Oxford Education Deanery, a research partnership with a university department. Taking a cultural/historical approach, the study examined the strategic intentions and actions in the activities of the champions as they negotiated research-based knowledge into their schools. Data comprised 59 completed templates that described what they did and why. Findings revealed differences between those with close links with senior leaders—who could take a whole-school approach—and those whose reach was restricted by their position in school practices. Nonetheless, all the champions carefully selected and targeted research in ways that reflected their knowledge of local contexts. The findings point to the need to incorporate the champion role into school systems and for universities to value the role as they develop their own research agenda.     

A school leaders’ professional development project The first year: Progress in researching the professional development needs of secondary school headteachers

Ted Wadsworth is a professional counsellor, educator and trainer. He has taught and counselled in schools for many years before taking up his present position in 1976, and has had a long‐standing interest in the personal and social development of adolescents, a sympathy for their teachers and headteachers and a concern for the organizational health of secondary schools. He has concerns also for equity in education and a desire to see much greater participation by minority groups in a more empowering form of education. As a counsellor educator he has had many contacts with schools and headteachers and has worked to integrate counselling and pastoral care within schools as organizations.

This paper describes the first stage of an investigation into the professional development needs of secondary school heads. The time period is November 1986 to November 1987. The aims of the research are to ascertain what professional development needs the heads have and what strategies might be used to meet them. The style of the investigation is ethnographic and action research. The researcher convened and ran seminars/workshops for the heads, their deputies and sometimes other school leaders twice a term for the year, acted as a consultant to two heads and conducted a school development exercise (in the school of one of the heads to whom he was a consultant). Also 12 heads were interviewed in depth about their professional development needs. Finally, a questionnaire was developed from the total findings and sent to all 60 heads in the Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Central Plateau areas. A two‐year programme for school leaders was developed and has already commenced.     

Learning to collaborate: a study of nursing students’ experience of inter‐professional education at one UK university

Collaborative working has been part of official government policy for some time and whilst a great deal has been claimed about its benefits, in terms of better quality services and improved outcomes, it would seem that translating policy intentions into practice has hitherto proved a challenge. Moreover, evidence concerning the effectiveness of collaborative working in education, health and social care remains limited and thinly spread. One response to this dilemma has been to introduce shared learning opportunities through the incorporation of inter‐professional education (IPE) modules into the curriculum of professional training programmes. This paper presents the findings from a study to evaluate the experience of a cohort of students from a range of different nursing specialities, undertaking a collaborative working module as part of their professional training at one UK university. The module aimed to critically analyse the philosophy of collaborative working and to encourage role appreciation and the values of different nursing, health and social care cultures. The module used shared learning during lectures, small group work and presentations in order to promote collaborative working within the educational setting. Using a mixed method design, incorporating a pre‐ and post‐survey and semi‐structured interviews, it was found that students revealed a strong commitment to collaborative working despite awareness of the problems that frequently have to be overcome. The major barriers identified from the survey were professional tribalism along with status and power differentials. These themes were explored in greater depth during the interviews where the module was seen to have enabled students to develop greater confidence in applying their professional knowledge, alongside developing improved communication and teamwork skills. The study offers some fresh insights into the most effective way of training nurses for collaborative working and the importance of promoting critical models of collaborative practice.     

Impediments to Partnership: A literature review of school‐university links

Partnership innovations between teacher educators on school and university sites have become ubiquitous. Calls for bridging the theory/practice gap have been answered with reappraisal and restructuring of programs. The literature on the rationale and implementation of a partnership approach has grown steadily since the early 1980s. Praise for measures that promote increased and meaningful interaction between the key players is now almost universal. Ironically, simultaneously, this documentation reveals the challenges as well as the promises of partnership. Clear impediments to the creation and nurturing of partnership have emerged. This paper takes as its principal focus an exploration of the literature that examines the range of barriers encountered by teachers of future teachers.     

Leading professional learning in an Australian secondary school through school‐university partnerships

As the limitations of one‐off and disconnected professional learning programs for teachers are recognised, there is widespread interest in building learning communities and professional learning teams within schools. When considering how to build local learning communities, school and university partnerships are seen as offering rich possibilities for transformative professional action. Set in the context of the international agenda of “Education For All” (UNESCO, 2005 UNESCO. (2005). Education for all: Global monitoring project. Retrieved January 8, 2007, from http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php‐URL_ID=36004&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html (http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=36004&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html)  [Google Scholar]) a model of sustained on‐going professional learning, developed in one large secondary school in Australia, is analysed. The social practices that generate action and participation for partnership members are then scrutinised for the legitimacy of school‐university partnerships and the contribution to enhancing teacher learning.     

A school‐based project in five kindergartens: the case of teacher development and school development

Kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong are blamed for not putting child‐initiated learning theory into practice. Their competence is challenged. An earlier study (Li, 2003 Li, YL. (2003). Roadblocks to educational reform: investigating knowledge and practice of Hong Kong kindergarten teachers. International Journal of Educational Reform, 12(3): 217–229.  [Google Scholar]) suggested that the professional development of kindergarten teachers was limited by their inability to extend thinking beyond their own personal concerns so that the needs of the children were not the major determinant of their classroom practice. It was argued that to confront and modify the teachers' personal beliefs the presence of models, action research and joint collaborative activity were the keys. This report was a follow‐up study of a school‐based project, providing opportunities for teachers to engage in collaborative investigation of school curriculum and of pedagogical innovations. In this study, the practice and belief of a group of around 60 teachers were tracked during their participation in the project and the merits of peer coaching, mentoring and collaborative teamwork were examined. Classroom observations and semi‐structured interviews (40–60 minutes) were adopted as the main research procedure. Teaching records, videoed teaching episodes and feedback on project workshops were sources of data collected for triangulation. The findings of the study suggest that collegiality holds some promise for change in teachers' practice, though questions concerning the constancy of change are of concern.     

Interdisciplinary In‐service at the University: a participatory case‐based model for professional development

Abstract

The Participatory Case‐Based Model for Professional Development is an in‐service model which is useful across the human service disciplines (social work, occupational therapy, public health, special education, early childhood and family education). In the model, participants enrolled in a graduate course engage in dialogue and perspective‐taking, through case analysis and case writing. Using grounded theory and inductive data analyses, the major effects of this professional development model were studied. These effects included: (1) gaining new knowledge; (2) ‘really seeing’ from multiple perspectives; and (3) developing a sense of support, renewal and networking across various professions. Connections to the selected professional development literature —; problem‐based learning, case process and effects, and the practical argument model — offered affirmations and challenges to the Participatory Case‐Based Model for Professional Development     

Exploring the impact of professional development and professional practice on school leaders’ self-efficacy: a quasi-experimental study

Self-efficacy is extensively discussed within social cognitive theory. This study aimed to explore the impact of professional development and practice on school leaders’ self-efficacy in Cyprus. A quasi-experimental design involving 2 groups of novice secondary deputy head teachers was employed. All participants practised leadership at the time, but the experimental group also attended a leadership training programme. The School Leaders’ Self-Efficacy Scale addressing 8 dimensions was distributed to both groups at the beginning and the end of the school year. A within-group analysis indicated positive effects on self-efficacy regarding evaluating classroom practices for the experimental group. However, for the control group, effects were negative on self-efficacy with regards to evaluating classroom practices, monitoring learning, and leadership of continuing professional development. Between-group analyses revealed positive gains for the experimental group across the 3 aforementioned self-efficacy dimensions. Arising implications are discussed in the context of professional development programmes for school leaders in Cyprus.     

Discipline‐based academic development through a tripartite partnership

Abstract

This paper describes a discipline‐based academic development project based upon a tripartite relationship between departmental staff, work‐based practitioners and the central academic development unit which took place over one academic year within the Department of Physiotherapy, Queen Margaret College, Edinburgh. The purpose of the project was to discuss and debate the concept of the ‘reflective practitioner’, to develop strategies for enabling undergraduate students to be reflective, and to devise a framework for assessment of reflective practice in clinical work‐based learning. The outcomes of the project, most important of which was a change in the learning experience for students, demonstrate that academic development can be valuable and productive when undertaken as a partnership and placed in a disciplinary context. The authors identify key elements important to the success of the academic development process which should be applicable in similar situations and which could serve as guidelines for the planning and delivery of staff development through similar kinds of partnerships.     

Community building of (student) teachers and a teacher educator in a school–university partnership

School?Cuniversity partnerships (SUPs) are considered a way of improving teacher education. For the successful implementation of such partnerships, cooperation between the different stakeholders is of crucial importance. Therefore, most partnerships are organised in short- and long-term teams, which are usually composed of teachers, student teachers and representatives of the university faculty. This study focused on the collaboration process of a team of modern language teachers who work and learn together in a teacher community. The aim of this study was to investigate how to design a learning environment that stimulates community development in these teams, applying the cooperative learning model of Johnson and Johnson in Learning together and alone: cooperative, competitive, and individualistic learning. Allyn and Bacon, Boston, (1999). Based on this model, design principles were developed to stimulate community development in this group. Community development was measured through observations of the meetings of the group, using the community model of Admiraal, Lockhorst and van der Pol described in this issue. The five principles found relevant in this SUP team were profiling the group as an identity, equivalent cooperation, rotating the chairperson, reflecting on the collaboration and giving feedback on the products made in the group.     

Constructing model of teachers’ innovative behaviour in school environment

Teachers’ innovative behaviour influences not only their teaching practices and professional habits, but also has an impact on students’ creation of novel and original ideas. In spite of the increasing demand for innovative behaviour, and also relatively high academic achievements of Estonian students in international comparison, teachers in Estonia often do not use innovative teaching practices, according to Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). This study explores possible school environmental factors that may support the innovative behaviour of teachers. A model, where self-efficacy as a trait and different types of teaching practices as behaviour, are components of the model of teachers’ innovative behaviour. It is supposed that teachers’ innovative behaviour appears in school environments and may be supported by the following factors: interaction and involvement, need and freedom for innovation. The study is carried out as a secondary data analysis, based on a sample of TALIS survey. The results indicate that although the three factors mentioned do not constitute the integrated phenomenon, they do describe different aspects of a teachers’ innovative behaviour.     

The social construction of a Teacher Support Team: an experience of university lecturers’ professional development in STEM

Abstract

This paper focuses on understanding and exploring how a group of university engineering and science tutor educators learn and assimilate new conceptions about their role in the face of the forces of globalisation that are transforming the system of higher education. This research paper adopts the notion of the Teacher Support Team (TST) as developed by Daniels and grounded in Vygotsky’s sociocultural account of the social formation of mind. These structures of meaning provide insight into the role played by the context, the interactions, the needs and the demands of actual activities, agreements and learning processes that this group of STEM lecturers undertook as they sought to transform their usual teaching methods that were focused on individual and isolated work in order to create more innovative practices and impact on their students’ performance. The analysis of this experience, which was based on the epistemological principles of the sociocultural approach, focused on the educational model that emerges from needs that are perceived and shared through the group’s interactions, as well as the transitions that such a team undergoes in its actions and decisions.