Acknowledgements

In this article, I describe how, despite good intentions and carefully considered procedures, strategies, and protocols developed to enhance parent-professional collaboration, collaborative interactions in public schools privilege the interpretation of the professional over that of the parent. As a consequence of this imbalance of power among professionals in schools, the collaborative ethic is far from that originally mandated by the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975. I further suggest that, in the context of the traditional bureaucratic organization of schools, hierarchical authority and well-established power structures will further determine the potential for meaningful collaboration. This analysis holds implications for the implementation of Public Law 99-457, which places even greater emphasis on parental involvement and enduring partnerships with professionals.     

Teachers talking: the role of collaboration in secondary schools in Bangladesh

Teacher collaboration and support given from one teacher to another, focused on improving teaching and learning in the classroom, are notable by their absence in secondary schools in Bangladesh. This article identifies a number of constraints to developing a collaborative culture including the difficulty of the curriculum, the perceived low ability of many students, the teachers' own educational background and contextual factors which influence teachers' motivation. It suggests that informal collaboration for mutual support has the potential to increase teacher motivation but that this will only be achieved through building more collaborative ways of working through formal programmes grounded in classroom observation. It questions the validity for Bangladesh teachers of the model of teacher development programmes focused on teacher collaboration which emphasise teaching the ‘perfect’ lesson and suggests that without attention to student learning such programmes are unlikely to lead to increased collaboration or improved teacher practice in schools.     

University–school collaboration based on complementary needs

This paper discusses school development as collaboration between local schools and universities based on complementary needs. I examine a 10 year case study of a long-term relationship between an elementary school and a university in a town in Sweden. The relationship is jointly constructed and mediated by local, national, and international projects. Such jointly constructed and shared projects represent innovations of both the school’s and the university’s pedagogical practices. The significant actors in the collaborative relationship have been teachers, undergraduate and graduate students, school pupils, and researchers. The collaboration, which still exists, started in 1996 and has experienced stages of varying intensity and scope conceived metaphorically as a thin string. Analysis of the case and collaborative process suggests an answer to the question: Why does this collaboration exist and what makes it sustainable? This case suggests that the collaborative projects provide solutions to problems intrinsic to the respective educational institutions.     

Collaboration as a Predictor for Success in School Reform

Although school reform has captured the attention of this country, considerable controversy exists regarding the feasibility of reform, appropriate strategies for implementing reforms, and the adequacy of preparation of school professionals who will work in reformed schools. We propose that collaboration is the theme which unites the various dimensions of school reform and that the potential of school reform success can be analyzed by examining the extent to which the conditions needed for collaboration can be created in schools. We apply this notion to three key reform issues: (a) professionalism; (b) empowerment; and (c) restructured schools, specifically as recommended in special education. We conclude that educators should more carefully deliberate the conditions required for collaboration, should more directly address the preparation of school personnel for collaborative activities, and should call for realistically matching expectations for reform with implementation opportunities and constraints.     

An overview of web-based school collaboration: a history of success or failure?

The notion of school collaboration has become widely recognised as an effective means of fostering cultural links and supporting communication between geographically separated schools. As shall be acknowledged in this paper, school collaboration follows on from a long history of collaborative initiatives across the past 50 years. However, the introduction of digital technologies and the internet in the 1990s has raised new challenges and created new opportunities for ‘telecollaboration’ whilst the growth of social media over the past five years is seen to have transformed the ways in which online collaboration is experienced by most end users. Based on a review of the existing body of literature, this paper offers a critical overview of current models of web-based collaborative programmes – attempting to map out the complex nature of school collaboration and consider the actors and factors that can shape successful implementation into educational practices.     

Collaboration and the growth of teachers’ knowledge

Studies of teachers working together have exposed the capricious nature of collaborative activity: sometimes it seems to work well; at other times collaboration actually works against improvement. Success in collaborative relationships is best understood through an appreciation of how teachers form and use knowledge. The teachers’ knowledge perspective is used in this paper to interpret qualitative data from two successful collaborative relationships in schools. Evidence supports the contention that personal qualities, underscored by mutual trust and respect for knowledge, form the basis for successful relationships in teaching, operating in different ways, for different purposes, for different people. Providing that teachers are approached with respect, collaboration holds promise as a slow (but powerful) path towards educational change.     

‘Old Wine in Even Newer Bottles’: the uneasy relationship between web 2.0 technologies and European school collaboration

The idea of using digital technologies and in particular web 2.0 tools to enhance school collaboration has recently been received with great enthusiasm and a range of new collaborative initiatives has emerged. Through a comparative qualitative case study of four schools in the UK and Greece, this article analyses how online tools are supporting and facilitating school collaboration within the ‘eTwinning’ programme — an EU initiative that seeks to promote web-based learning and collaboration between schools across Europe. In particular, it examines teachers' and students' compromised experiences of the tech-based eTwinning projects and highlights the factors that seemed to be undermining collaboration. It analyses whether the implementation of digital technologies for school collaboration has the potential to transform classroom practices or whether existing habits and ‘ways of doing’ are brought into new contexts — leading to another case of ‘the old wine in new bottles’ syndrome often attributed to the use of digital technology in education.     

Peer Observation Action Research Project

This paper outlines the initial findings of an action research project that focuses on the possible contribution of peer observation to a more collaborative environment and teachers’ professional growth at The University High School. The research component played a significant part as previous attempts to change the culture at the school were unsuccessful and investigating the forces that prevent collaboration in the day-to-day workings of the school became necessary. Our investigation reveals that whilst a peer observation programme has great potential to stimulate cooperation amongst teachers, the ingrained power relations in schools turn its intended professional growth outcomes on its head. Only if the school's leadership employs strategies to counter entrenched disciplinary structures in schools, can peer observation lead to more collaboration between staff members and stimulate professional learning.     

Educating for innovation

In the last several decades many of the world's most developed countries have shifted from an industrial economy to a knowledge economy, one based on the creation of knowledge, information, and innovation. Educational researchers have paid very little scholarly attention to this economic shift, although it has substantial implications. After all, educational historians have repeatedly shown how today's schools were designed in the first half of the 20th century to meet the economic needs of the industrial economy; if that economy is a thing of the past, then many features of contemporary schools may become obsolete. In today's knowledge society, creativity always occurs in complex collaborative and organizational settings. Teams and organizations innovate using open-ended, improvisational group processes. I argue that education should be structured around disciplined improvisation, and I advocate the use of situated, collaborative knowledge-building activities. I argue that creative collaboration in classrooms aligns with the social nature of innovation in today's economy.     

Easy,collaborative and engaging – the use of cloud computing in the design of management classrooms

Background:?Cloud computing has recently received interest in information systems research and practice as a new way to organise information with the help of an increasingly ubiquitous computer infrastructure. However, the use of cloud computing in higher education institutions and business schools, as well as its potential to create novel learning environments remains an underresearched topic.

Purpose:?To address the research gap, this paper investigates how the capabilities of cloud computing have fostered collaborative learning processes of students in the design of management classrooms. The research project has taken place in a three-year period and has covered five post-graduate knowledge management classes, which have been situated in the context of business education.

Research design and sources of evidence:?I have used an illustrative case study of five knowledge management classes as research design to explore and describe interconnections between methods of social constructionism and cloud computing properties which enhance collaborative learning experiences of students in the classroom. To develop a theoretical background for the case study, I first review literature on constructivist and experiential learning, new management profiles, and information systems. In the empirical part of the case study, I have observed the experimental blending of constructivist learning methods and the cloud computing platform Google Apps for Education in three post-graduate classes and two Executive Master of Business Administration classes on the topic of knowledge management. For the data collection, I have focused on collaboration processes to understand how students have used various cloud computing tools to work together, and how their usage has affected interaction and reflection in the observed courses.

Results:?Findings show that collaborative properties of cloud computing, when they are undergirded by methods of social constructionism, influence learning factors on cognitive, emotional, spatial and group levels and lead to substantial changes in teacher/student roles and behaviours. The ease-of-use, playfulness and immediacy of cloud platforms creates collaborative learning spaces and has the potential to foster lateral thinking and problem solving of students in the classroom.

Conclusions and contribution:?By illuminating mutual interrelations between learning factors, constructivist principles and cloud computing properties, the paper enriches the literature on the innovative use of information system technologies in universities and business schools. The paper provides, in addition, practice-oriented insights for pedagogical and methodological choices that undergird the capabilities of cloud platforms to foster collaborative learning processes of students in higher education institutions.     

基于校企协同的复合型营销人才育人模式的探索——以“百丽国际店长”协同育人班为例

产业经济的转型亟需复合型营销人才。复合型营销人才的培养必须在“三育人”理念的指导下进行,强调在“营销＋行业管理拓展”或“营销＋校企协同拓展”的育人模式下进行。校企协同是培养高质量营销人才的动力源。“百丽国际店长”校企协同育人班取得成效的关键在于创新管理体制,构建运行机制和瞄准行业领先并占领制高点。     

Collaboration for the effective and efficient management of school financial resources

Abstract

This paper examines the collaborative relationship between principals and School Governing Bodies (SGBs), and how this impacts on the management of financial resources in public schools. In South Africa, educational trends such as decentralisation, the shift of responsibility in roles, community involvement, building of partnerships and accountability in schools resulted in changing associations and patterns of interaction amongst participants in schools. Collaboration may be viewed as central to each of these trends. As principals and SGBs grapple with the demands of managing their schools’ financial resources efficiently and effectively, it is important to reflect on the collaborative relationship that society expects of them. Principals are required to cultivate processes of authentic collaboration in order to empower SGBs on school governance. It is thus imperative for schools to initiate and maintain a collaborative relationship between principals and SGBs, through mutual trust, teamwork, collaborative decision-making, open-communication and co-operation. Using a qualitative research paradigm, we determined the perceptions and experiences of school governors on their collaborative efforts in managing the school financial resources. This study revealed, amongst others, that many SGB members were unclear about their roles and functions which resulted in serious conflict situations and accountability implications.     

基于中学信息技术课的协作学习模式的应用研究

文章以中学《信息技术》课程教学改革为例,提出以协作学习思想为指导,通过行动研究进行探索和构建促进中学信息技术课堂教学的协作学习模式,以期促进中学信息技术课堂中学生协作学习能力、信息获取能力、交流与管理信息能力,同时也期望本研究能提高中学信息技术课教师的教学绩效。     

Promoting teachers’ instructional practices in alternative assessment through teacher collaboration

This paper reports the findings of a study which aims to examine the processes and effectiveness of the collaboration between teachers in their professional learning which some Singapore schools are currently engaged in. The learning process attempted to raise the profile of teacher professionalism in classroom alternative assessment through action research. A total of nine schools participated in this two-year study. Participants included teachers and school leaders. Guided by a university researcher and supported by a cluster superintendent and school leaders, the collaboration helped familiarise teachers with alternative ways of assessing student learning, connect theories with practice in their classroom assessment, and acquire the skills of doing research. Facilitated by a structure that supports the development of partnerships between teachers from different schools, the collaboration focused on teachers working on a common task. The data reveal how teachers took ownership of their own learning through this process and led their peers in their respective schools in curriculum customisation through alternative assessment practices. Such an education reform process, which has driven the effectiveness of the collaborative teacher learning in promoting teachers’ instructional practices, is analysed from four dimensions, namely, (a) macro level (systemic reform), (b) school level (school improvement plans), (c) teacher level (teacher community), and (d) micro level (classroom level). This paper concludes with a discussion of the challenges in sustaining teacher collaboration across schools in Singapore.     

Strategies for Improving Vertical Alignment: Implementation of a College-Readiness Collaborative of Secondary and Post-Secondary Educators

This article describes how one community college and region service center developed a collaborative of secondary and post-secondary English/Language Arts educational professionals to promote college readiness. Challenged by state mandates to test college readiness and by concerns about student performance in high school and college English classes, the collaborative examined standards and testing practices, high school and college cultures, college placement policies, course content, assessment practices, syllabi and sample assignments, and college preparation programs. The results of the two-year collaboration include a list of nine specific practices that educators can use to enhance students’ success in college Composition I. In addition, the collaborative implemented these recommendations in several area high schools.     

Using Brief Instructional Video Clips to Foster Communication,Reflection, and Collaboration in Schools

In this collaborative study, university researchers introduced the short video clips of teaching and learning within two elementary schools; these clips were shared in site faculty meetings to encourage dialogue and collaboration. -Researchers conducted pre- and post-surveys with teachers and pre- and post-interviews with principals to understand perceptions of using brief video clips as a tool for facilitating communication, reflection, and collaboration in the school setting.     

Creating foundations for collaboration in schools: Utilizing professional learning communities to support teacher candidate learning and visions of teaching

Despite widespread acknowledgment of the power of professional collaboration, the norm in most schools is teachers working in isolation. Our study examined the impact of multiple layers of professional collaboration intentionally integrated into a one-year preservice teacher education program working in two elementary schools. Analysis of 23 teacher candidates' written reflections, focus group interviews, and classroom observations indicated that supported by collaboration with colleagues, they developed the skills and commitment to teach each student for understanding. Based on our research, we propose a shift in teacher education toward collaborative inquiry about teaching and learning within school/university partnerships.     

Ethical dilemmas in designing collaborative research: Lessons learned the hard way

In this article I use my own problematic experience as a well-intentioned educational researcher to highlight some of the dilemmas and complexities of collaboration with classroom teachers. Engaged in an otherwise pleasant and productive research project in partnership with a primary grade teacher, I experienced deep methodological difficulties linked to the ethical heart of collaborative research. Given that this model - university-based researchers entering into "collaborative" research relationships with classroom teachers - is becoming an increasingly prevalent strategy, it is important to consider fully the potential challenges and obstacles we might face in these relational research contexts.     

Teacher identity construction across the curriculum: promoting cross-curriculum collaboration in English-medium schools

This article reports on a qualitative study that explored the prospects for the promotion of collaborative relationships between English as a Second Language (ESL) and content teachers in Hong Kong. At the time of the study, the eight participants, four content teachers and four ESL teachers, were all teaching in English-medium secondary schools in Hong Kong. The study drew upon interview data to examine how the participants' construction of teacher identities can shape possibilities for collaboration between ESL and content teachers. The paper begins by discussing some of the key issues in promoting collaboration between content and ESL teachers, then draws upon the works of Wenger and Fairclough to describe a framework for understanding the construction of teacher identity in practice and in discourse. The framework is applied to reveal the major challenges facing the promotion of collaboration between content and ESL teachers. Implications for institutional change that might promote these collaborative relations are also discussed.