Examining e-learning in
sociocultural communities of early
childhood teachers: 21st century
learning approaches for
professional development
Dr Linda Newman
University of Western Sydney - Australia
Today’s presentation:
• Outlines a research project that is underway
• Examines some literature about professional
development and communities of learning
• Shares a developing e-community for team
learning and research
The project:
• Funded by the Jean Denton Memorial Scholarship
• Has joined 3 Practitioner Inquiry groups running from
University of Western Sydney
• 15 participants have joined
• 5 participants remain active at present
• Meet approximately monthly face-to-face and online
between meetings
Our conceptual resources/tools
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Communities of practice/learners
Sociocultural learning for adults
Teacher professional development
Sustainable professional development
Teacher networks
Electronic networks
Team Learning using an e-system
Meet Jean
• Preschool teacher for 30
years
• Outer urban area
(mountains)
• Small community
• Large staff – outreach
programs
• No postgraduate study
• Came to meeting 1 and was
excited to work with another
local preschool teacher and
school principal
• Interested in transition to
school and leadership
• Withdrew because of
technology focus and
withdrawal of local contacts
Meet Sal
• School principal of
catholic school
• Same community as
Jean
• Excited to work with
local preschool teacher
on transition
• Interested in leadership
• Withdrew because
deputy left mid-term and
workload was too high
Meet Helen
• Preschool teacher in
community preschool for
over 30 years
• Small community in outer
urban area
• Feels isolated
• Small staff, very stable, all
been there for 20 years or
so
• Interested in transition and
leadership
• Excited to find support
community of like-minded
professionals
• Withdrew because assistant
had heart attack at work
and needed time and
emotional space to support
staff
• Felt staff couldn’t cope with
research project on
leadership just now
Meet Denise
• Preschool teacher for 6
years
• Local government
centre in outer urban
are- a lot of vandalism
• Very mixed socioeconomic clientele
• Runs Critical Curriculum
group
• Runs conferences
• Interested in parent
perceptions of preschool
education in relation to
preparation for school
• Remains in program
Meet Gloria
• Teacher for 30 years
• Works in a government
school in newly developed
outer urban estate
• Support teacher across
school for students with
learning needs
• Interested in leadership
inclusion of children with
learning needs
• Principal has left and new
principal not yet appointed
• Remains in project but will
work with long day care
teacher on questioning
because of leadership gap
in school at present
• STOP PRESS – withdrew
this week because of
leadership issues in school
Meet Annette
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Teaching in government school for 5 years
Studying Masters
Has funding to run transition project
Wants to study transition to school
Has just joined project
Meet Kelly
• Long Day Care teacher
for 30 years
• Studied teaching after
working for many years
• Doing Masters degree
• Member of Critical
Curriculum group
• Assists in conference
convening
• Interested in setting up
e-communication
website for critical
curriculum members
Want do they have in common?
• When they meet it is hard to stop them talking to
move forward with agenda
• They are women
• They are teachers
• Intellectual and professional isolation
• A desire to make change
• A strong commitment to their profession
• Have had little professional development
How do we know about their research
interests?
Developing a research project
Zing Questions
•What are my broad areas of interest for research and WHY?
•What do I want to know more about in this area and WHY?
•What are some possible SPECIFIC questions related to this area?
•Are my questions good ones for a short research project project and WHY or WHY NOT?
•Who would be working on the research project?
•Write a timeline for the project. Write like this: 1. XXX 2. XXX 3. XXXX
•Who do I need to inform and gain consent from?
•What permissions will I need to get started?
•What resources will I need to get started?
•What are the possible constraints or barriers that I need to consider?
•What information will I need to collect and how will I collect it? Write like this: Information:
Collection method
•What do I know about existing research in this area?
•What might my end product look like?
•Who will be interested in my research findings?
•How will I share my research with interested people? Write like this: Stakeholder: Way to share
(e.g. article in Every Child)
•How can the UWS team support me in my project? Write like this: My name: support I would like
from UWS
What does the literature say about them?
Professional development
•Increasingly, professional development in its traditional form of one-off
workshops run by external consultants is seen as lacking in applicability and
sustainability, indeed a waste of time. Within such traditional paridigms,
teachers “believe that schools make poor use of them as professionals and
the resulting lack of professionalism hinders their ability to teach to their full
capacity (Andrews & Rothman, 2002; Moore Johnson, 1990).
•Effective professional development for organisational change in successful
learning organisations requires participants to acquire, interpret and apply
information to turn ideas into innovation. Innovative organisations develop
frameworks and strategies for enquiry and experimentation within
knowledge-sharing processes that enable everyone to act in an informed
way on what has been learned (Aron, 2000 cited in Andrews & Rothman,
2002).
Professional networks
•Networks have potential for teachers
with evidence that teacher networks
have enormous potential to affect
classroom practice, because of their
high credibility with teachers within
safe environments that motivate them,
allow them to take risks, develop
knowledge and commit to
improvement.
• High profile companies such as
Cisco, Charles Schwab, and eBay
were “network orchestrators” for the
purpose of creating organisational
knowledge-sharing collaborations
(Anderson & Rothman, 2002).
Communities of practice
Draw on tacit knowledge to create
new knowledge. Vygotsky’s theories
of dialectical and collaborative
learning, and & Wenger’s work help
to explain the process (1999).
Situated and “just in time” learning
creates meaningful change (Ashton
& Newman, 2006; Newman &
Findlay, 2007)
What are their projects?
• Parent perceptions and goals for early childhood
programs
• Children’s questioning for an inquiry based curriculum
• E-learning communities for early childhood teachers
• Transition to school
Developing our project
• Using the EDNA e learning community
Conclusion
• It is heartening and inspiring to see these teachers
reflecting deeply on their practice
• University staff are an important resource to support
and facilitate teacher research
• Teachers need better support and networking to
improve practice and create innovation and new
knowledge
• The e-network shows great potential
References:
• Andrews, K & Rothman, M. ( 2002). Cultivating innovation: How a
charter/district network is turning professional development into
professional practice. Phi Delta Kappan. 83 (7), 506-513.
• Aron, L.J. (2000). Managing to learn: How companies can turn
knowledge into action. Retrieved from Working Knowledge. Harvard
Business School http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/1777.html. 13/8/07
• Moore Johnson, S. (1990). Teachers at work: Achieving success in our
schools. New York: Basic Books.
• Wenger, E. (1999). Communities of practice: A brief introduction
Retrieved 03/11/06 from
www.ewenger.com/theory/communities_of_practice_intro_WRD.doc,
Contact
Linda Newman
[email protected]