Conversations as a source of professional learning: exploring the dynamics of camaraderie and common ground amongst university teachers

ABSTRACT

Talking about teaching with colleagues is one way that academics learn about university teaching. In contexts that offer inconsistent support for teaching, what influences conversations? This study investigated mid-career academics’ conversations at an Australian research-intensive university. Twenty-four academics were interviewed and the transcripts analysed using the constant comparative method. Conversations were influenced by common ground between colleagues – which is likely due to endeavouring to learn about teaching within contexts perceived as adverse. This article reports on an analysis of ‘context’ to identify the dynamic interaction between; lack of support for teaching; camaraderie, proximity, and similarity, and conversations.

KEYWORDS:

• Academic development
• grounded theory
• informal conversations
• informal learning
• university teaching

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Tai Peseta and the #ThesisThinkers, as well as Ryan Naylor and Jennie Brentnall for their feedback on drafts of this article. We also appreciate our colleagues who participated in interviews about their experience of informal conversations about teaching.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kate Eileen Thomson

Kate Eileen Thomson is a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Medicine and Health, at the University of Sydney, Australia. Primarily, her research centres on the professional learning of university teachers (i.e., academics and clinical educators), and her emerging interest is in developing future professionals through enhancing students’ learning before, during, and after their work integrated learning placements.

Simon Barrie

Simon Barrie is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at Western Sydney University. His expertise is in leadership of university communities to deliver new ways to enact the 'idea of the university' in a rapidly changing world.