Facebook as a mechanism for informal teacher professional learning in Indonesia

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the use of Facebook as a medium for, and process of, teachers’ informal professional learning regarding mathematical and pedagogical knowledge. Facebook responses to four inter-related posts about mathematics examples from Facebook users (N = 117) were captured and systematically analysed using content analysis. The data were examined through the lens of the five characteristics of the Effective Professional Development framework. The results identified different types of responses to the four Facebook posts including the opening of learning opportunities, rich mathematical and pedagogical discussions, respondents’ appreciations and direct impacts of the posts, as well as the acknowledgement of the misalignment between the proposed ideas and current teaching practices in Indonesia. These responses provided evidence that all five characteristics of the framework were apparent and highlighted the role of Facebook in supporting teacher informal professional learning within the Indonesian context. The limitations of such social networking-based research and implications for teacher professional development are provided.

KEYWORDS:

• Informal professional development
• Facebook
• Indonesian teachers
• engagement

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank all participants involved in this research. We would also like to thank Professor Tom Lowrie and Dr Mahsa Izadinia for their comments and insights on earlier drafts of this article. We also wish to thank Robyn Lowrie for proofreading this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sitti Maesuri Patahuddin

Sitti Maesuri Patahuddin is an assistant professor of the Faculty of Education, University of Canberra. Her PhD research was on the uses of the Internet for teacher professional development and mathematics teaching and learning. Sitti has worked as a teacher trainer for in-service and pre-service teachers in Indonesia and Australia. She has recently led a four-year project, ‘Promoting Mathematics Engagement and Learning Opportunities for Disadvantaged Communities in West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia’. She is passionate about the use of technology (including social media) to support teacher professional development.

Tracy Logan

Tracy Logan is an assistant professor in education at the University of Canberra. Her research focuses on mathematics education and, in particular, how students encode and decode mathematical information. More recently, her work aims to better understand how students’ spatial reasoning is critical for success in mathematics (particularly in digital environments) and how this skill can be improved through teaching.