Conversations in a Collaborative Space: From stories to concepts to dimensions

Abstract

This article is a re-analysis of three self-studies conducted by three sub-groups of the Active Collaborative Education (ACE) team and originally presented at a conference in 2008. Revisiting and retelling these stories for the purpose of this article highlighted some of the concepts that form the warp and the woof of our interwoven collaborative way of professional life. The reanalysis identified three concepts: territory, the expert as novice, and de-idealization. These concepts then led us to identify the three dimensions of territory, knowledge, and values. We propose that, beyond the local context of our self-studies, these dimensions can help characterize collaborative space and serve as lenses to help understand its complexity. In this article we present these dimensions and outline some key questions regarding collaborative teams of teacher educators.

Keywords:

• self-study
• collaboration
• teacher educators
• program development