Teacher collaboration for change: sharing, improving, and spreading

ABSTRACT

Teacher professional learning has been recognised as a critical contributor to improving teaching quality and securing student learning. Leadership at different levels is important for professional learning in schools. Job-embedded teacher professional learning occurs in collaborative activities that include co-teaching, action research, and initiation and implementation of curricular and instructional change. The current article conceptualises a non-linear, iterative, and recursive process of teachers leading initiatives collaboratively in schools. This conceptualisation was based on an analysis of 38 interviews with teachers and school leaders, field notes from 50 visits to four Singapore primary schools, and email exchanges. The process has three stages – sharing, improving, and spreading. In this process, affective support is central in providing social reinforcement to keep the team motivated to revise and move a change initiative forwards. The article enhances understanding of teacher collaboration process for change in schools, through which teacher leadership for professional learning is evidenced.

KEYWORDS:

• Grounded theory
• leading change
• professional learning
• professional collaboration
• teacher leadership

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. All names of schools and participants in this article are pseudonyms.