Learning Communities in Educational Partnerships

Cover
Half Title
Series
Title
Copyright Page
Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Glossary
Introduction
	Why we wrote this book
	Organization of the book
		Chapter 1 A Professional Learning Partnership
		Chapter 2 Action Research as the Glue in Professional Learning Partnerships
		Chapter 3 Learning Communities as Sites of Transformation
		Chapter 4 A Theoretical Explanation of the Practical Significance of Learning Communities
		Chapter 5 Professional Conversations as Integral to Self-Study Action Research for CPD
		Chapter 6 Initial Teacher Education and School–College Partnerships: The Potential Role of Self-Study Action Research
		Chapter 7 Tapping into Experiential Knowledge in Whole-School Communities
		Chapter 8 What’s in This for Me? From the Perspective of Participating Teachers, Teacher Educators and Leaders
	What is new in this book
1 A Professional Learning Partnership
	Introduction
	Different people: different contexts
		We authors
	Professional identity in our learning community
	Reflective opportunity
	Dialogue and our community of learning
		Dialogue for clarification
		Dialogue for personal learning
		Dialogue in the learning of others
		Dialogue as an expression of mutual respect
		Dialogue for healing and well-being
		Dialogue for creativity
	Reflective opportunity
	Using technology to extend our dialogue
	Learning community: is it for professional development or for research?
	To conclude
2 Action Research as the Glue in Professional Learning Partnerships
	Introduction
	Shared meaning as the glue of learning communities
	Reflective opportunity
	What do we mean by action research?
	Reflective opportunity
	Making the links between action research and communities of practice
		Reflection as an element of a learning community and of action research
		Critical engagement as an element of a learning community and of action research
		Epistemological inventiveness as an element of a learning community and of action research
		Collegiality as an element of a learning community and of action research
		Grassroots movement as an element of a learning community and of action research
		Boundary crossing as an element of a learning community and of action research
	Reflective opportunity
	Establishing new communities of practice
		Professional learning groups
		Online CPD Programme
		Educational Action Research in Ireland (EARI)
		Presentations, books and papers
		The Network of Educational Action Research in Ireland (NEARI)
	‘Conveners’ in a learning community
	To conclude
3 Learning Communities as Sites of Transformation
	Introduction
	Our understanding of learning communities
	Reflective opportunity
	The functioning of an actual learning community
	Reflective opportunity
	Learning identified by participants in the learning community
	The learning that emerged for me from facilitating the group
	Reflective opportunity
	The transformative potential of a learning community
	Reflective opportunity
	Challenging the historic lack of incentive or opportunity for collaboration among teachers
	A move towards more inclusive and democratic ways of working in the classroom
	To conclude
4 A Theoretical Explanation of the Practical Significance of Learning Communities
	Introduction
	Separation of theory and practice
	Reasons for traditional theory–practice dichotomy
	Reflective opportunity
	Various efforts aimed at reconciling the theory–practice divide
	The influence of critical pedagogy
	Bridging the gap between academic and practitioner knowledge
	Reflective opportunity
	The role of learning communities in combining theory and practice
	Reflective opportunity
	Learning communities as models for classroom interactions
	Reflective opportunity
	To conclude
5 Professional Conversations as Integral to Self-Study Action Research for CPD
	Introduction
	The provision of spaces for professional conversations can lead to reflective, self-evaluative and emancipatory practice
		The beginning: what we did
	Reflective opportunity
	Developing a self-evaluative and emancipatory learning community
		Information night
	Reflective opportunity
		The first meeting
		Second meeting
		Third meeting
		Fourth meeting
		A setback
	Reflective opportunity
	The transformative potential of professional conversations
		Transformation in the life of a vulnerable child
	Reflective opportunity
	Professional conversations and core professional qualities
	Online CPD courses as professional conversation spaces
		Generating discussion and critical engagement in an online course
	Reflective opportunity
	To conclude
6 Initial Teacher Education and School–College Partnerships: The Potential Role of Self-Study Action Research
	Introduction
	Fostering a ‘researcherly disposition’ at ITE level and developing it through the school–college partnership model
		Partnership
		The background landscape of school placement
		Some challenges
	Reflective opportunity
	Case study: offering a model of SSAR for establishing a researcherly disposition
		Context
		Active learning
		The reflective practitioner model in the education component
		New form of knowing for undergraduates
	The SSAR approach: The potential significance; the epistemological, ontological and methodological challenges for the school–co
		Epistemological assumptions
		Ontological perspectives
		Methodology
	The potential learning for participating student teachers and education lecturers
		The significance of the self-study action research process for students
		Case studies
		Transformative learning for students
		Further significance of the self-study action research process for students
		Potential significance for college lecturers
		Potential Significance for School–College partnerships
		School placement tutor
	Reflective opportunity
		Cooperating teacher and host school staff
	To conclude
7 Tapping into Experiential Knowledge in Whole-School Communities
	Introduction
	Relationships within whole-school learning communities
		Establishing whole-school learning communities
		School One
		School Two
	Reflective opportunity
	Encouraging participants to become fully involved in whole-school learning communities
	Reflective opportunity
	Participants’ freedom to own their professional knowledge
	Reflective opportunity
	How learning communities can support teachers in the self-evaluation process
		Evaluating new personal and professional practices
		Validity in whole-school self-evaluation
	Reflective opportunity
	Tapping into teachers’ experiential and professional knowledge
		Participants as valued experts within whole-school learning communities
		Identifying and acknowledging the experiential knowledge of participants
	To conclude
8 What’s in This for Me? From the Perspective of Participating Teachers, Teacher Educators and Leaders
	Introduction
	What’s in this for me: participating teachers explain
	Teachers benefitting from being more critically reflective
	Teachers generated new knowledge and theory about teaching and learning
	Teachers contributed to the knowledge base of the profession
		An explanation of how teachers took control of their professional learning
		The significance of developing awareness of teacher experiential professional knowledge
	Reflective opportunity
	What’s in this for me? Teacher educators’ and leaders’ explanations
	The benefits of an open vibrant, non-coercive approach according to teacher educators and leaders
	The importance of the strengths-based approach
	The power of a differentiated rather than a summative process
	Reflective opportunity
	To conclude
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index