Moving beyond silos: professional learning networks in higher education

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torrey Trust ◽  
Jeffrey Paul Carpenter ◽  
Daniel G. Krutka
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Learning Networks

scholarly journals Material matters for learning in virtual networks: A case study of a professional learning programme hosted in a Google+ online community.

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aileen Ackland ◽  
Ann Swinney
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Professional Education ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Learning Technology ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Holistic Understanding

In this paper, we draw on Actor–Network Theories (ANT) to explore how material components functioned to create gateways and barriers to a virtual learning network in the context of a professional development module in higher education. Students were practitioners engaged in family learning in different professional roles and contexts. The data comprised postings in the Google+ community, email correspondence, meeting notes, feedback submitted at the final workshop and post-module evaluation forms. Our analysis revealed a complex set of interactions, and suggests multiple ways human actors story their encounters with non-human components and the effects these have on the learning experience. The aim of this paper is to contribute to a more holistic understanding of the components and dynamics of social learning networks in the virtual world and consider the implications for the design of online learning for continuous professional development (CPD).Keywords: professional education and training; learning communities; higher education; Actor–Network Theories(Published: 14 August 2015)Citation: Research in Learning Technology 2015, 23: 26677 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/rlt.v23.26677 

scholarly journals The Role of Professional Networks in Supporting and Developing Real World Learning

2020 ◽  
pp. 41-62
Author(s):  
Joanne Brindley ◽  
Stuart Sims
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Real World ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Learning Activity ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Professional Networks ◽  
Effective Learning ◽  
Real World Learning ◽  
The University

Abstract The chapter provides insight into how professional learning networks can be effectively implemented to encourage the sharing of good practice and developed to support a real world learning context within higher education. Observations will be provided into the potential use and effectiveness of professional learning networks, including setting out a framework which maps how this type of learning activity can be effectively developed and administered within higher education settings. This section provides a forward narrative for the case studies from the University of Portsmouth, which acts as a vehicle for contextualising the effectiveness and prerequisites required for effective learning networks to be established. The chapter will culminate by providing the reader with a proposed approach for the implementation of an effective learning network.

scholarly journals Social Media for Networking and Participatory Professional Learning

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine McLoughlin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Social Networking Sites ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Professional Networks ◽  
Building Community ◽  
Teacher Professional ◽  
Area Of Concern ◽  
Social Networking Tools

There is widespread acceptance of the need for professional learning opportunities and support for teachers and for academics transitioning into the higher education workforce. In Australia and globally, social networking sites (SNS) provide teachers with formal and informal networking opportunities. While higher education institutions are responding to an ever-changing digital environment, scholarly work aimed at understanding optimal use of, and interaction with new Web 2.0 capabilities is a pressing area of concern among academics. Limited studies are available on how and why teachers in higher education employ social networking tools to create learning networks, share professional ideas and build creative collegiality. This scoping review article investigates motivations for the adoption of SNS in higher education and the benefits and opportunities presented by social networking tools such as blogs and Twitter in teacher professional learning and practice. Results show that academics are interested in connecting with peers, sharing knowledge and networking in open participatory forums as means of building community and accessing resources. The findings indicate that the affordances of microblogging and SNS are valued by academics and that they appreciate the immediacy, relational aspects and interactions that expand their professional networks.

scholarly journals COVID as a catalyst: Uncovering misaligned power dynamics and the importance of new Professional Learning Networks for Higher Education science laboratory teaching

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Cramman ◽  
Jennifer A. J. Burnham ◽  
Craig D. Campbell ◽  
Nigel J. Francis ◽  
David P. Smith ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Professional Growth ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Science Laboratory ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Laboratory Courses ◽  
Laboratory Teaching ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Education Science

The COVID 19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic brought in-person teaching to an abrupt halt in early 2020, leaving educators with the problem of how to continue to deliver Higher Education laboratory courses remotely. Three new Professional Learning Networks (PLNs) formed to address this critical need in Biosciences and Chemistry in the UK and Australia. The findings show that the PLNs provided an essential space for knowledge development, collaboration and innovation, with COVID 19 creating a common focus for the networks.Findings also highlighted a lack of empowerment for highly experienced teaching-focused staff to lead change within their departments. The authors recommend significant consideration be given to this issue as well as ensuring suitable resourcing for teaching-focussed staff to engage with opportunities for professional growth.

Attending to the Teacher in the Teaching: Prioritizing Faculty Well-Being

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Brianne H. Roos ◽  
Carey C. Borkoski
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Review Article ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
High Expectations ◽  
The People ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The University

Purpose The purpose of this review article is to examine the well-being of faculty in higher education. Success in academia depends on productivity in research, teaching, and service to the university, and the workload model that excludes attention to the welfare of faculty members themselves contributes to stress and burnout. Importantly, student success and well-being is influenced largely by their faculty members, whose ability to inspire and lead depends on their own well-being. This review article underscores the importance of attending to the well-being of the people behind the productivity in higher education. Method This study is a narrative review of the literature about faculty well-being in higher education. The history of well-being in the workplace and academia, concepts of stress and well-being in higher education faculty, and evidence-based strategies to promote and cultivate faculty well-being were explored in the literature using electronic sources. Conclusions Faculty feel overburdened and pressured to work constantly to meet the demands of academia, and they strive for work–life balance. Faculty report stress and burnout related to excessively high expectations, financial pressures to obtain research funding, limited time to manage their workload, and a belief that individual progress is never sufficient. Faculty well-being is important for the individual and in support of scholarship and student outcomes. This article concludes with strategies to improve faculty well-being that incorporate an intentional focus on faculty members themselves, prioritize a community of well-being, and implement continuous high-quality professional learning.

scholarly journals Blog-based professional development of English teachers in Mumbai: The potential of innovative practice under scrutiny

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atiya Khan
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teacher Collaboration ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Information And Communications Technology ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Interactive Workshop

The professional development of teachers in India is still, by and large, based on formal and outdated professional learning traditions, often characterised by crash courses and one-off workshops. In education, blogs have proven to be an effective means of establishing and maintaining collaborative learning networks and helping members reflect on their professional practices. Information and communications technology (ICT) enabled practices of teacher professional development is still in its infancy in India. Moreover, there is limited research in India to secure foundational understanding of how and in what ways teachers of English in India use blogs for their professional development. This study explores the use of teacher reflective practice, teacher networking, and teacher collaboration, beyond formal ICT training, through blog-based professional development of English teachers in the Mumbai region of India. Using data collected from 32 teachers from three private schools in Mumbai, through ICT interactive workshop observations, questionnaires, interviews, and blog comments, this action case study explains whether and why blogging, as a learning community, has the potential to add significant value to existing professional development of English teachers in Mumbai.

scholarly journals Digital educational environment as a factor of foreign language competences development

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 232-248
Author(s):  
Marina V. Rybakova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Teaching Experiment ◽  
Foreign Language Teaching ◽  
Educational Resources ◽  
Foreign Languages

The modern era of digital economy lays new claims to the system of education and professional learning. Digitation of higher education reveals new prospects for using digital resources to ensure accessibility, continuity and quality of education. The purpose of our investigation is to assess the effectiveness of the use of digital educational resources by students studying foreign languages. Principal methods of our research are as follows: bibliographic method of studying regulatory documents and scientific and methodological literature; the analysis of foreign language competences, mastering of which is the aim of foreign language teaching in a University; the study and generalization of working experience using digital technologies in foreign language teaching; experiment involving 24 students from MIREA – Russian Technological University. As a result of the study frequency of thematic terms and notions use in scientific-teaching literature and Internet search requests was defined; the analysis of modern digital educational technologies forming students’ foreign language competences was made; foreign language competences analyzed in the experiment were described; an experiment involving the comparison of application efficiency in using traditional and digital techniques for forming foreign language competences was carried out. The experiment showed the following: absence of statistically important differences in the level of formed foreign language competences in control and experimental groups at the beginning of the experiment as t = -0.99, p = 0.43. At the end of the experiment p < 0,05: t = -5.19, p = 0,000014. It testifies that the compared groups significantly differ that proves the effect of web-quest technique in teaching foreign languages. Digital educational resources contribute to mastering a foreign language as a means of professional communication and increase the motivation of students to study this subject. Prospects for further research can be related to the development of new forms and methods of applying innovative digital technologies with the aim to put them into foreign language teaching practice at the higher education level.

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