Can a professional learning community deliver career development learning?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Gander ◽  
Margot McInnes
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Career Development ◽  
Adult Learning ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Workplace Learning ◽  
Professional Staff ◽  
Formal Learning ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The professional development needs of university professional staff are an under-researched area. More data were needed to understand their needs to ensure that employers invest their resources appropriately. A conceptual framework is developed for the workplace learning of career development activities using concepts of professional learning communities, adult learning and non-formal learning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the success of a professional development network in meeting the needs of university professional staff after a re-structure. Design/methodology/approach A case study of the development of a staff career network at an Australian university after a restructure is presented. An online survey was sent to 75 staff who had attended at least one professional development event. Quantitative and qualitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Findings This study has shown that a university professional staff career network has been a positive influence for its participants after an organisational restructure. The value of this network was to increase confidence and provide opportunities for self-improvement, career planning and networking. Originality/value A conceptual model integrating the concepts of professional learning communities, adult learning and non-formal learning has resulted in a model of social non-formalised workplace learning that may be of use in other contexts to improve staff motivation, outside of more formal learning opportunities.

Professional learning communities of teachers: Israeli principals’ perceptions

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (6) ◽  
pp. 658-674
Author(s):  
Orit Avidov-Ungar
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Teachers Professional Development ◽  
Principals Perceptions

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to focus on professional learning communities (PLCs) run for and by teachers to achieve their ongoing professional development and greater pupil attainment. The paper examined principals’ perceptions of how such PLCs influence teachers, teacher learning and school processes, and their own involvement in PLCs operating in their schools.Design/methodology/approachIn-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 of 97 principals from three of the four educational districts participating in a pilot programme to achieve in-service teacher professional development through supported PLCs.FindingsMost of the participating principals considered PLCs to influence not only the teacher-leader, but also PLC members and other teaching staff and processes. Principals perceived PLCs as influencing pedagogical processes for both teachers and students, as well as staff leadership processes. Principals reported facilitating the operation of PLCs in their schools by providing the necessary conditions or participating in PLC meetings.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough nearly 20 per cent of principals involved in the pilot agreed to participate, it was not possible to ensure a representative sample. Self-selection bias cannot be ruled out. Most participants were interviewed individually, with a minority later interviewed as a group to obtain a deeper understanding. Thus, the research should be regarded as exploratory.Originality/valueThe study provides a detailed description of how principals perceive and engage with PLCs. Its findings are relevant to international efforts to understand and leverage teacher PLCs for the purposes of teachers’ professional development and pupil attainment.

Collaborative inquiry and the shared workspace of professional learning communities

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (7) ◽  
pp. 1069-1091 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Carpenter
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
School Improvement ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Collaborative Inquiry ◽  
Shared Workspace ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Inquiry Process

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore educator collaborative inquiry in the shared workspace in professional learning communities (PLCs). Specifically, this investigation was part of an ongoing investigation of well-established PLC collaborative interactions and self-directed learning of educators as part of the shared workspace as a component of school improvement. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative design was used for this investigation. Participants were purposefully selected to provide qualitative data on existent, well-established PLCs and their practice as educators in the shared workspace. Qualitative data were collected about participant perception. Data were collected from each participant by conducting semi-structured interviews, observations, and the collection of document and artifacts. Findings Findings from this ongoing investigation point to positive collaborative physical interactions and intellectual discourse that lead to educator learning through the collaborative inquiry process. Originality/value Theories on PLCs and educator job-embedded professional learning are unique in this paper. The concepts of PLCs and the collaborative inquiry process have been well developed but not in the context of the shared workspace. Recent literature on effective collaborative inquiry educators undergo in PLCs as a continuing professional development model provides a foundation for the work done in this ongoing case study. Sustained collaboration and continued professional development of teaching innovations as a product of the collaborative inquiry process in the shared workspace are underdeveloped as yet but further developed in this paper.

Making meaning out of noise

2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 506-521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Cegarra-Sánchez ◽  
Juan-Gabriel Cegarra-Navarro
Keyword(s):  
Student Achievement ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Empirical Study ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Making Meaning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The environments provided by classrooms to facilitate learning among students can be seen as useful vehicles for making meaning out of gossip, lies, exaggeration and partial truths (i.e. counter-knowledge). This paper aims to focus on professional learning communities as a process to counteract the problem of counter-knowledge. Design/methodology/approach This paper has analysed the relationships between professional-learning communities and counter-knowledge using an empirical study of 210 undergraduate students to identify whether there is a significant impact on student achievement by professional learning communities. This study uses PLS-Graph software version 3.0 to conduct an analysis of the data collected. Findings Outcome findings support that professional learning communities provide a way of counteracting counter-knowledge and the noise heard through gossip, lies, exaggeration and partial truths. Originality/value Results also confirm that counter-knowledge is a variable that, when controlled, has the effect of strengthening the relationship between learning and student achievement.

scholarly journals Reimagining Music Teacher Collaboration: The Culture of Professional Learning Communities as Professional Development Within Schools and Districts

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-23
Author(s):  
Sharyn L. Battersby
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teacher Collaboration ◽  
Music Teachers ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Music Teacher ◽  
Collaborative Community

Music educators are continually seeking new ways to better their practice and improve student learning. Professional learning communities are a type of collaborative community that when administered successfully provide a forum for music educators to become active participants in both their own learning and that of their students. While the notion of professional learning communities has been around since the 1990s, they have received renewed attention more recently due to the adaptation and implementation of Danielson’s popular Framework for Teaching, which has been implemented in many school districts across the country. Teachers facing the challenge of reshaping the culture of their music programs and seeing their initiative sustained will devise elements that will become embedded in that (school) culture. Supportive and shared leadership, shared values and vision, and collective learning are just some of the attributes that can contribute to student learning and the professional development of music teachers.

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