scholarly journals Critical Reflection and Communities of Practice as Professional Development Strategies for Educators

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 4339-4349
Author(s):  
Devi Akella ◽  
Anna Gibbs ◽  
Belinda Gilbert ◽  
Brandon Henry ◽  
Valerie Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Critical Reflection ◽  
Development Strategies

Information Superhighway and Continuous Professional Development for the Networked Teachers

2018 ◽  
pp. 1761-1776
Author(s):  
Asli Lidice Gokturk Saglam
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Continuous Professional Development ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Personal Learning ◽  
Impact Of Technology ◽  
Online Communities Of Practice ◽  
The Impact

This chapter focuses on the impact of technology on teacher training through online communities of practice (CoP) and investigates its potential for facilitating continuous professional development for the educators who can create personal learning networks on the web. Wenger's Community of Practice Theory (1998) and Garrison et al.'s (2000) Community of Inquiry (CoI) are explored as underlying theories of CoP. Furthermore, examples of online communities of practice will be briefly enlisted. The chapter will provide brief information how online learning is operationalized within the confines of CoP. The chapter will also discuss role of online communities of practice for teachers' continuous professional development with reference to current literature, explore challenges and focus on suggestions and avenues for further research.

When Virtual Communities Click

2010 ◽  
pp. 182-196
Author(s):  
Jeannine Hirtle ◽  
Samuel Smith
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Deep Learning ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Virtual Communities ◽  
Professional Culture ◽  
Knowledge And Skills ◽  
Literacy Educators

Communities of practice (CoP’s)—much touted and studied as a mechanism for teacher education and professional development—may offer environments for deeper learning and transformation of their participants. This chapter examines more meaningful outcomes possible in community-centered learning— deep learning, changes in professional culture and identity, and participants “finding voice”—outcomes of value not often seen in formal educational and traditional professional development settings. Drawing on qualitative data from participants in a three-year community of writers and literacy educators, this study suggests that CoP’s can be linked not only to development of knowledge and skills, but also to changes in participant beliefs, attitudes, voices, visions, and the identities of practicing educators.

Case Studies from the Inquiry Learning Forum

2010 ◽  
pp. 42-59
Author(s):  
Rebecca Scheckler
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Inquiry Learning ◽  
Online Professional Development ◽  
Future Trends ◽  
Online Tool ◽  
Development Tool ◽  
Electronic Tool

Two intense case studies were done of teachers using the Inquiry Learning Forum (ILF), an online space for professional development in inquiry pedagogies. Major findings included: The ILF initially conceived as an online professional development tool in the form of a Community of Practice (COP) was reconceived as an electronic tool within a larger space that included the online tool but also many co-present spaces pertinent to a teacher’s practice of inquiry pedagogy. These case studies also demonstrated the transformative nature of teachers engaging in a COP. Not only is the teacher changed but also the COP is changed by the practice. The cases demonstrated the need for teachers to feel disequilibrium in their practice before they are willing to engage in change of those practices. Lastly immersion in practice described as The Pedagogy of Poverty hampered one teacher’s progress in the ILF. These findings are based upon my empirical observations with the backdrop of John Dewey’s Theory of Inquiry and of Etienne Wenger’s concept of communities of Practice. Future trends in using online COPs for professional development need to look at practice in these terms where allowance for transaction, support outside the electronic space, and disequilibrium are considered.

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