Professional growth among K-12 teachers: The development of a culture of experimentation, reflection, and collaboration
Abstract
The purpose of this research was to investigate the approach of using a teacher study group as a means of developing open and positive attitudes, on the part of the teachers involved, toward four areas associated with facilitating teacher change, namely, experimentation, collaboration, reflection, and usage of educational research. A qualitative study using ethnographic techniques was used to investigate the effects of the teacher study group comprised of seven high school teachers in a rural county public school. Questionnaires, interviews, and recordings of the meetings were carried out in order to gather data on the beliefs of the teachers, their sociocultural setting, and other influences on their openness and attitudes toward the four areas mentioned. It was found that the culture of a high school can be complex and that a teacher study group can be an aid in lowering resistance to change and thereby facilitate reform, innovation, and the implementation of new ideas. The time spent in the study group and the dialogue that occurred, promoted collaboration, experimentation, reflection, and the use of educational research. Research indicates that an increase in these areas leads to and increases professional learning and growth of teachers. Such growth on the part of teachers has been tied to an increase in student achievement.
Subject Area
Educational leadership|Education|Teacher education
Recommended Citation
Joseph Jones,
"Professional growth among K-12 teachers: The development of a culture of experimentation, reflection, and collaboration"
(2010).
ETD Collection for Tennessee State University.
Paper AAI3439054.
https://digitalscholarship.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI3439054