This paper examines how middle leadership communicative practices deal with contradictions in teacher research groups within an Educational Design Research (EDR) project at a public middle school in China. Framed by Activity Theory, the study investigates contradictions emerging at four levels within teacher research groups and explores how two middle leaders respond to these contradictions through dialogic and relational practices, shaping distinct teacher learning outcomes.

The study addresses two key questions: (1) What contradictions at the four levels emerge from teacher research groups throughout the learning process? (2) How do two middle leaders deal with these contradictions through their communicative practices to shape different teacher learning outcomes? 

Activity Theory (Engeström, 1987), as an internationally recognised theory, provides the framework for analyzing the dynamic interactions within teacher research groups. It identifies and examines contradictions at four levels:

• Primary Contradictions: Internal tensions within an activity system element, such as conflicting functions of tools used in the learning process.
• Secondary Contradictions: Tensions between different elements of the activity system, such as between rules and tools or division of labor and community.
• Tertiary Contradictions: Conflicts between the newly introduced activity system (e.g., EDR’s iterative cycles) and pre-existing traditional practices.
• Quaternary Contradictions: Tensions between the activity system and external systems, such as policy or resource constraints.

By framing contradictions as mechanisms for change, the study provides a nuanced understanding of how middle leaders’ communicative practices foster teacher learning, extending the application of the Activity Theory and knowledge base of middle eadership, professional learning, and EDR. The findings from the Chinese context also expected to offers practical insights to foster effective teacher learning wordwide that share the similarities. 

This paper is a qualitative study employing Activity Theory to analyze middle leadership practices in dealing with contradictions within teacher research groups during the teacher learning process. Data collection occurred over nine months from a PD initiative that was designed to address these challenges by adopting EDR, which provides a structured, research-informed framework tailored to teachers’ needs for adapting to the NEC. In the Chinese context, a Teacher Research Group refers to a collaborative assembly of teachers who engage in systematic inquiry to enhance teaching practices and student learning outcomes. TRGs serve as the foundational organizational units in collaboration with an external researcher in the EDR project, facilitating structured, iterative cycles of learning, prototyping, implementation, and evaluation. Data sources include focus groups, interviews, and activity audio recordings, analyzed through Activity Theory, with a focus on primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary contradictions and respective communicative acts.

Findings reveal layered contradictions in the learning process and demonstrate the pivotal role of middle leaders’ communicative practices—such as negotiating task distribution, adjusting group rules, and aligning tools with policy demands and teacher needs—in dealing with the contradictions.

1. Engeström, Y. (1987). Learning by expanding: An activity-theoretical approach to developmental research. Orienta-Konsultit.