Session Information
10 SES 01 A, Research on Teacher Educators
Paper Session
Contribution
“Active Group Practice,” is the skillful, engagement of a diverse group of educators in collaborative action to implement or improve educational programs, through a reflective, problem-solving approach to praxis inquiry.
“It’s no use talking to us about group practice and collaboration… we know it doesn’t work… teachers are too busy… you can get things done quicker on your own… besides, it’s just something we have to do to please the administrators.”
It felt like our enthusiasm and energy were colliding with a thick wall of indifference. After much anguish and soul searching, we realized we were just another pair of enthusiasts in a long line of people telling teachers that we knew the answer that we were the ones who could tell them what to do (Dalmau 2002). This moment of truth set us on a new journey with teachers.
Collaboration is often based on homogeneity, difference is viewed as a problem rather than a resource (Lambert, Collay, Dietz, Kent, & Richert, 1996; Richert, 1997). Group practice is often “contrived’ and imposed by authority within a context of hierarchical power and role relationships rather than responsive to questions arising within authentic practice (Hargreaves, 1991, p. 46). Learning about collaboration is reduced to the acquisition of interpersonal and communication skills. Even when teachers find reflective group practice in university or professional development situations valuable, they rarely transfer these practices into their busy working lives (Kristjánsdóttir, 1987; Sigurgeirsson, 1992). Technocratic and authoritarian approaches do not recognize or elicit the active professionalism of teachers.
Active group practice is more likely to occur when integrated with an authentic and purposeful challenge, e.g., the opportunity to make a difference in teaching and learning for a groups of school students. This has been our cornerstone in the journey of introducing the active group practice (AGP). It needs to be built on the following strategies>:
•actively and positively welcomes diversity.
•is purposeful and action-oriented
•is based on the principle of multiplication
•uses data to open doors
In this paper we will present on our findings of our self-study of teacher practice as we work with student teachers and teacher learners on group work and collaboration. Our intention is to introduce our model of Active group practice that we have developed for a decade and our experiance as we use it in our teaching.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Dalmau, M. (2002) Taking a fresh look at education:Reconstructing learning and change with teachers. Unpublished PhD Tesis. Eugene: University of Oregon Lambert, L., Collay, M., Dietz, M. E., Kent, K., & Richert, A. E. (1997). Who will save our schools? Teachers as constructivist leaders. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Richert, A. E. (1997). Teaching teachers for the challenge of change. In J. Loughran & T. Russel (Eds.), Teaching about teaching: Purpose, passion and pedagogy in teacher education. London: The Falmer Press. Hargreaves, A. (1994). Changing teachers, changing times: Teachers' work and culture in the postmodern age. New York: Teacher College Press. Kristjánsdóttir, E. (1989). Álitamál í samfélagsfræði, Álitamál í kennslu frá sjónarhorni fjögurra námsgreina. Ritröð Kennaraháskóla Íslands og Iðunnar. Reykjavík: Iðunn. Russel, T. & Loughran, J. (2007). Enacting a pedagogy of teacher education: Values, relationships and practices. London: Routledge. Sigurgeirsson, I. (1992). The Role, use and impact of curriculum materials in intermediate level Icelandic classrooms, University of Sussex, Sussex. Wolcott, H. (2005). The art of fieldwork. (2. edition). Walnut Creek: Altamira Press.
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