Deliberating Change: How Teachers Collectively Negotiate Beliefs About Instructional Reform

• In Event: Teacher Inquiry and Collaboration to Support Pedagogical Innovations

Abstract

Many instructional reform efforts include time for teachers to work together, and deliberation with colleagues has been shown to influence how teachers implement reforms. Little is known about how teachers’ beliefs about reforms in their contexts can be productively addressed in these conversations. This study explores how formal collaboration time supports deliberation of and challenges to teachers’ beliefs in schools undergoing instructional reforms. Drawing on qualitative observation and interview data, this case study finds that teachers often avoid voicing and deliberating beliefs about reforms unless their collaboration time is structured in a way that promotes deliberation. Further, some topics of discussion elicit more unproductive or productive conversations about beliefs than others, and some people demonstrate more deliberation expertise than others.

Author

• Marie Lockton, University of California - San Diego