Professional Learning Communities for Teacher Educators: Building Research Capacity in Teacher Education

• In Event: 63.047 - Teacher Educators' Professional Learning in Communities: A Promising Strategy

Abstract

Objectives
This paper explores 12 professional learning communities (PLCs) for teacher educators in a large college of education in Israel. Creating these PLCs was a strategic act taken to build up the research capacity of faculty and of the entire institution – a need for the development of colleges of education in Israel. We examine the impact of attending the PLC meetings on the research capacity of individual members, the impact of the PLC activity on the research capacity of the college, and on the intellectual and academic discourse it produced.

Theoretical framework
Leaning on Desforges’ equation (Murray, Jones, et al. 2009), three elements are essential for developing teacher educators' research capacity: expertise, motivation for research and opportunities to do research. Expertise includes the necessary methodological understanding as well as substantive theoretical understanding, (Biesta, Allan and Edwards, 2011). Motivation is concerned with the extent to which research is prioritized and with the incentive provided through the institution's culture. Opportunities include the working conditions and funding opportunities provided to support the research (McIntyre and McIntyre, 1999). When these elements are present, individuals, groups, and institutions have the power to become involved and sustain learning over time. Using this terminology, PLCs can be considered opportunities for the development of research capacity of teacher educators and teacher education institutions.

Methods and data sources
We used a mixed method approach for data collection and analysis. 136 teacher educators participated in the PLC meetings. Each of the PLCs meet between 5-6 times over one-year period. Several qualitative and quantitative data sources were used. Open observations carried out at all of the 12 PLCs meetings, interviews were conducted twice during the year with six participants and with all 12 PLC leaders, and a Likert-type questionnaire was administered to all members of the PLCs toward the end of the study period. Thematic analysis (Guest, Macqueen and Namey, 2012) was used to analyze the PLC’s operation. Statistical analysis was used to analyze quantitative data.

Results
The buzz caused by the concurrent activity of the PLCs changed the college's atmosphere from viewing research as an isolated activity to a system-wide collaborative activity. We found evidence of growing personal relationships among PLC members, increased trust and collaborative work, growth in a sense of affiliation with the college, and increase in research capacity. Half of the participating faculty wrote academic papers. The aim of developing a researcher identity among the participating teacher educators was not fully attained. Toward the end of the study period, two thirds of the community members still viewed themselves first as teachers of future teachers. Only one third viewed themselves as researchers.

Significance
Changing the professional identities of teacher educators and adopting a new research-oriented professional identity is an ambitious goal that requires time. The steps taken to promote the research capacity of teacher educators through PLC participation can contribute to overcoming this challenge. The PLC's strategic operation seems to be a fruitful direction for continuous professional learning of teacher educators and is recommended as a policy strategy.

Author

• Ruth Zuzovsky, Hakibbutzim College of Education, Technology & the Arts