Conceptualizing Teacher Learning in Context: A Study of Elementary Science Professional Development

• In Event: Communities, Collaborations, and Contexts of Science Teaching

Abstract

A large body of work has been devoted to understanding what teachers learn in professional development (PD), and which specific PD strategies impact learning. A smaller but growing set of studies examines professional learning in practice, pointing out the sociocultural nature of teacher change. Despite its promise, this work needs additional theoretical tools to understand how teacher change is shaped by organizational context in the process of professional learning. To fill this need, we examined elementary teacher learning in science PD using a theoretical framework developed in our prior work. Our research suggests that the Interconnected Model of Professional Growth in an Organizational Context provides a useful analytical tool to understand what influences teacher change.

Authors

• Kathryn N. Hayes, California State University - East Bay

• Linda K Preminger, California State University - East Bay

• Christine Lee Bae, Virginia Commonwealth University

• Brit Toven-Lindsey, California State University - East Bay

• Dawn M. O'Connor, Alameda County Office of Education

• Jeffrey C. Seitz, California State University - Hayward