Balancing Bottom-Up Needs and Top-Down Mandates for Teacher Learning in Communities: A Qualitative Case Study in China

• In Event: Educator Adaptivity and Efficacy

Abstract

The study investigated teachers’ learning experiences in a subject-based professional learning community through conducting collaborative action research in a junior secondary school in Shanghai, China. Drawing on observations, documents, and interviews with nine teachers, the findings revealed that teachers developed new understanding and practices in the research process, despite the imposed task design. The study suggests that the tension between bottom-up needs and top-down mandates for teacher learning in communities can be balanced by integrating action research and professional learning communities through the collective endeavours of external support, school leaders, and teachers in the Chinese context.

Author

• Licui Chen, Zhejiang University
  Presenting Author