Teacher Educator Learning Through Recursive Boundary Crossing Between University and Government: A Collaborative Self-Study

• In Event: Friday Roundtable Session 7:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: Teacher Leadership and Faculty Learning Communities (Table 13)

Abstract

This collaborative self-study examines how one teacher educator seeks professional learning through boundary-crossing experiences between his home university and a national government unit responsible for teacher education in China. Drawing on work logs, narrative writing, and reflective conversations, this study identifies three core practices (i.e., surveying, conferencing, and writing) as boundary objects that catalyze the teacher educator’s professional learning. It also reveals four learning strategies underlying the teacher educator’s learning experiences: 1) questioning “uncomfortable” phenomena; 2) understanding by dialoguing and reading; 3) synergizing expertise to improve practice; and 4) becoming a research-policy “integrator.” These research findings suggest implications on how teacher educators use collaborative self-study to improve and generate knowledge about their practices and learning in challenging contexts.

Authors

• Wei Liao, Beijing Normal University

• Rui Yuan, University of Macau