Teachers' Facework in Video-Based Discussions Versus Narrative-Based Discussions

• In Event: Antecedents and Outcomes of Teacher Development and Engagement

Abstract

Teachers’ professional development can benefit from collaborative learning from problems of practice. Such learning depends on teachers’ willingness to share their classroom practice through classroom representations, which may expose them to face-threat. In this study, we compare the discussions in video-based teacher meetings and spoken narrative-based meetings, hypothesizing that different types of representation entail different types of facework. We systematically coded facework moves and specific facework strategies in 26 meetings from 13 teacher communities. While the choice of representation was found to be unrelated to facework frequency, it emerged as impacting facework strategy. Understanding this connection between specific socio-emotional facework processes and discussion of problems of practice in learning communities can enhance the design and facilitation of teacher collaborative learning.

Authors

• Adi Mendler, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

• Dana Vedder-Weiss, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev