Inservice Teacher Educators Research Their Practice

Transcription

1 P R O F E S S I O N A L L E A R N I N G Processes of Inquiry Inservice Teacher Educators Research Their Practice Joanna Higgins, Ro Parsons and Linda Bonne (Eds.) SensePublishers

2 Processes of Inquiry

3 Professional Learning Volume 10 Series editor: J. John Loughran, Monash University, Clayton, Australia Editorial board: Renee Clift University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA Ruth Kane University of Ottawa Mieke Lunenberg Free University, The Netherlands Anthony Clarke University of British Columbia, Canada Donald Freeman School for International Training, Vermont, USA MOK, Mo Ching Magdalena Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong Max van Manen University of Alberta, Canada Rationale This series purposely sets out to illustrate a range of approaches to Professional Learning and to highlight the importance of teachers and teacher educators taking the lead in reframing and responding to their practice, not just to illuminate the field but to foster genuine educational change. Audience The series will be of interest to teachers, teacher educators and others in fields of professional practice as the context and practice of the pedagogue is the prime focus of such work. Professional Learning is closely aligned to many of the ideas associated with reflective practice, action research, practitioner inquiry and teacher as researcher.

4 Processes of Inquiry Inservice Teacher Educators Research Their Practice Edited by Joanna Higgins Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand Ro Parsons Ministry of Education, New Zealand and Linda Bonne Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand SENSE PUBLISHERS ROTTERDAM/BOSTON/TAIPEI

5 A C.I.P. record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. ISBN: (paperback) ISBN: (hardback) ISBN: (e-book) Published by: Sense Publishers, P.O. Box 21858, 3001 AW Rotterdam, The Netherlands Printed on acid-free paper All Rights Reserved 2011 Sense Publishers No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work.

6 POROPOROAKI (dedication) Nei rā te mihi ki te tokomaha, nā koutou, nā rātou te pukapuka nei i poipoia kia puta mai i te ao whakaaro ki te ao mārama, tēnā rā koutou. Heoi anō ka tika anō hoki ki te poroporoaki i a Barbara Spurr rāua ko Sue Jowsey, kōrua kua ngaro kē i te mata o te whenua. E kore e kitea a tinana ngā hua kua puta mai i a kōrua whai wāhitanga o roto i te mahi nei, engari anō ā-wairua e kitea. Nō reira kōrua kua whetūrangitia i roto i te wā nei, moe mai rā, okioki ai ki tō kōrua kāinga tūturu ki reira tatari ai ma mātou e whai ana. Ka āpiti hono, ka tātai hono rātou te hunga mate ki a rātou, ka āpiti hono, ka tātai hono tātou te hunga ora ki a tātou, nō reira ki a tātou katoa, kei te mihi, kei te mihi, kei te mihi. A kāti. Kua hinga ngā tōtara nui o te Wāo-nui-ā-Tāne. They have fallen, they have fallen, Totara trees from the great forest of Tāne Mahuta have fallen. v

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8 WHAKATAUKĪ (proverb) He tomokanga paepae he ara ki te aotūroa. Tēnei te mihi maioha ki a koutou i runga anō i ngā tini āhuatanga o te wā. Ka rere tonu ngā mihi aroha ki a koutou ōtira ki a tātou. Nā Tuteira Pohatu ēnei kohikohinga kōrero, kohikohinga whakaaro i hōmai ki te rōpū nei. Tuteira Pohatu generously shared the above whakataukī as a metaphor for inservice teacher education. A possible translation is crossing a threshold that leads to a path to the future. The whakataukī also embodies analogies of process and ritual that may show the way to personal and professional enlightenment. In the same way, inservice teacher education draws on ways of working that involve complex interactions and that may lead to empowerment as a learner and as a leader. Ministry of Education. (2008). Ki Te Aoturoa: Improving inservice teacher educator learning and practice (p. 12). Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media. vii

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10 TABLE OF CONTENTS Series Editor s Foreword... xi Acknowledgements... xiii 1. Improving Inservice Teacher Education Practice... 1 Ro Parsons and Joanna Higgins 2. Organisation and Design of Analytical Tools to Identify Effective Teacher Educator Practice Delia Baskerville 3. The Measure of Success: Resolving Conflicts in Professional Learning Using Evidence of Student Learning Trevor McDonald and Christina Thornley 4. Building Collaborative Professional Learning Within an Organisation Alyson McGee 5. An Environment of Collegial Reflective Dialogue for Inservice Teacher Educators Margaret Lamont 6. Mentoring Reflective Practice in Inservice Teacher Education Ronnie Davey, Vince Ham, Mel Stopford, Susan Callender and Jocelyn MacKay 7. Individualised Professional Learning: Mentoring Leaders of School-Based Inquiry Projects Christina Thornley and Trevor McDonald 8. Tikanga Māori Kei Te Ao Whakaako: Māori Concepts and Practices Supporting Teacher Education Hiria McRae and Marama Taiwhati 9. Te Poutama: An Alternative Framework Examining Māori Medium Inservice Teacher Education Practice Leanna Herewini and Sarah-Jane Tiakiwai 10. Designing Evaluation in Messy Interventions: Reflections from Evaluation Practice Meenakshi Sankar ix

11 TABLE OF CONTENTS 11. Generating New Knowledge Through a System-Level Network Joanna Higgins and Ro Parsons Glossary of Māori Terms About the Contributors x

12 SERIES EDITOR S FOREWORD The mention of the term teacher education is often accompanied by an assumption that the content of the work under consideration is related to that of university-based teachers of teaching. However, as the editors of this collection demonstrate, teacher education extends well beyond university-based education programmes and it is important that this broader view is not only recognised but actively embraced in order to understand more clearly the myriad issues pertaining to development of knowledge of learning and teaching about teaching. Higgins, Parsons and Bonne have drawn on their involvement in an innovative teacher education project in order to assemble a list of authors who conducted an interesting range of activities and worked from varied perspectives in order to share what they learnt about improving inservice teacher education practice. Through this book, the editors bring to the fore examples of, and arguments about, ways in which quality in teaching might be understood better when viewed through the lens of professional learning. In so doing, they attempt to illustrate that there is a meaningful link between informed teaching practices and enhanced student learning outcomes. Through their strong examples of inquiry driven processes, this book illustrates well how central professional learning is to the development of knowledge of practice in ways that can genuinely make a difference to the nature of learning and why such studies matter in shaping the ways in which policy might not only be constructed but also enacted. As the editors make clear, and the individual chapters further demonstrate, purposeful networks of practice are central to the development of knowledge building communities through which policy, research and practice can be meaningfully integrated. Through the individual studies outlined by each of the authors in this book, the strength of professional learning (in contrast to mandated top-down professional development) offers real ways for supporting teachers in reviewing and refining their understanding of teaching and learning. As the individual chapters illustrate, each author has come to realise interesting insights about ways of challenging and supporting learning about practice in an inservice teacher education context. By drawing on the work of the inservice teacher educators, researchers and evaluators involved in this project, this edited collection offers a rich portrayal of an approach to professional learning designed to work with, rather than on, those involved as they worked to enhance their knowledge of practice across a range of settings. There is a strong theme at the heart of each of the studies in this book: the need for evidence and its place in influencing approaches to, and learning from, inquiry into practice. In working collaboratively, by developing meaningful approaches to supporting reflective practices and through paying serious attention to mentoring and leadership, the professional learning at the heart of this project is brought to life in ways that offer interesting perspectives on inservice teacher education practices. xi

13 SERIES EDITOR S FOREWORD Ultimately, it is through the combined concern of all involved in this project to develop new knowledge about teaching and learning that the real breakthroughs in practice stand out to the reader. The editors have organised this book in such a way as to make clear that policy must be informed by practice but that, in the end, real educational change is borne of teacher change. Higgins, Parsons and Bonne have structured this book in a thoughtful way that brings together a strong group of authors with an abiding commitment to quality in professional learning through a sharp focus on inservice teacher education practices. The structure of the book creates multiple entry points for the reader so that although it can be read in sequential order, it is equally accessible and useable by diving into the different sections as coherent groupings in their own right. The editors have worked long and hard to develop a well organised and carefully argued text that offers compelling evidence for an integrated approach to project management, practice, research and evaluation. Although this project was conducted in New Zealand, the learning surely extends to education precincts across the globe. There is much in this work that will appeal to, and be identified by, teacher educators in a range of contexts. I commend the work and congratulate the editors and authors on a fine example of professional learning that really does make a difference. J. John Loughran Series Editor xii

14 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to thank John Loughran for his support of our idea to record the stories of professional learning that were part of a project aimed at improving inservice teacher education practice. He provided theoretical insights and inspiration for participants in the project in their development of approaches to studying their practice. We would also like to thank Chris Harwood for her critical examination of the individual studies and the collective work at the national level. The examples of inquiry into practice detailed in the chapters of this book attest to her insightful leadership of a challenging project. We thank all the chapter authors and the participants in their projects for being willing to write about their experiences of inquiring into their practice. Susan Kaiser of Victoria University of Wellington s Jessie Hetherington Centre for Educational Research was extremely helpful in providing editorial support. Delia Baskerville and Pania Te Maro of the Faculty of Education provided support and advice. Thanks to Warren Butcher for the cover photograph. We are also grateful for the support received from our respective institutions. Joanna Higgins, Ro Parsons, and Linda Bonne xiii

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16 RO PARSONS AND JOANNA HIGGINS 1. IMPROVING INSERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION PRACTICE INTRODUCTION In his discussion of professional development as a policy pathway, Knapp (2003) highlighted the need to pay attention not only to the design and implementation of professional learning opportunities, but also to the development of sufficient expertise at various levels of the system in supporting professional learning through policy in such a way that teaching practice and student learning are affected (p. 147). Internationally, the role of external expertise (a role variously described by such terms as inservice teacher educator, professional developer and facilitator) is increasingly recognised as critical in improving classroom practice and outcomes for diverse learners. The quality of inservice teacher educator practice mediates the opportunities for teachers to improve the quality of their practice through professional learning and development. Studies of successful education reform show the importance of external expertise at all stages, and in particular, working with teachers to interpret policy for enactment in classrooms (Starkey et al., 2009). The engagement of expertise external to the group is necessary because substantive new learning requires teachers to understand new content, learn new skills and think about their existing practice in new ways (Coburn & Russell, 2008). From 2005 to 2008, in response to increased awareness of the importance of professional learning and development as a mechanism for improving the quality of teaching and student outcomes, a national research and development initiative focused on building inservice teacher educator knowledge and expertise was undertaken in New Zealand. This book presents the professional stories of some of the participants in the Inservice Teacher Education Practice project. Policy Context In New Zealand, as in many jurisdictions, the early years of this century were characterised by an increased focus in education on improving outcomes for all students through quality teaching. This policy focus was supported by the establishment of the Iterative Best Evidence Synthesis Programme (see, for example, Robinson, Hohepa & Lloyd, 2009; Timperley, Wilson, Barrar & Fung, 2007) which, in drawing together research linked to outcomes, identified areas of influence and action that could make a difference for diverse students. J. Higgins, R. Parsons and L. Bonne (Eds.), Processes of Inquiry: Inservice Teacher Educators Research Their Practice, Sense Publishers. All rights reserved.

17 PARSONS AND HIGGINS A number of key research and development initiatives that focused on the finegrained detail of classroom practice in mathematics, literacy, assessment and education for Māori (indigenous) students, increased knowledge and understanding about the design of professional learning opportunities that maximised teacher opportunity to learn and improved student outcomes. These initiatives also identified inservice teacher education practice as a critical mediating factor in the effectiveness of professional learning and development provision that enables sustained improvement in teaching and learning. However, the location of professional development provision with individual providers in a competitive environment limited opportunities to develop and disseminate a body of professional knowledge about effective practice. The knowledge base about the influence of inservice teacher educator practice on the effectiveness of teachers classroom practice, and even more so, on student outcomes, was relatively new and contested. Evidence from schools suggested that the quality of external expertise available across the system was variable. There was no coherent and systematic approach to developing the capability of those who work with teachers. Purpose of the Inservice Teacher Education Practice Project The strategic purpose of the project was to strengthen the quality and consistency of inservice teacher education practice across the education system to ensure teachers access to high quality professional learning opportunities. As a national research and development initiative focused on the professional learning and practice of inservice teacher educators, the project was breaking new ground. It had three key objectives: to explore and develop effective approaches for the professional learning of inservice teacher educators; to strengthen and promote evidence-based inservice teacher education practice; and to support professional leadership and ongoing improvement within the inservice teacher education sector. Design of the Project From the outset, a knowledge-building approach to improving professional practice across the system was adopted. The project was conceptualised as drawing on the evidence base about what worked and generating, using and disseminating new knowledge about what constituted effective inservice teacher education practice. Such an approach was being used successfully in teacher professional learning and development initiatives, such as Te Kotahitanga (see Bishop, O Sullivan & Berryman, 2010) and the Numeracy Development Project (see Higgins & Parsons, 2009), enabling adjustments to the design and better overall strategic decision making as well as maximising cross-system engagement. 2

18 IMPROVING INSERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION PRACTICE The development of networks of professional practice and building professional leadership was closely aligned to the knowledge-building approach. The development of vertical and horizontal networks of practice had already been shown to be an important mechanism for disseminating knowledge and promoting innovation, and creating the conditions for sustainable change and ownership of continuing improvement. The use of such networks across the system also facilitated the integration of policy, research and practice (Higgins, with Parsons & Hyland, 2003). The project involved four phases: an initiation and design phase; an exploration phase; an expansion and refinement phase; and a consolidation phase. The initiation and design phase provided a critical foundation for subsequent phases. During this phase the national working group of facilitators in various inservice teacher education roles across the system was established. This group reviewed current approaches to the training of inservice teacher educators and identified the generic knowledge, skills and expertise required to effectively promote and support teacher learning. The members of the group then developed a draft professional learning framework, pedagogical approaches and associated tools, engaging a range of other teacher educators from their institutions and regions in the process. During the exploration phase, each national facilitator worked with other inservice teacher educators in their regional professional settings to trial and refine professional learning and development elements and approaches that were being generated at a national level. This exploratory work was supported by research mentors. During the expansion and refinement and consolidation phases, the national facilitators implemented inquiry-based projects in their regions that focused on the professional practice of inservice teacher educators in the course of their work with teachers and schools. Approximately 400 inservice teacher educators and researchers were involved in the project over three years. The national facilitators worked with diverse types of teacher educators, including those with special roles in learning and behaviour, literacy, Māori education, numeracy, literacy leadership, and leadership and management. Historically, many of these groups of inservice teacher educators had not worked together. The participants adopted a research and development approach to their individual initiatives and the overall project was informed by the findings of the evaluation study that was carried out alongside. Collective responsibility was taken for the development of theoretical frames as well as the generation and trialling of tools. The consolidation phase of the project culminated in the publication of a set of learning materials, Ki Te Aoturoa: Improving Inservice Teacher Educator Learning and Practice (Ministry of Education, 2008), which captured the knowledge and understandings, and presented learning cases, developed through the research and development activities of the project. Ki Te Aoturoa identified four generic areas of knowledge and expertise for inservice teacher educators: inquiry and evidence based practice; knowledge and theory; communication and relationships; and the facilitation of change for improvement (Ministry of Education, 2008). 3

19 PARSONS AND HIGGINS Processes of Inquiry The chapters in this book provide rich insights into the challenges and successes experienced by inservice teacher educators, researchers and evaluators as they worked to develop the knowledge and expertise identified in Ki Te Aoturoa in a variety of contexts of practice. The accounts also illuminate the complexities and nuances of inservice teacher education, illustrating how the generic areas of knowledge and expertise are integrated in action to generate and enable opportunities to learn and improve practice. Taken together, the accounts highlight the critical importance of a deliberate and systematic approach to inquiry in the provision of professional learning opportunities for inservice teacher educators. Delia Baskerville s personal narrative in Chapter 2, Organisation and design of analytical tools to identify effective teacher educator practice, provides a powerful insight into the process of inquiry. This chapter describes the development and field testing of analytical tools to support improvement in inservice teacher educators practice and how that process supported collaboration and critical friendship. The use of the questions from Baskerville s field notes linked to the evolution of tool development and use shows the importance of a deliberate, thoughtful approach to inquiry and the potential of such an approach to influence practice. The analytical tools developed (teacher interview, classroom observation, reflective learning conversation, values and beliefs questionnaire, learning conversation analysis review, subjective/objective review, learning from the analysis of the script table, and the use of video for stimulated recall) brought focus and rigour to the investigation of practice and the interactions leading to improvement. While there was a lack of opportunity to review and evaluate the tools, their role in the shift from suppositions to evidence-based practice (p. 24), linking theory and practice, structuring the process of collaboration and reflection and making explicit the qualities of effective practice, was clearly evident. This chapter also reinforces the importance of supportive conditions for inservice teacher educator learning. A growing research literature highlights the significant role of leaders of teacher learning in the school setting (Coburn, 2005; Harris, 2004; Robinson et al., 2009). In Chapter 3, The measure of success: Resolving conflicts in professional learning using evidence of student learning, Trevor McDonald and Christina Thornley focus on the work of three teacher leaders as they built communities of practice and supported their colleagues to deepen their pedagogical content knowledge and to develop their teaching by looking for, and focusing on, evidence of student learning and change (p. 33). The case studies provide critical insights into: the gathering, interpretation and use of student-centred data as a catalyst for improvement in professional practice; the importance of framing issues from the perspective of the student; drawing on multiple sources of data; and the power of discrepant data in challenging teacher assumptions and understandings. In each case, the analysis and interpretation of student achievement data provided the impetus for the development of teachers pedagogical content knowledge and engagement with research. The data also provided 4

20 IMPROVING INSERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION PRACTICE evidence of the improved outcomes for students associated with changes in practice the measure of success. The cases illustrate aspects of pedagogical and professional knowledge and expertise important in the teacher leadership role. Each of the teacher leaders was able to adopt a considered and purposeful approach to investigating and analysing a problem of practice and drew on a mix of approaches to enable the professional learning of colleagues. Although not discussed in detail in this chapter, we should not underestimate the importance of each teacher leader having access to opportunities to learn about professional learning and pedagogy and to develop research skills themselves through the provision of ongoing mentoring support. Alyson McGee highlights the importance of developing organisational conditions that support inservice teacher educator professional practice and learning in Chapter 4, Building collaborative professional learning within an organisation. McGee s case study of a collaborative professional learning project in an educational institution over two years documents the journey from a situation characterised by the intermittent and spasmodic nature of professional learning (p. 46) to a point where at least some inservice teacher educators regarded themselves as researchers for the first time. This chapter highlights the importance of a deliberate and structured approach to the design, implementation and evaluation of professional learning opportunities within an organisation. McGee describes the development of the design approach from the identification of design features (learning in collaborative groups; developing a shared question; establishing common ways of working; and using evidence to inform learning and practice) to the strengthening of processes to support professional learning (an explicit framework for inquiry and reflection; clear evaluation processes; and a focus on building leadership of professional learning). The discussion of successes and opportunities using Rogoff s (1998) sociocultural framework for analysis provides a valuable insight into the interconnections between the individual, interpersonal and organisational dimensions in professional learning provision. McGee s analysis emphasises that the legitimisation of inquiry and reflection and the development of conditions for collaborative learning need to be supported by organisational structures and processes (such as the provision of time and mentoring support) to enable the management of competing demands and continued capacity and capability building at all levels. Margaret Lamont s An environment of collegial reflective dialogue for inservice teacher educators (Chapter 5) shows how it is possible to create the organisational conditions within which a large group of inservice teacher educators in a university environment can engage with problems of practice in a systematic and sustained way. The features of a supportive environment include: the identification of leadership roles and responsibilities; clarity of expectations; agreed structures and processes; the development of tools to support a rigorous approach to gathering data to support professional inquiry; and the provision of opportunity in particular, time to engage in critical reflection. Lamont also focuses our attention on the complex tasks associated with participating in, and contributing to, an effective community of professional practice: 5

21 PARSONS AND HIGGINS identifying the focus of inquiry; selecting tools and methods for gathering evidence; analysing and interpreting evidence; deconstructing practice and developing new ways of seeing and approaching a problem of practice; and giving and receiving constructive and critical feedback. Each task involves substantial and challenging learning. Participants must take on a variety of roles within a complex network of formal and informal collegial arrangements to support such learning in an organisational setting. In Chapter 6, Mentoring reflective practice in inservice teacher education, Ronnie Davey, Vince Ham, Mel Stopford, Susan Callender, and Jocelyn MacKay examine the mentoring of inservice teacher education colleagues. Davey et al. identify a shift in the knowledge base required to be an effective inservice teacher educator that is characterised by knowledge of the principles and practice of reflection and reflective practice (p. 89). Such practice is reflexive, challenging, and evidencebased, requiring a different construction of the teacher educator role. Three professional learning cases show how inservice teacher educators evaluated particular tools or theoretical frameworks in the course of their work with teachers. These focused on improving the quality and impact of mentoring conversations with teachers through substantive dialogue, questioning and interaction within a virtual environment, respectively. Together the cases highlight the important role of conceptual tools and frameworks for investigating and improving aspects of professional practice and the need to attend to the conditions required to enable effective professional learning for inservice teacher educators. Their conclusions, that the relationship between an inservice teacher educator and a teacher is better conceived and described as mentoring or facilitating than as teaching, and that mentoring colleagues in the processes of critically reflective practice is becoming the main purpose and modus operandi of inservice teacher education, signal an important shift in direction for the profession. In Chapter 7, Individualised professional learning: Mentoring leaders of schoolbased inquiry projects, Christina Thornley and Trevor McDonald explore the role of mentoring in supporting emerging leaders of school-based inquiry projects in literacy. Through the analysis of three cases, common features of an approach to improving practice and outcomes are evident: the collegial focus on a problem of practice as a context for teacher learning; the importance of data gathering, interpretation and use; the use of tools, such as a logic model, to develop professional learning plans; and the development of organisational conditions to support improvement. Thornley and McDonald highlight the multidimensional role of the mentor in the change process: catalyst for, and facilitator of, change; providing access to expertise in relation to curriculum, assessment and pedagogy; and leading a systematic inquiry process that supports improvement in outcomes. The mentor needs to be a learner as well as an expert, capable of enacting knowledge and expertise through a contextually responsive approach. 6

22 Inservice Teacher Educators in Māori Medium Settings IMPROVING INSERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION PRACTICE The conditions under which education policy is formulated do not always allow for an indigenous voice. The two chapters in this section show the importance of allowing the space for a Māori world view to be brought to the construction and interpretation of policy so that its enactment is culturally relevant. In Chapter 8, Tikanga Māori kei te ao whakaako: Māori concepts and practices supporting teacher education, Hiria McRae and Marama Taiwhati draw on a kaupapa Māori theoretical approach to investigate the elements of collaboration from a Māori perspective mahi tahi (working together) and mahi ngātahi (collective responsibility) and explore the question of maintaining an inclusive, supportive and constructive working environment for Māori teacher educators. Through their interviews with teacher educators McRae and Taiwhati identify some common, fundamental concepts associated with mahi tahi and mahi ngātahi: whanaungatanga (the building and maintaining of relationships); manaakitanga (hospitality); aroha (love and care); kaupapa (an important issue or topic); and kotahitanga (unity). The emerging conceptual framework presented in this chapter situates collaborative practice within the overarching umbrella of Tikanga Māori (Māori cultural protocol) and describes the collaborative process in terms of Māori protocol as manifested in the stages of pōwhiri (a formal Māori welcome). For each element of the pōwhiri process the framework includes the key concepts associated with mahi tahi and mahi ngātahi, and links teacher educator practice, questions for consideration and intended outcomes. In making explicit a Māori interpretation of the concept of collaboration, McRae and Taiwhati challenge the assumptions and perspectives that underpin commonly held definitions of concepts in teacher education. The emerging collaborative practice framework not only presents a Māori conceptualisation of the notion of collaboration, but shows how a Māori perspective can strengthen and expand our understanding of teacher education practice. In Chapter 9, Te Poutama: An alternative framework examining Māori medium inservice teacher education practice, Leeana Herewini and Sarah-Jane Tiakiwai describe the complex shifting and layering of meaning that occurred as Māori medium inservice teacher educators constructed a view of their practice as Māori medium inservice teacher educators. Chapter 9 describes the development of the Poutama (stairway pattern) as a theoretical and methodological framework that seeks to locate Māori medium inservice teacher educator practice within kaupapa Māori and te ao Māori understandings and ways of doing and being (p. 150). The authors lead us through the process of development: the initial linear and hierarchical representation of a pathway for Māori medium education; the focus on the materials used in the construction of the Poutama as a representation of the complexity of inservice teacher educator practice and learning; the inclusion of a reflection in the Poutama image to represent its importance in inservice teacher educator learning and practice; and the expansion of the dimensions of inservice teacher educator practice through links with Māori stories, waiata (songs/chants) and whakataukī (proverbs) embodied in the Poutama. 7

23 PARSONS AND HIGGINS The ultimate situation of the Poutama within the framework of a tukutuku (ornamental lattice work) panel where the back of the panel is as important as the outward view is a powerful representation of the importance of what one brings to the role as a Māori medium inservice teacher educator the understanding [of] one s own cultural knowledge, background and positioning within community (p. 159) and its impact on practice and effectiveness. In showing how the development of the Poutama enabled Māori medium inservice teacher educators to construct and represent the unique knowledge and expertise required for successful practice in Māori medium settings, this chapter is also a reminder of what is invisible when we fail to recognise indigenous knowledges and understandings. The Challenge of Evaluation A key challenge for policy-makers relates to how to integrate evaluation into the policy process in such a way that it can provide information for accountability purposes and strengthen ongoing development and decision making. In Chapter 10, Designing evaluation in messy interventions: Reflections from evaluation practice, Meenakshi Sankar discusses the methodological complexities and challenges associated with evaluating a research and development project, in particular, designing an evaluation framework that would support programme development and at the same time provide data for summative assessment. The analysis of an evaluability assessment process using Wholey s (2004) framework shows how evaluation can support the sense-making (Datnow & Park, 2009) process that occurs as part of the policy cycle (Rist, 2000). The decision to carry out an evaluability assessment enabled clarification of the programme intent and development of a shared understanding of the theory of change. The process of exploring programme reality and reaching agreement on changes needed in the approach to design and implementation was necessary to develop the evaluation design. The lessons learned in relation to evaluation purpose, design, implementation and dissemination are relevant for policy-makers in contexts where a research and development approach is a critical component of the policy response. Generating New Knowledge through the Development of Networks of Practice The primary focus of a research and development approach is the systematic discovery of new knowledge and the application of that knowledge for improvement. Knowledge generation was at the heart of this project. Some key themes emerge across the stories of inservice teacher educators as they talk about inquiring into their practice: shifts in the construction of the role of inservice teacher educator; the centrality of inquiry in improving professional practice and the importance of linking the process iteratively with the research literature and theory; the use of data to generate, focus and structure inquiry and improve practice; the need to develop and use a variety of smart tools 1 (Robinson, Hohepa & Lloyd, 2009) that are fit-for-purpose, and the power of such tools as a catalyst for 8

24 IMPROVING INSERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION PRACTICE learning; and the influence of collegial professional community and supportive organisational conditions in enabling change. The generation and application of new knowledge and theory, and its dissemination, was made possible through the development of networks of practice at all levels of the system. The important roles of collaborative networks in challenging thinking, enabling learning, promoting leadership, and supporting change in professional practice, is evident in the individual inquiry initiatives described in this book. In the final chapter, Generating new knowledge through a system-level network, we examine the structures and processes at the system level that enabled the research and development approach adopted in the Inservice Teacher Education Practice Project. In addressing the question of what enabled the project at a system level to play out the way it did, we examine the changing role of inservice teacher educators and the challenges and achievements of the networks of practice involved in building knowledge about inservice teacher educators work in the New Zealand context. NOTES 1 Robinson, Hohepa and Lloyd (2009) describe smart tools as anything from software for tracking assessment data to policy documents to materials or report forms that are well designed and based on valid theories. Smart tools to help teaching and learning derived from research and development trials can be more complex. Tools are smart if they promote teacher learning about how to promote student learning. (p. 44) REFERENCES Bishop, R., O Sullivan, D., & Berryman, M. (2010). Scaling up education reform. Wellington: NZCER Press. Coburn, C. E. (2005). Shaping teacher sensemaking: School leaders and the enactment of reading policy. Educational Policy, 19(3), Coburn, C. E., & Russell, J. L. (2008). District policy and teachers social networks. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 30, Datnow, A., & Park, V. (2009). Conceptualizing policy implementation: Large-scale reform in an era of complexity. In G. Skyes, B. Schneider & D. N. Plank with T. G. Ford (Eds.), Handbook of education policy research (pp ). New York: AERA/Routledge. Harris, A. (2004). Distributed leadership: Leading or misleading. Educational Management and Administration, 32(1), Higgins, J., & Parsons, R. (2009). A successful professional development model in mathematics: A system-wide New Zealand case. Journal of Teacher Education, 60(3), Higgins, J. with Parsons, R., & Hyland, M. (2003). The Numeracy Development Project: Policy to practice. New Zealand Annual Review of Education, 12, Knapp, M. (2003). Professional development as a policy pathway. Review of Research in Education, 27, Ministry of Education. (2008). Ki Te Aoturoa: Improving inservice teacher educator learning and practice. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media. Rist, R. C. (2000). Influencing the policy process with qualitative research. In N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of qualitative research (2 nd ed., pp. ` ). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. 9

25 PARSONS AND HIGGINS Robinson, V., Hohepa, M., & Lloyd, C. (2009). School leadership and student outcomes: Identifying what works and why: Best evidence synthesis iteration. Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Education. Starkey, L., Yates, A., Meyer, L. H., Hall, C., Taylor, M., Stevens, S., et al. (2009). Professional development design: Embedding educational reform. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, Timperley, H., Wilson, A., Barrar, H., & Fung, I. (2007). Teacher professional learning and development: Best evidence synthesis iteration. Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Education. 10

26 DELIA BASKERVILLE 2. ORGANISATION AND DESIGN OF ANALYTICAL TOOLS TO IDENTIFY EFFECTIVE TEACHER EDUCATOR PRACTICE BACKGROUND Lave and Wenger s (1991) theory of situated learning provides a framework to explore relationships between people, events and objects in the selected educational space. They explain that this gives an opportunity for researchers to explore the change and transformation that occurs in participants identities, knowledge, understanding and skill. Lave and Wenger describe this as the lived-in world of engagement in everyday activity (p. 47). Through these investigations they claim communities of practice may be understood. According to Niesz (2010), the term community of practice has been used as a descriptor for many professional development networks based on the premise that teacher learning should occur in collegial communities that encourage active participation and support sustained by shared communication. This term has been used to indicate the advantages of working in this way rather than more traditional professional development experiences (Niesz, 2010). This concurs with Lave and Wenger s (1991) claims that we learn to transform through sustained situated participation in communities. Reid (2004) asserts that the demands of 21 st century economic, political and cultural globalisation require educators to be inquirers into professional practice. Such professional learning can have a powerful effect on teacher skills and knowledge and on student achievement. However, to be effective it must be sustained, focused on important content, and embedded in the work of collaborative professional learning teams that support ongoing improvements in teachers practice and student achievement (National Development Staff Council, 2007). Yet, according to James and McCormick (2009), opportunities for educators to learn through classroom inquiry and networking depend significantly on organizational structures, cultures and leadership (p. 982). They assert that what is particularly important is the school s knowledge of the expertise it contains, the availability of that expertise and the school s ability to tap into the identified expertise, grow and distribute it through professional development activities, and networking. These researchers claim quality of leadership is vital in facilitating these events. Also, Given et al. (2010) argue that teachers engaging in collaborative inquiry often struggle with questions regarding their work, validation of the processes and shared power. This may also be because inquiry, as defined by Reid (2004), is a systematic, J. Higgins, R. Parsons and L. Bonne (Eds.), Processes of Inquiry: Inservice Teacher Educators Research Their Practice, Sense Publishers. All rights reserved.

27 BASKERVILLE rigorous process of critical reflection about professional practice in ways that challenge taken-for-granted assumptions (p. 4). A collaborative approach of action research may be used to support an inquiry-based approach to educators learning. Since the late 1940s, social scientists have advocated links between social problems and social theory, and this collaborative approach of action research has become a well utilised means of investigation for researchers interested in classroom teacher practice (Berg, 2007; Denscombe, 1998). There is some confusion regarding what action research is because it encompasses a wide domain; however, its central feature is change (Fox, Martin & Green, 2007). According to Kemmis and McTaggart (2000), classroom action research usually entails inquiry and data collection by teachers (frequently assisted by academics) with an aim to improve a problem of practice a puzzling, curious and perplexing situation (Loughran, 2002). Action research paradigms that have developed over time (Feyerisen, Fiorno & Nowak, 1970) intended the action research cycle to provide a continuous research process that acknowledged the emergence of new sets of problems from addressing previous problems. Another four-stage action cycle notion was developed by Eliot (1973, cited in Taylor, 1996) and involved the identification of a problem, remedial action, course planning, action plan implementation, and behaviour outcomes review. Medical practitioners Argyris and Schön (1974) expanded action research methodology in response to a perceived flaw in many other research approaches, and they developed an approach to action research that attracted teacher researchers. They asserted that everyone, not only professional practitioners, needs to learn from competent action and spontaneous reflection on that action. Action research, in the context of this project, is concerned with improving teacher educators practice through analysis, assessment and theory modification (Robinson & Lai, 2006). There is, however, frequent criticism of action research due to the small-scale nature of the research and because the findings apply only to that specific context and do not have external validity (Robinson & Lai, 2006). The author acknowledges too that classroom action research may be criticised for the priority it gives to teacher knowledge compared to the absence of wider community involvement, and the tension between teacher consciousness raising and lack of theoretical frameworks. Although the researchers acknowledged inservice teacher educators critical role in effective teacher learning, and drew some conclusions about the effect of professional development on student outcomes, there was a lack of evidence regarding the explicit qualities of effective inservice teacher educator practice (Timperley, Wilson, Barrar & Fung, 2007). Specific gaps in the research regarding what inservice teacher educators did to promote teacher learning were identified (Timperley et al., 2007). Based on this evidence, the Ministry of Education initiated a national research and development project named Inservice Teacher Education Practice to investigate the gaps in this knowledge. The underlying assumption of this project was that improving inservice teacher educator practice would improve teacher practice. The participants in this research and development project were supported by the project community 12

28 ORGANISATION AND DESIGN OF ANALYTICAL TOOLS to examine their skills, knowledge, understandings, attitudes, values and beliefs and critically reflect on how these framed and constrained their action (Kemmis & McTaggart, 2008). Participants inquiry was supported too by the provision of critical friendship. A critical friend is a capable reflective practitioner (with integrity and passion for teaching and learning) who establishes safe ways of working and negotiates shared understandings to support and challenge a colleague in the deprivatisation of their practice (Baskerville & Goldblatt, 2009, p. 206). This structure may provide a further lens to view data and offer fresh insights and questions in order to strengthen the evidence-based inquiry into their practice (Ainscow & Southworth, 1996; Costa & Kallick, 1993; Dean, 1992). Critical friends are supportive, not manoeuvring (MacBeath, Schratz, Meuret & Jakobsen, 2000), but emphasise questioning and investigation, which would lead to understanding (Loughran, 2002). Critical friends participate in honest self-review to bring about the changes schools need (Bambino, 2002). Swaffield (2007) suggests that although the use of the term critical friendship is expanding, much remains to be researched and understood both generally and in specific contexts (p. 206). Through the lens of one teacher educator the author this chapter draws on work with five classroom teachers, the lived experiences involved in collaboratively developing and field testing analytical tools in classrooms in order to support ongoing improvements in inservice teacher educator practice. These analytical tools embodied ideas and provided the structure to highlight useful information for analysis and identified potential direction for each teacher s professional learning. This ongoing systematic inquiry embedded in working practice made use of data gathered to deconstruct an identified problem of practice. This process evolved to promote critical reflection and challenge assumptions in order to produce new knowledge of teacher and inservice teacher educator practice. Through critical friendship these teachers were supported to identify a problem of practice and examine the congruence between their espoused theory and their theory in use (Atkin, 1996) in their classrooms. Through this process, analytical tools were designed and trialled with the purpose of examining inservice teacher educator practice. As humans are inclined to use storytelling or narrative as a natural way to convey their experiences, I provide a personal narrative to present this chapter. Educators have always used narrative knowledge, the personal stories of teachers and learners, to inform their own practice in the classroom. Bruner (1986), amongst others, identified narrative knowledge as a unique way of knowing, a legitimate way for humans to construct reality about their lived experiences. Experience and narrative are inter-connected, and narrative knowledge is a way to present educational inquiry (Clandinin & Connelly, 1998, 2000). The writings of Bruner (1986) and Clandinin and Connelly (1998, 2000) provide an approach to using personal narrative in this chapter which offers transparency to story meaning-making in the form of research text, and as MacBeath, Swaffield, and Frost (2009) claim, is the beginning of an ongoing process of reflection. Prior research experiences informed my data collection regarding the urgency to write regular, prompt field notes (Denscombe, 2007). This provided a reflection- 13