Teacher Learning in a Community of Practice: A Case Study of ...

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1.4 PREVIEW OF CHAPTERS TO FOLLOW Chapter Two begins with an analysis ofthe literature on teacher learning communities. A brief outline ofthe relevant research on teachers carried out over the past four decades is then presented, and an exposition ofthe key concepts associated with the study is provided. A disciplinary focus is offered by providing an exposition ofthe work ofkey writers in the field of commerce education (with special reference to Economics Education) in an attempt to locate Economics and Management Sciences in the broader field ofEconomics education. The chapter concludes with a reflection on the implications of the literature review for the present research study. In Chapter Three, the theoretical orientation ofthis research study is outlined so as to create the context for the theoretical framework. The chapter establishes the coherence between the methodological orientation and the theoretical framework. A discussion is provided of the origin and development of Wenger's social practice theory oflearning by examining his earlier work with Lave, namely, Situated Learning: legitimate peripheral participation (Lave and Wenger 1991). An exposition ofthe crux ofthe theoretical framework used in this research study, namely, Communities ofPractice: Learning, Meaning and Identity (Wenger 1998), is also provided. The chapter concludes with an outline ofWenger's most recent work with McDermott and Snyder, namely, Cultivating Communities ofPractice: A Guide to Managing Knowledge (Wenger, McDermott and Snyder 2002) in which the authors extend on Wenger's 1998 work. The focus ofChapter Four is on methodological issues relating to conducting research in education. Attention is given to issues related to conducting research on Economic and Management Sciences teacher learning during the TEMS project. This chapter provides a comprehensive discussion ofthe methodological orientation and research design; the coherence ofthe methodology and theoretical framework; procedures for attaining access and acceptance; and sampling and data collection instruments. 27
In Chapter Five, I set up a narrative vignette ofJohn, one ofthe research participants. Wenger's four-component social learning theory is used to analyse John's data set (Wenger 1998). A detailed description ofthe context in which John worked is provided as a prelude to the analysis that follows. The case ofone teacher (John) was selected for an in-depth analysis ofthe nature ofteacher learning in the TEMS community in order to provide the basis for theorizing the frame for the data analysis in Chapters Six and Seven. Chapter Six is dedicated to establishing the nature ofteacher learning in terms of Wenger's first three components oflearning, namely, meaning, practice, and identity. It illustrates the changing understandings and meanings (changing ability) of the TEMS research participants with regard to EMS and EMS teaching. A discussion ofshifts in teachers' practice is provided. This Chapter also focuses on the distinct differences and similarities in teacher learning across two participants and how their learning was influenced by their biographies, career trajectories and local school contexts. The chapter concludes by examining how teachers' changing participation and teacher learning shaped and created personal histories ofbecoming in the TEMS learning community. Chapter Seven sets out to provide an analysis ofthe TEMS community in terms of Wenger's fourth component oflearning, namely, community. Community membership is discussed using the concepts 'core' and 'periphery'. The chapter analyses the development ofthe community in terms ofWenger et aI's five stages of community development and proceeds to discuss issues of 'community maintenance', 'communal resources' and 'brokering'. It concludes with an analysis ofthe TEMS community in terms ofthe extent to which the community subscribed to the notions ofa 'shared repertoire', 'mutual engagement' and 'joint enterprise'. Finally, Chapter Eight provides a synthesis ofthe analysis and arguments developed in this report. It outlines a set ofrecommendations that have been derived from this study, documents the limitations ofthe study, and highlights areas ofresearch that need further investigation. 28
Page 1 and 2: Teacher Learning in a Community of
Page 3 and 4: ABSTRACT Conceptualising teacher le
Page 5 and 6: DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated
Page 7 and 8: DECLARATION I, Suriamurthee Moonsam
Page 9 and 10: ASSOCIATED CONCEPTS UNDER STUDY WIT
Page 11 and 12: Observation ofJohn's teaching after
Page 13 and 14: A SYNTHESIS OF THE STUDy...........
Page 15 and 16: TEMS RNCS EMS GET DoE INSET ELRC SA
Page 17 and 18: In describing the subject-pedagogy
Page 19 and 20: teachers lacked content knowledge r
Page 21 and 22: acknowledges the importance and pec
Page 23 and 24: some formal Mathematics teacher edu
Page 25 and 26: study, the coordination functions w
Page 27 and 28: It foregrounds the fact that the co
Page 29 and 30: school. Higher education opportunit
Page 31 and 32: frame models for projecting future
Page 33 and 34: teacher education by the state, (as
Page 35 and 36: schools, classrooms, management and
Page 37 and 38: Although the Teacher Audit indicate
Page 39 and 40: One ofthe first curriculum reform i
Page 41: entrenched design feature of C2005,
Page 45 and 46: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 INTRODUCTION
Page 47 and 48: As indicated in the previous chapte
Page 49 and 50: This view is supported by Putman an
Page 51 and 52: Learning is social in nature (Putma
Page 53 and 54: Constant reflection on and understa
Page 55 and 56: Teachers drew on their membership i
Page 57 and 58: The above arguments about the lack
Page 59 and 60: change. She highlights the importan
Page 61 and 62: Differences in the cultures oflearn
Page 63 and 64: persons and is not considered solel
Page 65 and 66: and offers insights into how learni
Page 67 and 68: America. Goodson (1992) and Calderh
Page 69 and 70: learned meaning and value for them
Page 71 and 72: 'accommodation' and intimates that
Page 73 and 74: staffroom and a 'pragmatic' teacher
Page 75 and 76: Davisson (1984), Lumsden and Scott
Page 77 and 78: directive in that it guides choices
Page 79 and 80: economic discourse, the economics p
Page 81 and 82: • Understand and promote the impo
Page 83 and 84: 2.7 CONCLUSION This chapter began b
Page 85 and 86: (Walford 2001; Anderson 1999). With
Page 87 and 88: • It places value on the research
Page 89 and 90: The main research question in this
Page 91 and 92: Lave and Wenger emphasise the centr
Page 93 and 94:
3.3.2 The Work ofWenger (1998): Com
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agree with the way it takes place o
Page 97 and 98:
Figure 3.3: Refined intersection of
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eflecting. The ability of a communi
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object to something that in reality
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practice is not just an aggregate o
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system or institution and the influ
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3.3.2.4 Learning Practice has to be
Page 109 and 110:
new possibilities for meaning. Brok
Page 111 and 112:
These characteristics indicate that
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engage with one another and acknowl
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A structural model ofa community of
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who were regarded as peripheral. A
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Ideally I would have wanted teacher
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they represent key ingredients in s
Page 123 and 124:
that the Wenger framework presents
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more useful and effective than part
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3.6 CONCLUSION This chapter provide
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• While my professional input int
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• Cycle ofhypothesis and theory b
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observer played themselves out. A c
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organised events and linked communi
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In keeping with ethnographic princi
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In this qualitative study, my inter
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collection. He questions whether co
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physical context, the complex body
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completed, final text: rather, they
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the teacher over classroom events (
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'connoisseurship'. I realised that
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In this study, the criteria for the
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In Chapter One I described the sequ
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tactic by indicating to research pa
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On the occasions that I delivered b
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"Confidentiality involves a clear u
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were cordial and professional. The
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CHAPTER FIVE HOW HAD TEACHER LEARNI
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individual participants changed dif
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He received his schooling under the
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school regularly updated the books
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gone on to become really wealthy. I
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John noted that in planning the cur
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Significant changes had thus occurr
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just transfer it. For example, bank
Page 181 and 182:
Extract from the lesson: John: Pupi
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schoolwork as 'economic work'. This
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John: Now we are not looking at thi
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cardboard and drawing or sticking i
Page 189 and 190:
John: Now I want you to remember wh
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John succeeded in drawing on the sp
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at her maths books to which the tea
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issues that his pupils were raising
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5.5 JOHN'S CHANGING PROFESSIONAL ID
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to achieve their joint enterprise o
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5.6 JOHN'S INCREASED PARTICIPATION
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John regarded the close interaction
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As stated earlier, because the 'con
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CHAPTER SIX USING WENGER'S CONSTRUC
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6.2 SECTION ONE AN ANALYSIS OF TEAC
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understanding it at all. I just don
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In the final interview that took pl
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MM: Shirley: learning outcomes and
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the little things like we started i
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understandings and conceptions ofth
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Extract from Mary's final interview
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Teachers were able to describe the
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The essential differences between D
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Debbie's school, Eden Primary was l
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what he's saying. And in that lesso
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they were excellent, really good. I
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Extract from first lesson observati
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out of the material that they had.
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largely recall, repetition or were
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Third extract from Debbie's second
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From the above extracts and discuss
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with a new set ofsubjects. Without
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was three kilometres away from the
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In the next extract, Ben referred t
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for making bread. The difficulty an
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T: P: T: P: T: P: T: Look again. Is
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stemmed from a discussion at the TE
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Key to the table A = Good/substanti
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was doing the budget and where they
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ofher school and the TEMS community
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Extract from Beth's final interview
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fox the invitations and arrange for
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Table 6.6: Teachers' learning in te
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CHAPTER SEVEN AN ANALYSIS OF TEACHE
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As we saw in Chapter Six, the core
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who did or did not want to become f
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The following extract offers a narr
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difficulties (ibid.). In the above
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A community moves from the potentia
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Cindy began the workshop with a tho
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oundaries" (Wenger et al 2002:97).
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7.4 AN ANALYSIS OF THE TEMS GROUP A
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necessary to learn what they needed
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Figure 7.2: Brokering relationships
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the group. Wenger (1998) notes that
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knowledge ofothers. It is therefore
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MM Shirley MM: Mary: MM: Mary Have
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The following extract from a worksh
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MM: Shirley: How many EMS workshops
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Table 7.2: Criteria for the emergen
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Soudien, a leading South African ac
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hand, adopts a 'narrow' perspective
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As mentioned earlier, Wenger's work
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literature review revealed that the
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Another important feature ofWenger'
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'Identity' namely, 'learning as bec
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(Hargreaves 1995). Teacher professi
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for the purposes ofprofessional dev
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teacher growth. CPD in Africa subsc
Page 330 and 331:
knowledge of subject content is ser
Page 332 and 333:
South Africa, due cognisance must b
Page 334 and 335:
8.3.7 An arena for engaging and con
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the provision of appropriate profes
Page 338 and 339:
level conceptual thinking". They wa
Page 340 and 341:
Collaboration within teacher learni
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has for teacher learning in a South
Page 344 and 345:
Bourdieu, P. (1986) The Forms ofCap
Page 346 and 347:
Department ofEducation (2002) Revis
Page 348 and 349:
Homan, R. (2002) The principle of i
Page 350 and 351:
Mattson, L. (2000) Teacher identiti
Page 352 and 353:
Smylie, M.A., Bay, M. & Tozer, S.E.
Page 354 and 355:
Westheimer,1. (1998) Among schoolte
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APPENDIX 2 INTERVIEW SCHEDULES (INI
Page 358 and 359:
2. What information have you been g
Page 360 and 361:
APPENDIX 3 EXAMPLE OF JOURNAL ENTRI
Page 362:
APPENDIX 5 EXAMPLE OF INDEPENDENT O
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