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“distinguish between their own voices and those of authorities and decide which voice to
listen to in a given situation” (Zoran, 2002, p. 92). Zoran (2002) illustrates deliberation
and critical reflection in her account of a group of early childhood education teachers
who met weekly to discuss beliefs, assumptions, values, emotions, and knowledge about
education, in general, and about curriculum especially. The stories told were prompts for
others to reflect. She suggests this strategy is an effective tool for professional
development.
The implications of early childhood educators deliberating and sharing stories of
practice within a critical reflection atmosphere could be image altering. Thurber and
Zimmerman (1997) suggest that continuing a voice-to-voice dialogue may help “teachers
feel confident to use their personal and professional voices to effect educational change
in their schools, school districts, communities and beyond” (p. 186).
Communities of practice.
The concept of communities of practice arises from the work of Wenger (1998)
where mutual engagement, joint enterprise, and shared repertoire “hold the key to real
transformation” (p. 85). Miller and Shoptaugh (2004) developed a Reggio-inspired
professional development program aimed at teacher change. The aim of the program was
to build communities of practice where teachers connected through dialogue without
judgment and questioned each other with respect in a non-threatening environment. The
study documents powerful stories of transformation as a result of the teachers being part
of a Reggio-inspired community of practice.
The four public schools selected for Miller and Shoptaugh’s study were from
across the state of Ohio and aimed at four year olds. After four years of documenting the