Teacher learning as collective creation: thinking with the theatre arts.

TEACHER education; COLLABORATIVE learning; CREATIVE ability; TEACHER development; INTROSPECTION; LEARNING; DRAMA in education; PROFESSIONAL education

Teacher learning groups represent an increasingly widely used strategy for teachers’ in-service professional development. While teachers have largely embraced participation in such groups, researchers have critiqued the effectiveness of the groups’ practices in supporting participants’ learning and their impact on instructional practice. This article presents a cross-domain study into teacher learning group practices. Drawing on practices for collective creation in theatre arts, the author constructs a model for generating instructional and conceptual resources within teacher learning groups. The model highlights three interacting elements:means,materials, andmodesof engagement. To test its capacity as an analytical framework for activity in teacher learning groups, the article applies it to an episode from a primary school group. The article proposes use of the framework as a tool for teacher learning groups to structure critical self-reflection on their own practices. The article concludes with implications for teacher learning groups, teacher educators, and researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Teacher Development is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)