Abstract
In a recent publication, Senge (All systems go: the change imperative for whole system reform. Corwin Press, Thousand Oaks, 2010, x) stated “at no time in history has there been a more powerful need for a new vision of the purpose of education.” Increasingly citizens, academics and practitioners are calling for radical changes to educational practices to meet the needs of a knowledge-based society in the twenty-first century (Dede in 21st Century skills: rethinking how students learn. Solution Tree Press, Bloomington, 2010; Hargreaves and Shirley in The fourth way: the inspiring future for educational change. Corwin Press, Thousand Oaks, 2009). Accomplishing such substantive educational change requires that individual educators collectively reshape their personal professional knowledge (Connelly and Clandinin in Teachers as curriculum planners: narratives of experiences. OISE Press, Toronto, 1988; Elbaz in Curriculum Inq 11(1):43–71, 1981) and adapt their personal mental models (Duffy in J Staff Dev 24(1):30–36, 2003). In 2000, we began a longitudinal study on the role of a school district in facilitating significant educational reform which required adaptations to individual and collective mental models of professional practice. Annually we conducted intensive interviews with a large sample of teachers, school and system administrators in this large Ontario, Canada school district. Recently, we conducted a retrospective analysis of these data collected in order to identify the conditions necessary for a large organization to support knowledge-creation and dissemination. In this paper, we identify three school district actions that triggered individual educators to challenge and reconstruct their professional personal practical mental models of the teaching and learning. First, improved student learning became the central focus of the school district. Second, the school district stressed and created opportunities for educators to collectively engage in professional dialogue about their practice. Third, the school district emphasized the importance of educators individually and collectively using evidence to assess whether their actions improved student learning.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
EQAO refers to the Ontario provincial testing done in grades 3, 6 and 9.
References
Bamburg, J. (1997). Learning, learning organizations, and leadership: Implications for the year 2050. Washington: New Horizons for Learning.
Becerra, M., Lunnan, R., & Huemer, L. (2008). Trustworthiness, risk, and the transfer of tacit and explicit knowledge between alliance partners. Journal of Management Studies, 45(4), 691–713.
Boder, A. (2006). Collective intelligence: A keystone in knowledge management. Journal of Knowledge Management, 10(1), 81.
Chrispeels, J., Castillo, S., & Brown, J. (2000). School leadership teams: A process model of team development. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 11(1), 20–56.
Connelly, E. M., & Clandinin, D. J. (1988). Teachers as curriculum planners: Narratives of experiences. Toronto: OISE Press.
Darling-Hammond, L., & McLaughlin, M. W. (1995). Policies that support professional development in an era of reform. Phi Delta Kappan, 76, 597–604.
Dede, C. (2010). Comparing frameworks for 21st century skills. In J. Bellanca & R. Brandt (Eds.), 21st Century skills: Rethinking how students learn (pp. 51–75). Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.
Doyle, W., & Ponder, G. (1977). The practical ethic and teachers decision-making. Interchange, 8(3), 1–12.
Duffy, F. M. (2003). I think, therefore I am resistant to change. Journal of Staff Development, 24(1), 30–36.
Dumont, H., & Istance, D. (2010). Analysing and designing learning environment for 21st century. In H. Dumont, D. Istance, & F. Benavides (Eds.), The nature of learning: Using research to inspire practice. Centre for Educational Research and Innovation. Paris: OECD.
Earl, L., & Hannay, L. (2009). Evidence-based inquiry: In support of a knowledge creating school district. Paper presented at the 22 annual world ICSEI congress, Vancouver, Canada.
Earl, L., & Hannay, L. (2010). Alignment in a knowledge creating school district. Paper presented at the international congress for school effectiveness and improvement 2010, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Earl, L., & Hannay, L. (2011). Educational leaders as knowledge workers: From data to wisdom. In J. Robertston & H. Timperley (Eds.), Leadership and learning. London: Sage Publishing.
Earl, L., & Katz, S. (2006). Leading schools in a data-rich world. Thousand Islands, CA: Corwin Press.
Elbaz, F. (1981). The teacher’s practical knowledge: Report of a case study. Curriculum Inquiry, 11(1), 43–71.
Fullan, M. (2003a). The moral imperative of school leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Fullan, M. (2003b). Change forces with a vengeance. London: Routledge Falmer.
Fullan, M. (2010). All systems go: The change imperative for whole system reform. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Hannay, L. (1998). Action research: Facilitating teachers’ professional learning. Ministry of Education and Training, Ontario, Block Transfer Grant to OISE/UT.
Hannay, L. (2009). Educational institutions as a knowledge-building organizations: Structures and practices. Paper presented at the international conference on primary education, Hong Kong.
Hannay, L. (2011). Reconstructing professional knowledge through collaborative participatory research. In M. Khine & I. Saleh (Eds.), Theory and best practices. Switzerland: Peter Lang Publishing Group.
Hannay, L., & Earl, L. (2006). From fragmentation to coherence and alignment. Paper presented at the Asia-Pacific education research association conference 2006, Hong Kong.
Hannay, L., & Earl, L. (2008). Innovative educational leadership practices supportive of a knowledge-creating school district. Paper presented at the Asia-Pacific Education Research Association Conference 2008, Singapore.
Hannay, L., & Earl, L. (2009). Cultural norms supportive of knowledge-creation and dissemination. Paper presented at 14th Biennial conference of international study association on teachers and teaching, Rovaniemi, Finland.
Hannay, L., Wideman, R., & Seller, W. (2006). Professional learning to reshape teaching. Toronto: Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario.
Hargreaves, A., & Shirley, D. (2009). The fourth way: The inspiring future for educational change. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Hopkins, D., Ainscow, M., & West, M. (1994). School improvement in an era of change. London: Cassell.
Joyce, B., & Showers, B. (2002). Student achievement through staff development. Alexandria: Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Kay, K. (2010). 21st century skills: Why they matter, what they are, and how we get there. In J. Bellanca & R. Brandt (Eds.), 21st century skills: Rethinking how students learn. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.
Lam, A. (1997). Embedded firms, embedded knowledge: Problems of collaboration and knowledge transfer in global cooperative ventures. Organization Studies, 18(6), 973–996.
Lambert, L. (1998). How to build leadership capacity. Educational Leadership, 55(7), 17–19.
Lin, Y., Wang, L., & Tserng, H. P. (2006). Enhancing knowledge exchange through web map-based knowledge management systems in construction: Lessons learned in Taiwan. Automation in Construction, 15, 693–705.
Louis, K., & Kruse, S. (1995). Professionalism and community: Perspectives on reforming urban schools. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications Ltd.
Moteleb, A. A., & Woodman, M. (2007). Notions of knowledge management systems: A gap analysis. The Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management, 5(1), 55–62.
Murray, P., & Moses, M. (2005). The centrality of teams in the organisational learning process. Management Decisions, 43(9), 1186–1202.
OECD. (1996). The knowledge-based economy. Paris: OCDE/GD(96)102.
OECD. (2011). 21st Century skills and competences for new millennium learners in OECD countries (EDU Working paper no. 41) http://www.oecd.org/LongAbstract/0,3425,en_2649_35845581_44303186_119684_1_1_1,00.htm.
Paavola, S., Lipponen, L., & Hakkarainen, K. (2004). Models of innovative knowledge communities and three metaphors of learning. Review of Educational Research, 74(4), 557–576.
Patrick, K., & Dotsika, F. (2007). Knowledge sharing: Developing from within. The Learning Organization, 14, 395–406.
Rallis, S., & MacMullen, M. (2000). Inquiry-minded schools: Opening doors for accountability. Phi Delta Kappan, 81(10), 766–773.
Scardamalia, M., Bransford, J., Kozma, R., & Quellmalz, E. (2010). New assessments and environments for knowledge building. Assessment and learning of 21st century skills. Paper posted to http://www.atc21s.org/home/.
Senge, P. (1990). The fifth discipline: The art and pratice of the learning organization. Toronto: Doubleday.
Senge, P. (2010). Forward in Fullan, M. All systems go: The change imperative for whole system reform (pp. vii–xii). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Sykes, G. (1999). Teaching and student learning: Strengthening the connection. In L. Darling-Hammond & G. Sykes (Eds.), Teaching as a learning profession (pp. 123–153). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Timperley, H., Wilson, A., Barrar, H., & Fung, I. (2008). Teacher professional learning and development: Best evidence synthesis iteration (BES). Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Education.
Yazici, H. J. (2005). A study of collaborative learning style and team learning performance. Education Training, 47(3), 216–229.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hannay, L.M., Earl, L. School district triggers for reconstructing professional knowledge. J Educ Change 13, 311–326 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-012-9185-2
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-012-9185-2