This study focuses on the processes of creating and maintaining a community of teachers in an
Israeli high-school. Ten high-school teachers were self-selected to participate in a yearlong
professional development focusing on learning and teaching. The participants directed their
own professional development by collaboratively sharing and reflecting on their practice.
The methodology used for data gathering is rooted in the case study tradition within the
philosophy of naturalistic inquiry. The weekly meetings throughout one academic year were
recorded and transcribed. Teachers were interviewed three times: at the beginning and end of
the year, and two years later, to leam about reasons for participating and evaluation of the
community, and to allow further reflections on their experiences in the community. Two main
concepts - community and caring relationships - emerged from group conversations and
personal interviews, and were used as the study's analytical tools.
Three topics were revisited in our conversations throughout the year: teacher-students
relationships, teaching strategies, and evaluation of learning for both teachers and students. The
conversations revealed the processes of creating an atmosphere of care, trust and openness that
enhanced the development of genuine dialogue that turned this group into a caring community.
The caring relationships encouraged teachers to make changes in their teaching and suggest
changes at the school level. These relationships enhanced teachers' ability to leam from their
encounters and helped them develop awareness of the importance of such relations within the
educational context.
This study contributes to a deeper understanding of teachers' community. It suggests that
communities (a) support teachers by enhancing dialogue among them; (b) contribute to social
change within the limited context of the school; and (c) add to the construction of knowledge
about teaching, learning, and schooling. If schools aim to teach recognition of diverse voices
where people strive to care for and understand each other, then teachers should leam and
exercise these behaviours. The most viable space for the occurrence of such learning is within
teachers' communities. This study, then, gives strength to arguing for the pursuit of
communities in school.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/13568 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Vaisman, Tamar |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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