Cycle 1 Report
Shaping a peer-to-peer knowledge sharing community and getting teacher buy-in.
CEE has a large budget for professional development that is coordinated via the PD Committee. When faculty request funding from the committee, they are expected to share what they learned with their colleagues. But, there is no systematic framework for teachers to document their experiences to share with their colleagues the knowledge they gain during these school funded professional development opportunities. Furthermore, there is no systematic means by which the Professional Development Committee is able to evaluate and or make formal recommendations about PD opportunities that teachers attend. I posed the following question to the Director of the Upper School (who heads the PD Committee): How can we create a system whereby the knowledge gained by one teacher can be exposed to the entire faculty at the school?
This cycle was designed to encourage teachers to collaborate and communicate toward a common goal: knowledge sharing. Three teachers were approved funding by the Professional Development Committee at the school to attend this year’s Fall CUE (Computer-Using Educators) conference that was held October 26-27, 2012. CUE provides leadership and support to teachers and education professionals that are interested in harnessing the power of technology to impact student engagement and achievement. They are the west coast leaders for technology professional development for teachers.
I approached each teacher individually to discuss my action research and to see if they would be willing to participate. I also met separately with the Technology Curriculum Coordinator at the school to get his support and to share ideas about what this cycle might look like. We then met as a larger group to plan. The teachers used a web based social networking tool called Edmodo (which is similar to Facebook, but specifically created for use in schools) to communicate and collect information from the various workshops at the Fall CUE conference. While teachers were attending the conference, we (the Technology Curriculum Coordinator and I) acted as the social media artist, motivating teachers by soliciting information from them as they posted key takeaways and video reflections about what they learned each day.
Our next steps were to meet again after the conference for a final reflective meeting. During the meeting, I posed the following question to them (which is the main focus of my action research): How did the social motivational aspects of this experience contribute to your desire to participate in sharing knowledge with your colleagues? Finally, I worked with teachers to develop content for the school’s professional development wiki. We created a chronological narrative detailing their learning at Fall CUE (including resources such as websites, apps, and inspirational quotes), compiled their video reflections, and gave teachers a broad overview of the conference experience in general.
Cycle 1 Question: Will working collaboratively with faculty in a peer to peer knowledge sharing community positively impact their motivation and improve the learning experience of teachers? What motivated teachers to participate?
The literature I reviewed describes knowledge as a belief or an understanding of socially generated information. It suggests that knowledge sharing as a form of collaborating lies within a teachers’ aptitude for developing professional relationships. This ability to build trust and connect with colleagues involves complex emotions and can impact their ability to reach a common goal.
I expected that teachers would be excited about the opportunity to engage with their colleagues and would jump at the chance to participate in the project. When I originally approached them about participating in my project, they all seemed open to idea. At least, that was their initial response. But, soon after they became very reluctant. With the help of two (2) critical friends, I was successful in gaining their full support. We were able to help them see the value of the project for themselves (given the expectations from administration) and for their colleagues as they would share in the knowledge gained. I am grateful for their time and efforts. They all went above and beyond anything I requested or expected of them.
CEE has a large budget for professional development that is coordinated via the PD Committee. When faculty request funding from the committee, they are expected to share what they learned with their colleagues. But, there is no systematic framework for teachers to document their experiences to share with their colleagues the knowledge they gain during these school funded professional development opportunities. Furthermore, there is no systematic means by which the Professional Development Committee is able to evaluate and or make formal recommendations about PD opportunities that teachers attend. I posed the following question to the Director of the Upper School (who heads the PD Committee): How can we create a system whereby the knowledge gained by one teacher can be exposed to the entire faculty at the school?
This cycle was designed to encourage teachers to collaborate and communicate toward a common goal: knowledge sharing. Three teachers were approved funding by the Professional Development Committee at the school to attend this year’s Fall CUE (Computer-Using Educators) conference that was held October 26-27, 2012. CUE provides leadership and support to teachers and education professionals that are interested in harnessing the power of technology to impact student engagement and achievement. They are the west coast leaders for technology professional development for teachers.
I approached each teacher individually to discuss my action research and to see if they would be willing to participate. I also met separately with the Technology Curriculum Coordinator at the school to get his support and to share ideas about what this cycle might look like. We then met as a larger group to plan. The teachers used a web based social networking tool called Edmodo (which is similar to Facebook, but specifically created for use in schools) to communicate and collect information from the various workshops at the Fall CUE conference. While teachers were attending the conference, we (the Technology Curriculum Coordinator and I) acted as the social media artist, motivating teachers by soliciting information from them as they posted key takeaways and video reflections about what they learned each day.
Our next steps were to meet again after the conference for a final reflective meeting. During the meeting, I posed the following question to them (which is the main focus of my action research): How did the social motivational aspects of this experience contribute to your desire to participate in sharing knowledge with your colleagues? Finally, I worked with teachers to develop content for the school’s professional development wiki. We created a chronological narrative detailing their learning at Fall CUE (including resources such as websites, apps, and inspirational quotes), compiled their video reflections, and gave teachers a broad overview of the conference experience in general.
Cycle 1 Question: Will working collaboratively with faculty in a peer to peer knowledge sharing community positively impact their motivation and improve the learning experience of teachers? What motivated teachers to participate?
The literature I reviewed describes knowledge as a belief or an understanding of socially generated information. It suggests that knowledge sharing as a form of collaborating lies within a teachers’ aptitude for developing professional relationships. This ability to build trust and connect with colleagues involves complex emotions and can impact their ability to reach a common goal.
I expected that teachers would be excited about the opportunity to engage with their colleagues and would jump at the chance to participate in the project. When I originally approached them about participating in my project, they all seemed open to idea. At least, that was their initial response. But, soon after they became very reluctant. With the help of two (2) critical friends, I was successful in gaining their full support. We were able to help them see the value of the project for themselves (given the expectations from administration) and for their colleagues as they would share in the knowledge gained. I am grateful for their time and efforts. They all went above and beyond anything I requested or expected of them.
Cycle 1 Evaluation.
I collected the following evidence during this cycle: field notes, a reflection journal (blog), and a video of our final meeting. Field notes were written immediately after planning meetings and one-to-one interactions with participants. They focused on in-person discussions between me and the participants. Journal reflections were posted to my action research blog throughout cycle one. Our final meeting was captured on video then transcribed by an independent transcription service.
The data was analyzed through an exploratory approach to qualitative analysis. This allowed me the opportunity to immerse myself in the context of the problem as I hoped to gain greater insight into the role that social motivation plays in a peer-to-peer professional knowledge sharing community. I analyzed the data in search of emerging trends. These trends were then organized into the following larger themes that focused on: teacher concerns about time and the lack of perceived benefits of knowledge sharing and the emotional support that a knowledge sharing community provides its members as they manage their identities within the community (e.g. being held accountable by their colleagues to collectively participate toward shared goals).
Time and perceived benefits. The first themes that emerged in the data were concerns about time and the perceived benefits to teachers. As documented through field notes and blog posts, my initial conversations with the three faculty members scheduled to attend the Computer-Using Educators Fall Conference produced mixed results. One (1) expressed excitement over the project and was eager to support the development of a knowledge sharing framework at the school. The other two (2) were somewhat interested, but voiced concerns about committing to anything that took their attention away from their experience, learning and engagement at the conference. They were honest and straightforward about not being interested in doing any unnecessary extra work.
Unfortunately, the teacher that was very excited about the project could not attend our initial planning meeting because of an unexpected classroom issue. I was met with fierce opposition by the other two as there was confusion about the purpose of the project and whether it had real benefit for them or for the school. At one point, I recall feeling as if I was losing total control of the meeting and that my action research would be doomed from the very beginning.
Fortunately, I asked another colleague of mine to attend the meeting as well. This critical friend is a well-respected educator known for her leadership skills and innovate teaching abilities. We were able to explain the nature of action research, clarify the purpose of the project, and outline the benefits for them and the greater teaching community at the school. We continued by describing in greater detail the work they were being asked to do and how I would support their efforts and the project on the whole. I also reminded them of their responsibilities under school policy about sharing information from school sponsored professional development opportunities. Thankfully, the meeting ended well with both teachers pledging their full commitment to the endeavor. They were engaged, saw the value, and were excited to participate.
Emotional Support and Identity Management. The second theme that emerged was that of emotional support and identity management. The data shows that teachers had a positive experience engaging with their colleagues in knowledge sharing. All of them said that they enjoyed the experience and would do it again, despite the extra work.
All three (3) teachers attended the final meeting. The discussions were filled with laughs and illustrated the supportive nature of knowledge sharing communities. One teacher, who was particularly resistant to the project at the beginning, talked about how she received “a lot of support and encouragement” from the other teachers and how that allowed her the freedom to “just let go.” She described her interactions with her colleagues in this way:
I collected the following evidence during this cycle: field notes, a reflection journal (blog), and a video of our final meeting. Field notes were written immediately after planning meetings and one-to-one interactions with participants. They focused on in-person discussions between me and the participants. Journal reflections were posted to my action research blog throughout cycle one. Our final meeting was captured on video then transcribed by an independent transcription service.
The data was analyzed through an exploratory approach to qualitative analysis. This allowed me the opportunity to immerse myself in the context of the problem as I hoped to gain greater insight into the role that social motivation plays in a peer-to-peer professional knowledge sharing community. I analyzed the data in search of emerging trends. These trends were then organized into the following larger themes that focused on: teacher concerns about time and the lack of perceived benefits of knowledge sharing and the emotional support that a knowledge sharing community provides its members as they manage their identities within the community (e.g. being held accountable by their colleagues to collectively participate toward shared goals).
Time and perceived benefits. The first themes that emerged in the data were concerns about time and the perceived benefits to teachers. As documented through field notes and blog posts, my initial conversations with the three faculty members scheduled to attend the Computer-Using Educators Fall Conference produced mixed results. One (1) expressed excitement over the project and was eager to support the development of a knowledge sharing framework at the school. The other two (2) were somewhat interested, but voiced concerns about committing to anything that took their attention away from their experience, learning and engagement at the conference. They were honest and straightforward about not being interested in doing any unnecessary extra work.
Unfortunately, the teacher that was very excited about the project could not attend our initial planning meeting because of an unexpected classroom issue. I was met with fierce opposition by the other two as there was confusion about the purpose of the project and whether it had real benefit for them or for the school. At one point, I recall feeling as if I was losing total control of the meeting and that my action research would be doomed from the very beginning.
Fortunately, I asked another colleague of mine to attend the meeting as well. This critical friend is a well-respected educator known for her leadership skills and innovate teaching abilities. We were able to explain the nature of action research, clarify the purpose of the project, and outline the benefits for them and the greater teaching community at the school. We continued by describing in greater detail the work they were being asked to do and how I would support their efforts and the project on the whole. I also reminded them of their responsibilities under school policy about sharing information from school sponsored professional development opportunities. Thankfully, the meeting ended well with both teachers pledging their full commitment to the endeavor. They were engaged, saw the value, and were excited to participate.
Emotional Support and Identity Management. The second theme that emerged was that of emotional support and identity management. The data shows that teachers had a positive experience engaging with their colleagues in knowledge sharing. All of them said that they enjoyed the experience and would do it again, despite the extra work.
All three (3) teachers attended the final meeting. The discussions were filled with laughs and illustrated the supportive nature of knowledge sharing communities. One teacher, who was particularly resistant to the project at the beginning, talked about how she received “a lot of support and encouragement” from the other teachers and how that allowed her the freedom to “just let go.” She described her interactions with her colleagues in this way:
They were a great support because I'm not a social networker and it's not natural or normal for me. And, I felt very overwhelmed by it. I did not feel that I took as much as I could have from the conference because I was so anxious about putting out information… getting any bit of information to make you guys happy instead of just like listening to the conference and take it all in. I don't like to be videotaped. I don't like to have pictures taken. I'm a very, very private person. So, I hate pictures and I really don’t like to be on videotape. That made me a anxious… It's, it's hard to explain. It's uncomfortable, like it's your privacy. That's the part that bothers me, you know. And I have no problems speaking in front of groups or anything like that but it's just, I don't know. It's just putting it out there… It's just who I am as a person.
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She also stayed behind after the meeting to continue the discussion with the Technology Curriculum Coordinator and me. The discussion centered on identity management. She reiterated that she did not like the idea of being videoed, being tracked on social media and/or sharing her unedited writing as well. But, she explained that with the emotional support of her colleagues (who were extremely active in Edmodo), she felt compelled to (as she described it) “put herself out there.”
Cycle 1 Reflection.
Participating in a peer-to-peer knowledge sharing community seems to have had a positive impact on teacher participation at the conference and engagement with each other. All of them said that they would do it again and there were also signs that they may have even had fun and enjoyed the process. But, getting buy in from busy teachers (stakeholders) was not an easy task. This cycle was particularly challenging at the beginning because some teachers were concerned, rightfully so, about the amount of time and attention that this would require of them.
I was met with a lot of resistance when I sat with teachers at our initial group discussion. The most important thing for me to remember is that if I am going to ask teachers to do extra work, they have to see the benefits right away. This was partly my fault because, while I presented a proposal to administration that detailed this cycle, I had not shared it with them. That was a mistake. I should have shared it with them as well. All I gave them (verbally) was a general overview of the project and their roles. That was not enough. I needed to provide them with written details of my plan as well. This may have made my ideas more tangible and helped the work seem more doable. I could have also taken into greater account their potential concerns and spent more time developing my internal dialogue so that I could have better articulated the plan and overall nature of action research more clearly and concisely.
The willingness of other colleagues to participate in knowledge sharing seemed to have a direct impact on the decisions of those teachers that were more resistant to it. The help of my critical friend was crucial in getting buy-in because she was supportive of the project and had done action research herself. Together, we were able to convince teachers that the project was worth pursuing. This is when the notion of teachers being held accountable by their colleagues first emerged. I was able to reflect upon my experience and see the value in the challenges of my initial first steps as it helped frame the broader obstacles to implementing plans for systemic change in any organization.
One thing I learned about myself as a researcher and project manager is that for me the idea generation piece comes easily. I am naturally creative and reflective, but I was reminded that I need to focus more energy on articulating my vision in the planning phase as this will help set a proper foundation for how the implementation will occur.
Ultimately, what I am studying is teacher motivation. In order for me to gain insight into understanding teacher motivation to engage in peer-to-peer professional development, it seemed only natural for me to develop a knowledge sharing community. This would allow me to witness first hand the impact that social motivation had on all involved, including myself, before speculating on possible reasons. I describe the four stages of teacher engagement (for those teachers that were reluctant to participate initially) as U shaped bell curve with the following characteristics: from uncertain, to resistant, to trusting and accepting, to engaged. In the future, my plan is to help support teachers through the natural progression of these feelings.
Participating in a peer-to-peer knowledge sharing community seems to have had a positive impact on teacher participation at the conference and engagement with each other. All of them said that they would do it again and there were also signs that they may have even had fun and enjoyed the process. But, getting buy in from busy teachers (stakeholders) was not an easy task. This cycle was particularly challenging at the beginning because some teachers were concerned, rightfully so, about the amount of time and attention that this would require of them.
I was met with a lot of resistance when I sat with teachers at our initial group discussion. The most important thing for me to remember is that if I am going to ask teachers to do extra work, they have to see the benefits right away. This was partly my fault because, while I presented a proposal to administration that detailed this cycle, I had not shared it with them. That was a mistake. I should have shared it with them as well. All I gave them (verbally) was a general overview of the project and their roles. That was not enough. I needed to provide them with written details of my plan as well. This may have made my ideas more tangible and helped the work seem more doable. I could have also taken into greater account their potential concerns and spent more time developing my internal dialogue so that I could have better articulated the plan and overall nature of action research more clearly and concisely.
The willingness of other colleagues to participate in knowledge sharing seemed to have a direct impact on the decisions of those teachers that were more resistant to it. The help of my critical friend was crucial in getting buy-in because she was supportive of the project and had done action research herself. Together, we were able to convince teachers that the project was worth pursuing. This is when the notion of teachers being held accountable by their colleagues first emerged. I was able to reflect upon my experience and see the value in the challenges of my initial first steps as it helped frame the broader obstacles to implementing plans for systemic change in any organization.
One thing I learned about myself as a researcher and project manager is that for me the idea generation piece comes easily. I am naturally creative and reflective, but I was reminded that I need to focus more energy on articulating my vision in the planning phase as this will help set a proper foundation for how the implementation will occur.
Ultimately, what I am studying is teacher motivation. In order for me to gain insight into understanding teacher motivation to engage in peer-to-peer professional development, it seemed only natural for me to develop a knowledge sharing community. This would allow me to witness first hand the impact that social motivation had on all involved, including myself, before speculating on possible reasons. I describe the four stages of teacher engagement (for those teachers that were reluctant to participate initially) as U shaped bell curve with the following characteristics: from uncertain, to resistant, to trusting and accepting, to engaged. In the future, my plan is to help support teachers through the natural progression of these feelings.