mary hooker edtech 2009 post-graduate track: dublin city university
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An investigation into the use of Activity Theory to ‘Mirror’ ICT
Practices in the Teacher Professional Development
Landscape of a Development Country Context
Mary Hooker EdTech 2009
Post-graduate Track: Dublin City University
Action Research
Action researchers start with an idea and follow it where it leads them...
Mc Niff and Whitehead (2006: 31)
Research Question
“How can I improve my practice as a facilitator to engage teacher educator institutions in a reflexive discourse on the use of ICT in Teacher Professional Development?”
My Context
• I am an Education Specialist• I work for an INGO called Global eSchools
and Communities Initiatives (GeSCI)• GeSCI provides strategic advice to
Ministries of Education in developing countries on the effective use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for education and communities of learning.
My Values
• I reject power imbalances evident in north-south relationships in development
• Knowledge has to represent something far greater than a transfer of packaged models or frameworks from one system to another
• I value other peoples’ capacity to come to know in their own way, to create their own knowledge, to draw on insights from the knowledge of others
My Concerns
• An equitable relationship with partners developed upon processes of mutual learning and change
• Approaching issues on a basis of co-construction of knowledge, through processes of critical reflection and experience
Why am I concerned?• North-south transfer of capacity which is often
assumed, rather than a process of mutual learning (Taylor and Clarke, 2008)
• Problematic nature of collaboration if participants have not been properly involved in defining the need and purpose of the developmental process and their views and interests are not addressed
(Kontiainen 2007, cited in Hakkarainen, 2007)
• The gap between ‘classroots’ and policy level (O’ Sullivan, 2004)
• The absence of the teacher’s voice in policy discourse and formulation
What am I going to do about it?
I need to develop appropriate tools to support knowledge building and understanding of the issues and challenges in Teacher Professional Development policy and practice
LiteratureGlobal Agenda: Education For All
• Education for All (EFA) agenda as a Global Social Justice (GSJ) Project;
• Concept of quality is fundamental to its achievement;
• A quality education is dependent on the development of high quality teachers;
• Momentous challenge in a global context of ever more complex demands on systems for educational provision;
• Acute shortages in the supply of suitably qualified and experienced teachers north and south;
• Disparities in quality provision accelerate as richer countries lure qualified teachers from less favoured regions.
Davis, 2000; Leach 2008
INCLUSIVE ACCESS?
QUALITY ?
RELEVANCE ?
MANAGEMENT ?
LiteratureGlobal Agenda: Knowledge Society for All
• Systemic economic growth is the key to poverty reduction and increased prosperity;
• “New Growth” economic models emphasize the importance of new knowledge, innovation, and the development of human capacity as the sources of sustainable economic growth;
• ICTs are engines for new growth and tools for empowering societies to change into knowledge economies or information societies;Source: AKRI Ltd.
LiteratureGlobal Agenda: Knowledge Society for All
• Education is a major pillar of a knowledge economy and a human right;
• Citizens will need to be prepared in new technology literacy competencies inclusive of higher order thinking and sound reasoning skills - the ability to learn how to learn (i.e. to be a life-long learner), the ability to reflect, to analyse synthesize, to find solutions and to adapt
• Through access to an inclusive high-quality education by all –benefits to individual, business, private and public enterprise are multiplied and will lead to economic growth that is more equitably distributed and enjoyed by all.
GeSCI, 2008; UNESCO 2008
LiteratureUse of ICT in Teacher Professional Development in Africa
• Complex landscape• Myriad of national and international
initiatives• Proliferation of one-off, topic-led, short-
term training programmes that aim to develop specific skills of teachers
• Paradigm shift towards longer term, systemic TPD initiatives
• Features of ICT integration in and across curricula, on-line learning, virtual communities of practice, web portals of resources, certification of progress
Farrell and Isaacs, 2007Source: UNESCO
LiteratureBenchmarking ICT in Teacher Professional Development
Three Approaches for ICT Integration in Teacher Professional Development
Policy & Vision Technology Literacy
Knowledge Deepening
Knowledge Creation
Curriculum & Assessment
Basic Knowledge Knowledge Application
21st Century Skills
Pedagogy Integrate Technology
Complex Problem Solving
Self Management
ICT Basic Tools Complex Tools Pervasive Technology
Organization & Administration
Standard Classroom
Collaborative Groups
Learning Organizations
Teacher Professional Development
Digital Literacy Manage & Guide Teacher as Model Learner
Source: UNESCO 2008
Literature
Past
Present
Future
Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT)...
’Mirror’of everyday
practice(Historical and
ongoing)
Activity systemframework
StakeholdersFacilitators
New solutions, new model for practice
Conceptual tools
Engestrom, 2003
CHAT: Cycles for Expansive Learning
Literature
Methodology
Qualitative approach: Action Research Living Theory
(Whitehead and Mc Niff, 2006)
Studying my practice and generating practical knowledge that is rooted in my practice in relation to the ideas of others
Past
CHAT... Cycle 1: Past
’Mirror’of everyday
practice(Historical and
ongoing)
Activity systemframework
StakeholdersFacilitators
Conceptual tools
Engestrom, 2003
CYCLE 1 – TEACHERS STORIES
Story telling in a conversational setting with its associations for risk-taking and permissiveness, ‘may be more likely to reveal uncomfortable experiences, ideas, issues and concerns… conditions (that) can increase the odds for productive learning’.
McDrury and Alterio 2002, cited in Haigh, 2005:12
Process involves
•The collection of significant change (SC) stories from the practice level
•The systematic selection of the most significant of these stories by panels or working groups of stakeholders or staff
THE ‘MOST SIGNIFICANT CHANGE’ (MSC) TECHNIQUE
THE K
ERN
EL
‘Looking back over the last month, what do you think was the most significant change in your practice since using computers in your classroom?’
THE ‘MOST SIGNIFICANT CHANGE’ (MSC) TECHNIQUE
THE K
ERN
EL
‘From among all these significant change stories, what do you think was the most significant change of all?’
THE ‘MOST SIGNIFICANT CHANGE’ (MSC) TECHNIQUE
Story Selection Criteria
Shift in teacher role • teacher is no longer the gatekeeper of
knowledge • teacher is emerging as co-learner - learning
with and from students about the technology Shift in pedagogy• student-centred approach• discovering learning through exploring
ICT as catalyst for change: • ICTs can change pedagogy• student can become ‘addicted’ and
distracted from learning• ‘war’ inside teacher leading to anxiety
Shift in learner role• from passive to active engagement• student more confident in using technology
than teacher
Shift in pedagogy• Learning becomes real - changes world
view• Student can learn from research, team
work, communication (self-learning)
ICT as catalyst for change• ICT breaking down geographic barriers -
world accessible through the internet• 3d multi-media dynamic learning instead of
2d static learning• Interactivity for student• Education For All Relationship
Past
Present
CHAT... Cycle 2: Present
’Mirror’of everyday
practice(Historical and
ongoing)
Activity systemframework
StakeholdersFacilitators
Conceptual tools
Engestrom, 2003
CYCLE 2 – TEACHERS’ WORK ENVIRONMENTS
Activity Theory Lens
‘What ‘tensions’ do the stories reveal in educational practice?’
The activity system
Subject
Object
Outcomesense,meaning
Rules Community Division of labor
Instruments:tools and signs
ICT IMPLEMENTSICT SKILLSCHANGE LABCHANGE OF MINDSET
ICT INTERGRATION ACROSS THE CURRICILUM
TEACHER/ STUDENT MANAGEMENT
A. TIME TABLING (COMPUTER LABS)
B. TEACHING LOADS
C. OTHER COMPUTER REGULATIONS
D. POLICIES
MINISTRIAL AND SCHOOL LEVEL COORDINATION (CDNE, DEPT SEC, SMT).
PROVIDERS OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL
PTA
POLICY MAKERS
MOE DEPARTMENTS e.g. TT&D AND DNFE
CITIZENS WITH HIGH LEVELS OF ICT LITERACY
Facilitating Expansive School Transformation Using ICT in the SADC Region: A Botswana Pilot Project
Nleya, 2009
School Time-tableTeacher-RulesDo you collaborate with other teachers about how ICT can be used in teaching and
learning?For now no, the teacher has a lot of, many periods, 27, 28, we are not permitted to
get time to discuss about it... The high priority for teachers is to prepare notes for what they have to teach their students in their subjects... And marking, that is what I think...
Tools ICT
Teacher B Object ICT Literacy
Rules Role School time-table Liaise between school and partner Curriculum National Examinations
Community of PracticeTeacher-CommunityDo teachers ever communicate with teachers in other schools?Not so much actually, not so much... But if we can discuss with the
teachers, during our time, our free time, we can say, we can help each other
Tools - ICT
Teacher B Object ICT Literacy
Rules Community Role School time-table Teachers Liaise between school and partner Curriculum Management National Examinations
Tensions in School Environment• Teacher–tools: The insufficiency of ICT training and inadequacy
of lab resources hampers the teacher’s efforts to implement ICT in the teaching-learning process.
• Teacher–rules: Tight time-tables and bureaucratic planning inhibit opportunities for the teacher to research, to direct self-learning to communicate with other teachers on ICT use. Teachers tend to be excluded from school policy and planning on ICT use in the school environment.
• Teacher-objective: The teachers are not involved in defining objectives for their training needs for ICT integration. There are many constraints and no incentives for teachers to apply ICT in their daily practice.
• Tools-community: The insufficiency of ICT resources available to teachers inhibits inter-disciplinary collaboration internally between teachers and ICT liaison/ coordinators, and between teachers and other teachers from other schools.
Past
Present
Future
CHAT... Cycle 3: Future
’Mirror’of everyday
practice(Historical and
ongoing)
Activity systemframework
StakeholdersFacilitators
New solutions, new model for practice
Conceptual tools
Engestrom, 2003
CYCLE 3 – WORKSHOP: TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR TOMORROW,
TODAY
Change Story Lens
Mirror 1 - PastWhich story represents the ‘most significant’ change?
Teacher A?Teacher B?Teacher C?Student D?
Activity System LensMirror 2 - PresentWhat ‘tensions’ do the stories reveal about current educational practice?
Future Scenario LensMirror 3 - FutureWhat ‘scenarios’ will teachers populate in future practice?Figure 1: Two dimensions of expansive TPD transformation. The upper right (sector 4) indicates the direction of the individual and collective technology enhanced zone of proximal development (ZPD).
Institutions and schools in collaboration with the community (local, national, regional)
ICT a core technology
Given
‘Transition’‘Knowledge deepening’ Teacher professional development focus on the use of ICT to guide students through complex problems and manage dynamic learning environment
3
‘Transformation’‘Knowledge creation’Teachers are themselves master learners and knowledge producers who are constantly engaged in educational experimentation and innovation to produce new knowledge about learning and teaching practice4
Experimentation in context
Programmes 1‘Traditional’‘Technology add-on’Teacher training focus the use of ICT as an add-on to the traditional curricula and standardized test systems
2‘Transmission’‘Technology literacy’Teacher training focus on the development of digital literacy and the use of ICT for professional improvement
with varying solutions
ICT a complementary technologyInstitutions and schools
as relatively isolated from the communityAdapted: Kennedy, 2005; UNESCO, 2008
Expansive LearningCreating a new modelWhat will be the ‘Development Path’ for the next ten years?
Tailoring TPD programmes to a particular country, its policies and its current educational conditions...
UNESCO, 2008
Living Contradiction
“We take as the starting point of our research the idea that we experience ourselves as living
contradictions when our values are denied in our practice”
Whitehead 1989 cited in Whitehead and McNiff 2006: 25
Workshop evaluation
• Workshop was successful due to strong communication, facilitation and organizational skills of facilitators but it had some shortcomings.
• To organize a workshop which yields no significant outcomes, is a wastage of money, time and resources which otherwise can be utilized in another productive mission.
Participant Feedback - Workshop: Teacher Professional Development for Tomorrow, Today
Workshop on North/South Research Partnerships for ICT in Education
April 21st Irish Aid Centre, Dublin
• New joint research projects
• New models for integrating research to education development and policy making
• New capacities in South and North
Research
Policy making Education Development
GeSCI
References• Davies, R and Dart, J. 2007. The ‘Most Significant Change’ Technique [Online]. Available from:
http://www.mande.co.uk/docs/MSCGuide.pdf • Davis, N. 2000. International Contrast of Information Technology in Teacher Education: multiple perspectives of
change. Editorial. Journal of Technology for Teacher Education [Online]. 9 (2) pp 139-147 Available from: Academic Search Premier http://www.library.dcu.ie/Eresources/databases-az.htm [Accessed 26 March 2009]
• Engestrom, R. 2003. Change lab – a new perspective to teachers’ professional development [Online]. Available from WITFOR at: www.witfor.org.bw/doc/dr_ritva_education.ppt [Accessed 19 April 2009]
• Farrell, G. and Isaacs, S. 2007. Survey of ICT and Education in Africa [Online]. Available from infoDEV at: www.infodev.org/en/Document.353.pdf [Accessed 9 April 2009]
• GeSCI 2008. Strategic Plan 2009 – 2011 [Online]. Available from GeSCI at: www.gesci.org [Accessed 15 December 2008]
• Hakkarainen, K. et al. 2008. A Research Plan for the Academy of Finland. Helensinki: University of Helsinki (internal document)
• Kennedy, A. 2005. Models for Continuing Professional Development: A framework for Analysis. Journal of In-Service Education [Online]. 31 (2), pp235-250. Available from Professional Development Collection at: http://www.library.dcu.ie/Eresources/databases-az.htm [Accessed 15 December 2008]
• Leach, J. 2008. Do new information and communications technologies have a role to play in the achievement of education for all? British Educational Research Journal [Online]. 34 (6), pp783 – 805. Available from: Academic Search Premier http://www.library.dcu.ie/Eresources/databases-az.htm [Accessed 26 March 2009]
• O’Sullivan, M. 2004. The reconceptualisation of learner-centred approaches: a Namibian case study. International Journal of Educational Development [Online]. 24 pp 585-602. Available from: Academic Search Premier http://www.library.dcu.ie/Eresources/databases-az.htm [Accessed 15 December 2008]
• Taylor, P. and Clarke, P. 2008. Capacity for Change. Sussex: CUIDS, University of Sussex• UNESCO 2008. ICT Competency Standards for Teachers: Policy Framework [Online]. Available from UNESCO at:
http://cst.unesco-ci.org/sites/projects/cst/The%20Standards/ICT-CST-Policy%20Framework.pdf [Accessed 11 April 2009]• Whitehead, J. and Mc Niff, J. 2006. Action Research Living Theory.London: Sage Publications
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