ABSTRACT

In the continuing global call for educational reforms and change, the contributors in this edited collection address the critical issue of teacher learning from diverse national contexts and perspectives. They define "teacher learning that matters" as it shapes and directs pedagogical practices with the goal of improving student learning. Student achievement is broadly and inclusively defined, beyond the test scores so often identified as the mark of “success” in the research literature.  

This book weaves together major studies, research findings and theoretical orientations to represent a globalized network of inquiries into the what, how and why of teacher learning that shapes teacher skill and knowledge. Teacher learning matters on an international scale because teachers are the portals through which any initiative for change and reform is realized. Recognizing that a highly skilled teaching force is instrumental to improving student achievement adds import to generating interactive dialogue on teacher learning around the globe.

Preface: Introducing the Landscapes of Teacher Learning That Matters.  Section 1: Orienting the Way on the Landscape  1. What Makes Teacher Professional Development Effective? A Literature Review  Klaas van Veen, Rosanne Zwart and Jacobiene Meirink  2. Professional Community and Professional Development in the Learning-Centered School  Judith Warren Little  Section 2: Perspectives for Teacher Learning in Multiple Contexts  3. Professional Learning: Creating Conditions for Developing Knowledge of Teaching  John Loughran  4. A Multi-Metaphorical Model for Teacher Knowledge and Teacher Learning  John Wallace and Judith Mulholland  5. The Transformative Potential of Teacher and Student Voices: Reframing Relationships for Learning  Mary Kooy and Dana Colarusso  6. Professional Development Through a Teacher-as-Curriculum Maker Lens  Cheryl Craig  Section 3: Foundations for Developing the Self in Teacher Learning  7. Promoting Quality from Within: A New Perspective on Professional Development in Schools  Saskia Attema-Noordewier, Fred Korthagen and Rosanne Zwart  8. Critical Moments as Heuristics to Transform Learning and Teacher Identity  Paulien C. Meijer and Helma W. Oolbekkink  9. Writing and Professional Learning: A "Dialogic Interaction"  Graham Parr and Brenton Doecke  10. Exploring Discursive Practices of Teacher Learning in a Cross-Institutional Professional Community in China  Issa Danjun Ying  Section 4: Professional Learning for Teacher Practice  11. Partnerships for Professional Renewal: The Development of a Masters Program for Teacher Professional Learning  Helen Mitchell and Alex Alexandrou  12. Open-Ended Scientific Inquiry in a Non-Formal Setting: Cognitive, Affective and Social Aspects of In-Service Elementary Teachers’ Development  Stella Hadjiachilleos and Lucy Avraamidou  13. From Concept to School Practice: Professional Learning for Sustainable Change in the Primary Science Classroom  Pernilla Nilsson  Section 5: Stepping Back by Stepping In: Re-Viewing the Landscape  14. Stepping Back and Stepping In: Concluding Thoughts on the Landscapes of Teacher Learning That Matters  Klaas van Veen and Mary Kooy