Conference Agenda

Teacher professional learning and development (PLD) happens inside a wide and evolving environment. From the perspective of teacher lifelong learning, this stage follows initial education and induction, and should be a constant factor in the development of professionality (Hoyle, 1974) during the whole career of teachers. Since the emergence of new phenomena and issues in school systems is steadily increasing, PLD’s importance has grown during recent years. From a systemic standpoint, the aspects interacting in the process leading to teacher PLD can take place at three main levels: macro/whole school system; meso/individual school and micro/classroom (Ostinelli, 2023). During these last years a number of symposia at the EERA-ECER conferences contributed to the publishing of a volume on teacher PLD in Europe (Innovation in Teacher Professional Learning in Europe, 2023). The focus was on the different approaches to teacher professional learning in Europe, considered from the whole system perspective. Actually, the book provided the reader with an extended view of this issue. However, due to the complexity of school systems, it is important to extend the analysis to other systemic levels. Following a path ideally leading from macro to micro (that is, from whole system to classroom level), it is important to increase the knowledge of what practiced at the meso level, investigating innovative practices and projects involving individual schools. The idea is therefore to illustrate a number of different approaches to teacher PLD in the field, focusing the attention on innovative experiences involving individual schools. The presentations included in the symposium deal with different themes. The first one, in times where digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are affecting heavily school systems and at large the global educational domain, is about the development - starting from actual teacher skills - of new competencies, in the context of innovative and more dynamic relationships between these technologies and pedagogy. For instance, the ethical aspects in using these information-based approaches are paramount (Unesco, 2023). A second theme is the match between continuous teacher education and teachers’ and principals’ needs (Ryan and Deci, 2020; Zhang, Admiraal and Saab, 2021). In fact, teachers have various needs concerning situations and processes happening in the classroom, and their fulfilment is important in building a motivation for change, relative to teaching and class management innovation. A third issue is about how to develop teacher agency in Professional learning communities, holding into account that the context where they act is more complex than what hypothesized by various models. In fact, very often rational, linear cause-effects interventions fail to achieve the desired results because of their limited perspective. Finally, yet importantly, sustainability is, like in other domains, a key factor also in teacher PLD. Interactions between schools, children, families to create sustainable improvement from specific professional learning and development using a facilitated action research framework are an important object of study in the context of the development of teacher professional expertise.

In the study an implementation of a collaboratively constructed city level digi-strategy is analysed. The implementation of the strategy through co-designing the use of digi-tools in teaching and learning was considered as teachers’ professional learning. Consequently, the study covers three levels: city, school and individual teacher. The strategy was decided to be implemented through school level development projects and these projects were supported by researchers at the University of Helsinki. Each school decided their own project and they typically focused to the use of digital tools in teaching and learning, design of school learning environments and inclusive education. The participation of students to the implementation of the strategy contextualizes teachers’ professional learning and help teachers to focus to students and the development of their digital competence (Fernández-Batanero et al. 2020). The co-development project connects teachers’ individual learning to the teachers' common practices, practices in the classroom and teacher community (Maier and Schmidt 2015). The implementation and teachers’ professional learning was analysed based on a questionnaire and interview data collected from teachers, participating to different development projects. According to data, the use of basic digi-tools increased as well as teachers’ competences to use digi-tools, especially in blended learning. Collaborative nature of the projects and contextual learning in real classroom and teacher community situations supported teachers’ professional learning. Challenges were related to the leadership of the project.

Fernández-Batanero, J. M., et al., 2020. Digital competences for teacher professional development. Systematic review. European Journal of Teacher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2020.1827389 Maier, R. and Schmidt, A., 2015. Explaining organizational knowledge creation with a knowledge maturing model. Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 13(4), 361–381. https://doi.org/10.1057/kmrp.2013.56

In the context of teacher PLD, in Denmark for approximately ten years there has been a focus on professional learning development concerning competences in managing teacher collaboration within PLC, Professional Learning Communities. In agreement with widespread leadership theories (e.g. Yukl & Gardner III, 2020), the implicit assumption has been that teachers work with a high level of rationality: What is the intended learning outcome? What teaching methods should be chosen in order to reach the goals? (e.g. Dufour & Marzano, 2011). However, recent studies have shown that often teachers don't work according to a rational ends-means scheme (Thorborg, 2024). Rather, they work under the conditions of bounded rationality (Qvortrup, 2003. Simon, 1997 [1945]. Simon, 2019 [1996]). In many cases, teachers have to manage situations in which the complexity of the situation (teaching students in a classroom) is bigger than the capacity of the teacher (e.g. Lortie, 2002). This realization is based partly on theories of complexity and professional judgement, partly on interviews with and observations of teachers (Thorborg, 2024. Qvortrup, forthcoming). The implication is that teacher collaboration and professional learning must support much more explorative practices based on a strong professional sense-making culture rather than on rational ends-means practices (e.g. Hargreaves & O’Connor, 2018). This challenges the conception of teachers’ professional judgment practice (Qvortrup, 2017). The implications for teacher professional learning and development (PLD) in schools will be elaborated.

Dufour, R. & Marzano, R. J. (2011): Leaders of Learning. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree. Hargreaves, A. & O’Connor, M. T. (2018): Collaborative Professionalism. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. Lortie, D. C. (2002): Schoolteacher. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Qvortrup, L. (2003): The Hypercomplex Society. New York: Peter Lang. Qvortrup, L. (2017): Undervisning er udøvelse af dømmekraft [Teaching is the exercise of judgment]. In: Holm, C. & Thingholm, H. B. (eds.): Evidens og dømmekraft [Evidence and judgment]. Frederikshavn: Dafolo. Qvortrup, L. (forthcoming): Professionel dømmekraft [Professional Judgment]. Copenhagen: Samfundslitteratur. Simon, H. A. (1997 [1945]): Administrative Behavior. New York, NY: The Free Press. Simon, H. (2019 [1996]): The Sciences of the Artificial. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Thorborg, M. (2024): Et begivenhedsbaseret perspektiv på lærerkollegial aktivitet i den danske folkeskole [An event-based perspective on teacher collegial activity in the Danish primary school]. Aarhus: Aarhus University Press. Yukl, G. & Gardner III, W. L. (2020): Leadership in Organizations. Harlow: Pearson.

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In teacher education there is a well-established agreement on the beneficial effects of conducting positive psychology interventions (Allen et al., 2022) during the stages of initial education, induction and professional development. A prime example is the development in teachers of constructs such as hope (Snyder, 2000), optimism (Seligman, 1998), self-efficacy (Parker, 1998), and resilience (Wagnild & Young, 1993). These constructs, identified by Luthans (2007), constitute what is defined as “Psychological Capital” (PsyCap). They are by their definition measurable, open to development within a short timeframe and linked to well-being and work performance. Specific survey instruments have been developed over the years for each construct. In the case of teachers, working on personal potential has also proven to be linked to the quality of teaching and the ability to motivate pupils (Vink et al, 2011) for school activities and for orienting themselves towards study. Psychological capital-related training interventions implemented in initial and continuous teacher education in the canton of Ticino (Switzerland) are based on this principle. The courses proposed were developed taking into account institutional and individual needs. The learning of classroom teaching practices was combined with individual development paths. Each course lasted one school year. During this time span, each participant was supported in designing a self-development plan containing objectives, deadlines, activities to be undertaken and tools for evaluating the obtained results. Participants were able to measure their Psychological Capital at the beginning and end of the course and become aware of the changes that had taken place. The presentation will be focused on the description of coaching activities (both individual and collective), conducted with teachers and principals, and on the qualitative and quantitative results obtained using this kind of approach.

Allen, K. A., Furlong, M. J., Vella-Brodrick, D., & Suldo, S. M. (Eds.). (2022). Handbook of positive psychology in schools: Supporting process and practice. Routledge. Luthans, F., Avolio, B. J., Avey, J. B., & Norman, S. M. (2007). Positive psychological capital: Measurement and relationship with performance and satisfaction. Personnel Psychology, 60, 541-572. Parker, S. (1998). Enhancing role-breadth self efficacy: The roles of job enrichment and other organizational interventions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83(6), 835-852. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.83.6.835 Seligman, M. E. P. (1998). Learned optimism. Pocket Books. Snyder, C. R. (2000). Handbook of Hope: Theory, Measures, and Applications. London: Academic Press. Vink, J., Ouweneel, E., & Le Blanc, P. (2011). Psychological resources for engaged employees: Psychological capital in the job demands-resources model. Gedrag & Organisatie, 24(2), 101–120. Wagnild, G. M., & Young, H. M. (1993). Development and psychometric evaluation of the resiliency scale. Journal of Nursing Management, 1, 165-178.