Teacher Mindset Change in Boundary-Crossing Lesson Study: A Case From China
Item
Title
Teacher Mindset Change in Boundary-Crossing Lesson Study: A Case From China
Abstract/Description
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to provide an alternative approach to teacher learning on top of the usual practices of listening to experts' lectures and conducting school-based activities among peers in China. A boundary-crossing lesson study (BCLS) through school-university partnership served as an example to illustrate how a class teacher's mindset changed towards her students in equal interactions with university scholars.
Design/methodology/approach
With the lenses of action science theory and boundary-crossing learning theory, the study used qualitative research approach to collect and analyze data. One Chinese primary school class teacher from a workshop on narrative action research was selected as the case for this study. Interviewing, observation and document analysis were used to collect data. Data analysis methods included categorization and contextualization of the teacher's mindset change towards her student.
Findings
The case teacher, Mrs. Li, collaborated closely in paired teaching with her university partner AP Yu in all the four phases of their BCLS. Each phase was marked with an interactive event such as dialogic illumination, reflexive theorization, embodied conversation, and fusion of teacher and trainer roles. With inspirational trust as a major interactive mechanism, Mrs. Li jumped out of her single-loop learning (changing strategies according to results) to double-loop learning (changing both strategies and values/values). As a result, her mindset changed from attribution to appreciation towards her low-achieving student.
Originality/value
This study made contributions in two ways. First, it examined a class teacher's mindset change towards her student, rather than that of subject matter teachers towards their teaching materials and methods. Second, it revealed how reflective interactions in a special kind of BCLS by school teachers and university scholars may promote the teacher's mindset change. The findings further confirm that having differences as boundaries is not enough for teacher learning. For deep learning like Mrs. Li's mindset change, it requires a respectful and inspirational relationship between school teachers and university scholars in the BCLS.
The purpose of this study is to provide an alternative approach to teacher learning on top of the usual practices of listening to experts' lectures and conducting school-based activities among peers in China. A boundary-crossing lesson study (BCLS) through school-university partnership served as an example to illustrate how a class teacher's mindset changed towards her students in equal interactions with university scholars.
Design/methodology/approach
With the lenses of action science theory and boundary-crossing learning theory, the study used qualitative research approach to collect and analyze data. One Chinese primary school class teacher from a workshop on narrative action research was selected as the case for this study. Interviewing, observation and document analysis were used to collect data. Data analysis methods included categorization and contextualization of the teacher's mindset change towards her student.
Findings
The case teacher, Mrs. Li, collaborated closely in paired teaching with her university partner AP Yu in all the four phases of their BCLS. Each phase was marked with an interactive event such as dialogic illumination, reflexive theorization, embodied conversation, and fusion of teacher and trainer roles. With inspirational trust as a major interactive mechanism, Mrs. Li jumped out of her single-loop learning (changing strategies according to results) to double-loop learning (changing both strategies and values/values). As a result, her mindset changed from attribution to appreciation towards her low-achieving student.
Originality/value
This study made contributions in two ways. First, it examined a class teacher's mindset change towards her student, rather than that of subject matter teachers towards their teaching materials and methods. Second, it revealed how reflective interactions in a special kind of BCLS by school teachers and university scholars may promote the teacher's mindset change. The findings further confirm that having differences as boundaries is not enough for teacher learning. For deep learning like Mrs. Li's mindset change, it requires a respectful and inspirational relationship between school teachers and university scholars in the BCLS.
Author/creator
Date
In publication
Volume
11
Issue
2
Pages
91-105
Resource type
Research/Scholarly Media
Resource status/form
Published Text
Scholarship genre
Empirical
Keywords
IRE Approach/Concept
Primary national context
Open access/full-text available
No
Peer reviewed
Yes
ISSN
2046-8253
Citation
Chen, X., Ou, Q., An, C., & Zhang, D. (2022). Teacher Mindset Change in Boundary-Crossing Lesson Study: A Case From China. International Journal for Lesson & Learning Studies, 11(2), 91–105. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJLLS-03-2021-0019
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| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
 Chinese Lesson Study Reconceptualized in Time of Core Competencies-based (hexin suyang 核心素养) Reform [Special Issue] |
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