Making Sense of Teachers' Communities of Practice with Social and Epistemic Network Analysis
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sci
Abstract
The project will employ Social and Epistemic Network analysis to investigate how teachers form Communities of Practice (CoPs).
Substantive contribution: CoPs - groups of actors who share a sense of purpose and support over time (Lave & Wenger, 1991) - can facilitate innovation and improved student outcomes, but the mechanisms through which teachers build such communities have been empirically under-investigated. The project will provide an original account of change mechanisms (e.g. how teachers influence each other's understanding of practice) in formation of CoPs as social networks that shape, and are shaped by, actors' sense-making processes.
Interdisciplinarity: Bringing together educational theories (teacher agency and CoPs), data analytic techniques recently developed in computer sciences (Epistemic Network Analysis) and Advanced Social Network Analysis, the PhD student will develop a novel operationalisation of CoPs as social networks to conduct empirical analysis of change in both structure and content of teachers' interactions over time. The student will collect data in four schools in Scotland (about 200 teachers) using a web-based log asking teachers to report their reflections on particular situations in which they approached colleagues or other people for support (at least one entry per school term over three terms).
The student will conduct content analysis of log data to construct epistemic networks (based on code co-occurrences) in concert with quantitative analysis of social network structures. Used together, Social and Epistemic Network analysis will enable investigation of the patterned purposeful interactions to identify networks with high levels of alignment in purposes and mutual support that characterise CoPs.
Substantive contribution: CoPs - groups of actors who share a sense of purpose and support over time (Lave & Wenger, 1991) - can facilitate innovation and improved student outcomes, but the mechanisms through which teachers build such communities have been empirically under-investigated. The project will provide an original account of change mechanisms (e.g. how teachers influence each other's understanding of practice) in formation of CoPs as social networks that shape, and are shaped by, actors' sense-making processes.
Interdisciplinarity: Bringing together educational theories (teacher agency and CoPs), data analytic techniques recently developed in computer sciences (Epistemic Network Analysis) and Advanced Social Network Analysis, the PhD student will develop a novel operationalisation of CoPs as social networks to conduct empirical analysis of change in both structure and content of teachers' interactions over time. The student will collect data in four schools in Scotland (about 200 teachers) using a web-based log asking teachers to report their reflections on particular situations in which they approached colleagues or other people for support (at least one entry per school term over three terms).
The student will conduct content analysis of log data to construct epistemic networks (based on code co-occurrences) in concert with quantitative analysis of social network structures. Used together, Social and Epistemic Network analysis will enable investigation of the patterned purposeful interactions to identify networks with high levels of alignment in purposes and mutual support that characterise CoPs.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Natasa Pantic (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Barbara Dzieciatko (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES/P000681/1 | 01/10/2017 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 2310071 | Studentship | ES/P000681/1 | 01/10/2019 | 30/06/2023 | Barbara Dzieciatko |
| Description | In the nine months into my award, I have successfully completed my first year progression board with very positive feedback. My board examiners were very impressed with how I thought of several pitfalls and threats to my research including epistemological and data collection challenges. At this time, it was already clear that because of Covid-19 schools were likely to close, therefore I presented an alternative plan to remedy this. I have also successfully passed my ethical board. I have successfully passed ethical approval twice, for the fieldwork at schools and the online forums. The latter has particularly impressed the board as I have prepared a very well researched case for covert online forum data collection, where I have presented potential risks and how I would remediate them to minimize any potential harm (e.g. protection of my data against de-anonymisation), as well as issues of consent in publicly available forums. In the first year of my PhD (2020), I was already accepted for two international conferences (ISNA Sunbelt in Paris, and EARLI-17 Sig Conference in Vienna) at which I presented my research at the conceptual stage with positive feedback. This year I have also been accepted to ISNA Sunbelt to present my preliminary findings in June. I am currently in the process of submitting to other conferences (Quantitative Ethnography in Denmark and EUSN in London). In summary, the biggest achievement of this award is the confidence in my research skills and capabilities, carrying this project through all stages, as well as, learning a valuable lesson of research flexibility and strategising for unforeseeable circumstances without sacrificing my research objectives. |
| Exploitation Route | Upon completion of this PhD project I predict that the following agencies will benefit from it: a) Schools who wish to engage whole school approaches to implement changes in the practice and increase collaborative cultures within their schools b) Future research of communities of practice which aim to map communities to be able to determine what network gaps may be as well as provide analytical tool that can be embedded in a standard research into CoP to be able to compare results across group c) Local initiatives that use CoP as frameworks for professional development who wish to increase the success of those PD programmes and make recommendations how to strengthen sense of community and increase sense of trust within the networks |
| Sectors | Education,Other |