Teachers’ preflection in early stages of diffusion of an innovation

Teachers play an important role in the process of diffusion of an innovation. In our endeavour to achieve the diffusion of a curricular innovation from one seeding school to five other schools, we have investigated the learning of a group of teachers through an across-schools collaborative seeding journey. A preflective learning model for teachers is proposed with the aim to prepare seeded teachers in reflection-for-action and to build their capacities in designing and enacting the curriculum. In this paper, we describe this model and explore its effectiveness, especially with regards to teachers’ perception towards the innovation and their buy-in. We found that the seeded teachers from the five schools, regardless of their own teaching profiles and school contexts, have obtained high degrees of buy-in of the innovation and developed their readiness towards implementation for the next phase. It is envisioned that such a learning model will inform the design for teacher professional development and achieve innovation diffusion to create a wider community of teacher practice.

[1]  Daner Sun,et al.  Implementing mobile learning curricula in a grade level: Empirical study of learning effectiveness at scale , 2014, Comput. Educ..

[2]  Wilmad Kuiper,et al.  Curriculum landscapes and trends , 2003 .

[3]  Baohui Zhang,et al.  A Tripartite Model of Co-designing for an iMVT Integrated Science Curriculum , 2010 .

[4]  Melissa Erlene Pierson,et al.  Technology Integration Practice as a Function of Pedagogical Expertise , 2001 .

[5]  Sarah M. Greene,et al.  If we only knew what we know: principles for knowledge sharing across people, practices, and platforms , 2011, Translational behavioral medicine.

[6]  J. Dearing.  Applying Diffusion of Innovation Theory to Intervention Development , 2009, Research on social work practice.

[7]  Katherine L. McNeill,et al.  Learning‐goals‐driven design model: Developing curriculum materials that align with national standards and incorporate project‐based pedagogy , 2008 .

[8]  Theodore J. Kopcha,et al.  Teachers' perceptions of the barriers to technology integration and practices with technology under situated professional development , 2012, Comput. Educ..

[9]  J. Akker.  Curriculum Perspectives: An Introduction , 2004 .

[10]  Mark Freeman,et al.  To adopt or not to adopt innovation: A case study of team-based learning , 2012 .

[11]  M. Bannert.  Promoting Self-Regulated Learning Through Prompts , 2009 .

[12]  Sasha A. Barab,et al.  The Effect of Social Context on the Reflective Practice of Preservice Science Teachers: Incorporati , 2006 .

[13]  Vicki Oleson,et al.  The impact of mathematics professional development on elementary teachers' mathematics content knowledge for teaching and implementation of innovative pedagogical practices , 2010 .

[14]  Elliot Soloway,et al.  1: 1 Mobile Inquiry Learning Experience for Primary Science Students: a Study of Learning Effectiveness , 2011, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[15]  C. Newhouse.  Applying the Concerns-based Adoption Model to Research on Computers in Classrooms , 2001 .

[16]  A. Cloonan.  Filming for Professional Learning: Collaborations in Innovation. , 2009 .

[17]  Johan van Braak,et al.  A New ICT Curriculum for Primary Education in Flanders: Defining and Predicting Teachers' Perceptions of Innovation Attributes , 2011, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[18]  Dirk Ifenthaler,et al.  Preactional self-regulation as a tool for successful problem solving and learning , 2011, CELDA 2011.

[19]  C. Chai,et al.  Where Research, Practice and the Authority Meet: A Collaborative Inquiry for Development of Technology-Enhanced Chinese Language Curricula , 2011 .

[20]  Al-Mothana M. Gasaymeh,et al.  Using the Diffusion of Innovation Theory to Explain the Degree of English Teachers' Adoption of Interactive Whiteboards in the Modern Systems School in Jordan: A Case Study. , 2013 .

[21]  Chris Dede,et al.  How Educational Innovators Apply Diffusion and Scale-Up Concepts , 2015 .

[22]  Kwok-Wing Lai,et al.  Role of the Teacher , 2002 .

[23]  E. Rogers.  Diffusion of Innovations , 1962 .

[24]  Shirley M. Hord,et al.  Taking Charge of Change , 1987 .

[25]  Gene E. Hall,et al.  Levels of Use of the Innovation: A Framework for Analyzing Innovation Adoption , 1975 .

[26]  Jon Ogborn,et al.  Science teachers' transformations of the use of computer modeling in the classroom: Using research to inform training , 2005 .

[27]  Margaret S. Smith,et al.  The Development of Professional Developers: Learning to Assist Teachers in New Settings in New Ways , 1999 .

[28]  Diana Falk.  Preflection: A Strategy for Enhancing Reflection , 1995 .

[29]  Peter A. Youngs,et al.  Shaping Professional Development to Promote the Diffusion of Instructional Expertise Among Teachers , 2013 .

[30]  Walter Kintsch,et al.  Toward a model of text comprehension and production. , 1978 .

[31]  Lung-Hsiang Wong,et al.  What seams do we remove in mobile-assisted seamless learning? A critical review of the literature , 2011, Comput. Educ..

[32]  Baohui Zhang,et al.  Leveraging mobile technology for sustainable seamless learning: a research agenda , 2010, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[33]  Detlef Urhahne,et al.  Role of the Teacher in Computer‐supported Collaborative Inquiry Learning , 2010 .

[34]  Jay Paredes Scribner,et al.  Creating Professional Communities in Schools through Organizational Learning: An Evaluation of a School Improvement Process , 1999 .

[35]  Y. S. Chee,et al.  Reflective, reflexive guided appropriation: Facilitating teacher adoption of game based learning in classrooms , 2012 .

[36]  Heinz Ulrich Hoppe,et al.  One-to-One Technology-Enhanced Learning: an Opportunity for Global Research Collaboration , 2006, Res. Pract. Technol. Enhanc. Learn..

[37]  Kendall Hartley,et al.  Teacher Concerns During Initial Implementation of a One-to-One Laptop Initiative at the Middle School Level , 2007 .