Understanding the conditions that foster collaborative teacher cultures: A case study

Abstract

This case study reports on school district-university partnership that investigated collaborative practices between content-area teachers and English language learner (ELL) teachers in secondary school contexts. Persistent challenges have hindered collaborative practices, which consequently impact scaffolding practices that support the content and language learning of newcomer students. There is limited literature on teacher collaboration in secondary schools in particular, where content-area teachers report working in silos and language support is reduced. In the context of these challenges, we sought to understand: What are the conditions that foster collaborative cultures in secondary schools? Drawing on sociocultural perspectives, reflective practices and an ecological model of human development adapted to teacher collaboration, we co-designed a series of four professional conversations with three system leaders in two school districts in Western Canada. Together, we documented the conditions that fostered collaborations among seven secondary teachers and their collaborators. Data sources included whole group professional conversations, small group interactions, and artifact collection; correspondence between collaborating teachers; online shared documents; and individual and exit interviews. Following our thematic analysis, we report on three conditions that foster collaborative cultures in secondary schools: generosity and care; creativity, flexibility and spontaneity; and blurred lines between teacher roles and responsibilities.