ERIC Number: EJ1376793
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 24
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1946-3014
EISSN: EISSN-1946-3022
Available Date: N/A
Navigating Sources of Teacher Uncertainty: Exploring Teachers' Collaborative Discourse When Learning a New Instructional Approach
Classroom Discourse, v14 n1 p45-68 2023
As educators learn about new tools to utilise in their classrooms, there can be questions and ambiguity that accompany the new information; yet they are not always given time or support to address their questions. Acknowledging and embracing the uncertainties that teachers inevitably face when learning about new instructional approaches can help push them to explore new possibilities and better support student learning. Taking a qualitative discourse analytic approach, we used a single-group case study design to explore how a group of STEM teachers navigate uncertainty when learning a new instructional approach throughout two collaborative discourse sessions within the context of a professional learning space. Grounding our study in a social constructivist lens, we interpreted and compared the sources of uncertainty that teachers expressed. We then mapped out the flow of the conversations to explore how teachers navigated those sources through the trajectory of their collaborative discourse. Analysis revealed that teachers expressed uncertainties while offering suggestions in the form of pedagogical techniques in response to others' uncertainties, often leading to shifts, resolutions, and generations of new uncertainty expressions. We suggest that professional learning spaces offer an opportunity for teachers to collaboratively navigate their uncertainties when learning new instructional approaches.
Descriptors: Teaching Methods, STEM Education, Classroom Communication, Discourse Analysis, Constructivism (Learning), Case Studies, Faculty Development, Teacher Collaboration, Self Efficacy, Teacher Attitudes, Learning Processes, Science Teachers, Mathematics Teachers, Energy, Elementary School Teachers, Secondary School Teachers, Brainstorming, Energy Conservation, Engineering Education, Critical Thinking
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A