EAPRIL Best Research and Practice Award. Salute / S@lute Collaboration and development in small schools

Transcription

1 EAPRIL Best Research and Practice Award GENERAL PROJECT INFORMATION 1. Title of project Salute / S@lute Collaboration and development in small schools ('S@lute Samverkan och utveckling i små skolor ) at Centre for Lifelong Learning at Åbo Akademi University in Vaasa, Finland. 2. Participants of the project (full names and position) (please indicate the main applicant/contact person) Project leader/researcher (applicant and contact person): Gunilla Karlberg-Granlund, PhD. Adress: Åbo Akademi University, Faculty of Education, P.O.Box 311, Vaasa, Finland. Telephone: gunilla.karlberg-granlund@abo.fi. Project developers and "critical friends": Torbjörn Sandén, PhD, Director at Centre for Lifelong Learning, Åbo Akademi University (torbjorn.sanden@abo.fi). Margareta Bast-Gullberg, Planner at Centre for Lifelong Learning, Åbo Akademi University (margareta.bast-gullberg@abo.fi). Petri Salo, Professor in Adult Education at Åbo Akademi University, Finland (petri.salo@abo.fi) Participants in the in-service project: 7-10 teachers and principals in small schools in different regions of Finland. National and international research networks: TeacherTalk, NNAF and PEP (see question 2) Mrs Maria Byholm, Educator at EduLab, Tritonia in Vaasa

2 1. Articulation and impact of the project in the field. How is the project responding to a real need in the field?(maximum 500 words) Two in-depth studies of teachers and head teachers work in compulsory Swedishspeaking schools in Finland, highlighted the call for projects that identify and meet the teachers and principals needs for professional development and collegial support particularly in small schools (Karlberg-Granlund 2009; Sandén 2007). A in-service project aiming at creating new kinds of in-service courses for teachers in sparsely populated areas and small schools, as well as giving the participants new possibilities for dialogue about topics that are important for them, was created in 2010, financed by The Finnish National Board of Education (Sandén 2010, 'Läraren i den lilla skolan - konceptutveckling av fortbildning'). The project was launched with the name 'S@lute - Samverkan och utveckling i små skolor'(s@lute - Collaboration and support in small schools), with a salutogenic approach (cf. Antonovsky 2005/1987), and an aim to promote 'sustainable professional development'. The programme for the in-service course was developed together with the participants through an action research approach, where the project leader/researcher served as facilitator. The professional development needs of each participant were identified through analytic tools developed in previous research (Karlberg-Granlund 2009). Guest lecturers were invited and the programme was designed to meet the needs of the participants. Step by step during the two-year period the participants were empowered to plan and arrange the programme and the local, regional and national meetings by themselves. Collegial group mentoring was promoted in the group, which consisted of teachers in different ages. For overcoming geographical distance desktop videoconferencing and online forums were used in addition to face-to-face meetings. According to the National Board of Education in Finland there is lack of projects that focus on teachers different needs during different phases of their careers (Kumpulainen 2011, 139). The evaluation of the first part of the Salute-project ( ) shows that there is a need for a holistic and dialogic approach in creating environments for professional learning and development; environments that empowers the participants and contributes to their survival, balancing and development in everyday worklife (cf. Karlberg-Granlund & Korpinen 2012, see also 2. What type of network did you establish? How strong is your network and how well did it work? In Salute different networks are interwoven, contributing to on the one hand 1) the professional development of the practitioners (teachers and principals in small schools in Finland), and on the other hand to 2) the professional development of the researcher in facilitating the learning of the participants, searching for research-based knowledge about promotion of professional development, as well as knowledge about teachers' different needs during different phases of their careers; a research which is carried out in collaboration with other researchers and facilitators. 1) The aim is that the collegial Salute-network will sustain, without external facilitation of a project leader or researcher. On sign which shows that we might be on the right way, is

3 that the participants have met in their regional networks without external facilitation for several times. The Salute-network will be enlarged by the participants who are inviting their local collegues to network meetings and in-service sessions. Salute is also linked to a emerging national network of small schools facilitated by the Regional State Administrative Agencies, arranging the first national 'Small school seminar' ('Pienkouluseminaari') in Jyväskylä, Finland, 9-10 October ) The research project of Salute is linked to an emerging network of facilitators at Åbo Akademi University, Faculty of Education in Vaasa, Finland (TeacherTalk), which is linked to the Nordic network 'Nordiskt nätverk för aktionsforskning' (NNAF) led by Karin Rönnerman, Eli Moksnes-Furu and Petri Salo, and the International 'Pedagogy, Education and Praxis'-network (PEP) led by Stephen Kemmis (see Several papers have been presented, and in December 2012 we will participate in a symposium at the AARE Conference in Australia. 3. What is the collective and/or shared development of researchers and practitioners involved in this project? In Salute different networks are interwoven, contributing to both the professional development of the practitioners, and the professional development of the researcher/facilitator, in the pursuit of new knowledge and promotion of PD (see also question 2). Central issues for investigation are: What is 'sustainable professional development'? How can 'sustainable professional development' be promoted? What is the role of the project leader/researcher in facilitating 'sustainable professional development'? According to the continous evaluation of the in-service project, the participants have found that Salute is a 'different project', which not only promotes learning and cognitive development, but also promotes wellbeing. Continuity, empowerment and shared ownership made them feel that Salute is 'their project'. The experiences from the Salute-project indicate that a facilitator of 'sustainable professional development' has to find the balance between management, research and reflection. Hardy and Rönnerman (2011) argue for an alternative paradigm to the dominating discourse of efficacy and measurability in continuing professional development. Hopefully Salute can be seen as one case that contributes to this alternative approach, adding the value of health promotion. 4. Degree of dissemination: what type of products did the project has as output, e.g. publications, tools, websites, presentations, (maximum 400 words) Book chapters: Karlberg-Granlund, G. & Korpinen, E. (2012). Vertaistuki pienessä koulussa [Peer support in small schools]. In I. Haapasalo, H. Heikkinen, H. Jokinen & P. Tynjälä (Eds.) Osaaminen jakoon Vertaisryhmämentorointi opetusalalla (Shared learning - Peer group mentoring in Education). Jyväskylä: PS-kustannus. Karlberg-Granlund, G. (2011). Att anta den lilla skolans utmaning [Taking the challenge of working in a small school]. In Aspfors, J. & Hansén, S.-E. (Eds.) Gruppmentorskap som stöd för lärares professionella utveckling [Group mentoring in promotion of teachers' professional development] (94 107). Helsingfors: Söderströms förlag.

4 Some of the presentations: Karlberg-Granlund, G. (2012). The role of the facilitator in promoting sustainable professional development through in-service training. The Fourth Qualitative Research Conference 6 7 June 2012 in Vasa. Karlberg-Granlund, G. (2012). Kollegiala nätverk mellan små skolor Hur och varför? (Collegial networks between small schools - How and why?] Paper at NORALF Conference Partnerskap i danning och kunnskapsutvikling, May in Tromsö, Norway. Karlberg-Granlund, G. (2011). Collegial Networking Finding New Ways for Collaboration and Support Between Small Schools? Poster in network 26: Educational Leadership. European Conference on Educational Research, September 2011 in Berlin. Karlberg-Granlund, G. (2011). Discovering the secrets of coping in a small school A collaborative adventure? Paper at Nordiska aktionsforskningsnätverket NNAF Seminar at Pedagogiska fakulteten, Åbo Akademi, 6 8 April in Vasa. Karlberg-Granlund, G. (2011). Utmaningen att arbeta i en liten skola. Att förstå det stora i det lilla. [The challenge of working in a small school. Understanding the great in the small]. Plenary (video) at the Nordic Conference in Special Education Gemensamma vägar, 5 6 October 2011 in Umeå, Sweden. ( -> idrott/ledarskap -> utmaningen med att jobba i en liten skola). Other material: Website and broschure: Contents that are available for the participants: Guest lectures and meetings in Adobe Connect, Salute-group on Yammer and Moodle, and material produced by the participants themselves. 5. What is the sustainability of these products? Hopefully the sustainability is not primarily in the products of the project but in the lasting empowering experiences of the participants, and in the ongoing processes of professional development and collegial support. 6. Motivation: Why does your project deserve to win the EAPRIL Best Research and Practice Award (maximum 400 words) The Salute-project opens important new questions that need to be investigated. 7. Describe, in three bullet points, the lessons learned during the course of the project you would like to share with the EAPRIL community. The importance of supporting endurance, wellbeing and professional development of teachers in different stages of their careers and in different contexts. Reflections about what 'sustainable professional development' is and how can it be promoted. The challenges and obstacles of being a facilitator of 'sustainable professional development'. Thank you!

5