Technology as a Catalyst for School Communities

Professional learning communities...are a key element of the professional development initiatives that we have strived to develop and implement in our state. Unfortunately...the phrase "professional learning community" has become so overused that it loses any meaning. [The authors'] explanation and examples of communities of interest, and communities of learning, and communities of practice provide...a deeper understanding of the concept and made the concept real and practical...This 3-prong approach to professional learning communities could provide many teachers and educational leaders with a better understanding and an increased likelihood of success in building such learning communities. -- Sheila Talamo, assistant superintendent, Office of Quality Educators, Louisiana Department of Education, Baton Rouge
In emphasizing the importance of teacher-centered - not technocentric — professional development, then illustrating and explaining how it really happens in real schools with real people, Dimock and Burns do what few others have done. The book's contentsdemonstrate how and why teachers' professional learning must be holistic, situated, differentiated, ongoing, and collaborative to be carried into long-term practice. Though new tools, resources, and techniques serve as common foci for the professional learning described, the school-based cases and analyses presented demonstrate quite compellingly that to be successful, any professional development that catalyzes and supports lasting educational change must be focused on students, but centered on teachersas human beings working together within school-based communities. Like a breath of fresh air in a field that can stagnate in simplistic technology-based solutions to complex educational challenges, this book points the way to educational technologyprofessional development that is both visionary and pragmatic. -- Judi Harris, professor and Pavey Family Chair in Educational Technology, School of Education, College of William & Mary
Burns and Dimock offer two wonderful commodities that are in short supply in most schools today: hope and help. Hope that it is possible to change a community within a school to create significant change and help in the form of specific case studies that identify the strategies to necessary achieve change. I would highly recommend it to school teams and professional development study groups seeking a substantive lesson in what it takes to move from talk to action with meaningful technology projects. -- Monica M. Beglau, director, eMINTS National Center, University of Missouri System, Office of Academic Affairs
This book may surprise people with its stories that show how, when it comes to technology integration in schools, “old dogs” can learn new tricks! The cases presented give one optimism that even veteran teachers can become the vanguard of school change in the right circumstances. The authors use their experience working in three very different schools and extract what are the key conditions for this transformation. The framework they present—with teachers moving from a community of interest, to a community of learners, and eventually a community of practice—shows what is at the heart of teacher change: a supportive community. All those interested in real change in schools are well advised to read this highly engaging, encouraging book! -- Kathleen Fulton, director, Reinventing Schools for the 21st Century, The National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, Washington, DC
This book has brought the concept of communities of practice to a new level—a level that addresses the essence of humanity - our innate propensity for learning and our ability to communicate without losing the objective. More important, the stories that are told highlight how technology may trigger changes in the activities, curriculum and interpersonal relationships in the learning environment, and may be reciprocally affected by the very changes it causes. As a result, the triumphs and disappointments documented in each school are very diverse and yet the issues raised have so much in common. It is through these rich descriptions that readers of this book will gain most—with a deeper understanding of learning communities. -- Cher Ping, Lim Ph.D., associate professor of teaching and learning, School of Education, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Australia
In emphasizing the importance of teacher-centered - not technocentric — professional development, then illustrating and explaining how it really happens in real schools with real people, Dimock and Burns do what few others have done. The book's contents demonstrate how and why teachers' professional learning must be holistic, situated, differentiated, ongoing, and collaborative to be carried into long-term practice. Though new tools, resources, and techniques serve as common foci for the professional learning described, the school-based cases and analyses presented demonstrate quite compellingly that to be successful, any professional development that catalyzes and supports lasting educational change must be focused on students, but centered on teachers as human beings working together within school-based communities. Like a breath of fresh air in a field that can stagnate in simplistic technology-based "solutions" to complex educational challenges, this book points the way to educational technology professional development that is both visionary and pragmatic. -- Judi Harris, professor and Pavey Family Chair in Educational Technology, School of Education, College of William & Mary