Online Communities of ELT Teachers: A plausible source of professional learning (original) (raw)

2018, 2018: SPRINGTIME IN EDUCATION AND PSYCHOLOGY RESEARCH: GROWING IDEAS TOGETHER Proceedings of MERC Annual Conference

The proliferation of Web 2.0 has offered numerous online professional learning initiatives among which many ELT professionals turn to online communities. One of the significant features of such online communities is their inherent sheer diversity, both socio-culturally and professionally. However, despite the scholarly and professional applause surrounding online communities, not all manifestations of many such online groupings reflect principles and quality criteria of effective teacher professional learning. To date, not only are there diverse conceptions of online communities but also there have been few extended studies addressing their accountability as sources of professional learning. As such, much remains both unexplored and unexplained as whether and how such self-initiated and informal initiatives can facilitate ELT teachers’ professional learning and ultimately inform their teaching practices in their local contexts. Also, it is not clear whether and how online communities should be incorporated into ELT teacher professional development programs. Against this background, by adopting situated learning as the epistemological stance, I investigated three international online communities of ELT professionals. Through a qualitative multiple-case study, by employing triangulation of both data and methods, data were collected from participant-generated online content, an online survey, and an online discussion forum. Preliminary findings provide deeper insight into the quality of the selected online communities as a source of professional learning for ELT teachers, as well participants’ motivations for seeking sustained membership. This study has implications for development and management of professional learning initiatives within ELT, for stakeholders at individual, organizational and governmental levels. Keywords: Online professional learning community, teacher professional learning, English language teacher