Languaging Collaborative Professional Development among Teachers through Dropbox (original) (raw)

2015

Abstract

Collaboration is important aspect of learning (Olofsson, 2010; Vygotsky, 1977). Forming a community of learning can help promote better and faster learning among members of a community (Kooy, 2009; Wenger, 1998). Using the concept of languaging (Swain, 2000) through a sociocultural lens, we can examine how learners develop their understanding of course content and form bonds with others in a blended-learning course. In this study, a group of graduate students training to become language teachers languaged their understanding in written form online through a shared Dropbox folder. They discussed readings for the course online and commented on each others' posts The interactive nature of the online community led to an evolution to the approach to languaging and its functionality within the community. The data was collected from written online interactions and oral and written feedback given to the researchers at the end of the project. It was examined qualitatively using discourse analysis and thematic coding in Nvivo10. Our findings indicate that the participants used various forms of languaging to create a community of learning. The participants languaged requests for clarification and uptake, they languaged their own understanding and how their understanding came to be modified. We also examined how their reaction to each others' posts informed the interactions between the participants and helped the community evolve. Teachers in training need more practice developing their own understanding of the power of collaboration, reflection and languaging, specifically in an online environment. For some this was a first experience using an online tool, such as Dropbox, collaboratively to create and manage an online community. More investigations need to take into account the role that community plays in the learning process. Summary: We examined how a group of graduate students training to become language teachers languaged (Swain, 2000) their understanding of course content and formed bonds with each other online. Languaging collaboratively informed participants' use of this practice and the evolution of the community of learning they created.

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