Teachers' theoretical awareness after conducting one Learning Study cycle

• In this project two learning study cycles in two different groups of teachers and their students are the point of departure of this interview study. The three female teachers (n = 3) who were involved in the implementation of Learning Study Project 2011, were interviewed in 2012 with the aim of studying what kind of theoretical learning they seemed to have or have not developed. The theoretical framework used was variation theory, which is the guiding principle for conducting learning studies. However, the results showed decreased scores at the post test, instead of the expected increase, and the hypothesis was that the teachers might not have gained theoretical knowledge at a point where they could understand how to use it to design instruction. The following questions were used in the interviews: 1) What does variation theory mean to you? 2) In what way do you use the theory to guide your planning? 3) What implications does variation theory have on your teaching? And finally 4) What do you think are relevant to students' learning from a variation- theoretical perspective? The interviews lasted between 25-45 minutes, they were recorded and verbatim transcribed, which contributed to a familiarity with the empirical material. Phenomenography was used to analyze the outcomes, aiming to discern qualitatively distinct categories. The results showed a correlation between the students’ learning outcomes in the learning study lessons and the teachers’ theoretical knowledge in terms of those teachers expressing understanding the theory as an instrument to use methods instead of a way of seeing the learning object itself also have a lower increase in scores from the tests made by the pupils.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Utbildningsvetenskap -- Pedagogik (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Educational Sciences -- Pedagogy (hsv//eng)

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