[Paper Review] Changing Identities and Evolving Conceptions of Inquiry through Teacher-Driven Professional Development

Ben Van Dusen, Mike Ross+1 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Sep 6, 2012

Diverse Educational Innovations Studies10 references3 citations

TL;DR

This study examines the Streamline to Mastery professional development program, in which science teachers co-design and lead their own PD with university researchers. Through video analysis, interviews, and reflections, the research reveals that teacher-driven PD fosters significant shifts in teachers' identities and conceptions of inquiry, increasing their agency and deepening their understanding of inquiry-based instruction in STEM education.

ABSTRACT

This STEM education study investigates the Streamline to Mastery professional development program, in which teachers work in partnership with university researchers to design professional development opportunities for themselves and for fellow teachers. Our research describes the process of teacher professional growth both through changes in agency and through a shared pursuit of an improved understanding of classroom scientific inquiry. Videos, emails, lesson reflections, survey responses, and interviews were analyzed to glean insight into changes in teacher discourse around inquiry and into their shifts in participation within the professional community they established. Implications for professional development in STEM education are discussed.

Motivation & Objective

• To investigate how teacher-driven professional development influences changes in teachers' professional identities.
• To examine shifts in teachers' conceptions of scientific inquiry through sustained, collaborative PD.
• To analyze how agency and participation evolve within a self-organized professional community of practice.
• To understand the role of university researchers as facilitators in teacher-led PD design.
• To identify implications for effective, sustainable STEM education professional development models.

Proposed method

• Teachers partnered with university researchers to co-design and implement a professional development program focused on inquiry-based instruction.
• Data were collected via video recordings of classroom instruction, lesson reflections, emails, surveys, and semi-structured interviews.
• Qualitative analysis techniques were applied to discourse, identity markers, and participation patterns in the professional community.
• Thematic analysis was used to trace shifts in teacher language and beliefs about inquiry over time.
• Longitudinal data were analyzed to track changes in agency, identity, and pedagogical understanding.
• The research employed a design-based research approach to iteratively refine the PD model based on teacher feedback and outcomes.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 How do teachers' identities evolve as a result of participating in a teacher-driven professional development program?
• RQ2 In what ways do teachers' conceptions of scientific inquiry shift through sustained, collaborative PD?
• RQ3 How does increased agency manifest in teachers' participation and leadership within the professional community?
• RQ4 What role do university researchers play in supporting teacher-led PD without dominating the process?
• RQ5 How does teacher-driven PD contribute to deeper understanding and implementation of inquiry-based instruction?

Key findings

• Teachers demonstrated increased agency, taking initiative in designing and leading PD sessions for their peers.
• Teachers' discourse around inquiry evolved from procedural understanding to a more conceptual and student-centered view of scientific inquiry.
• Participation in a self-organized professional community led to stronger collaborative norms and shared ownership of professional growth.
• Video analysis revealed that classroom practices shifted toward more open-ended, student-driven inquiry tasks over time.
• Teachers reported greater confidence and commitment to inquiry-based instruction after sustained engagement in the program.
• The partnership with university researchers was instrumental in validating and deepening teachers' understanding without imposing external frameworks.