Cultivating a Community of Practice in a Kindergarten Cluster

This paper arises from an Australian longitudinal study and reports on the work of an EC leadership team to cultivate a Community of Practice to support professional learning of teachers. Professional development in Early... [ view full abstract ]

This paper arises from an Australian longitudinal study and reports on the work of an EC leadership team to cultivate a Community of Practice to support professional learning of teachers. Professional development in Early Childhood is increasingly important in order to meet the growing expectations for Early Childhood programs to impact positively on the social and economic futures of counties (Almond & Currie, 2011; Heckman, 2011). We present insights to how the EC leadership team attended to professional relationships to build teacher capacity and to plan for the needs of at-risk pre-school children in a recognised vulnerable community in Melbourne, Australia.

The professional development needs for EC teachers were highlighted in an Allied Health screening program for children in the areas of oral language learning and physical development. Teachers’ current breadth of practice and depth of professional knowledge to plan for individual children and cohort needs emerged as a key issue. The leadership team looked for ways in which they might support the professional learning of each of the teachers. Data related to this work were collected from Allied Health professionals, teachers and the leadership team using interviews, focus groups and researcher field notes. Data were analysed using Wenger’s Communities of Practice lens (Wenger, 2002; Wenger, McDermott & Snyder, 2002).

In an under reported field (Edwards & Nuttall, 2009), this work offers an example of how EC management can deliberately seed and cultivate a Community of Practice that aligns with the organisation’s strategic plan (Wenger, McDermott & Snyder, 2002). Professional relationships are inherent in this work.