CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW
2.2.4 Distributed cognition and the essential tension in learning communities An important element in the situative perspective on learning is the notion of 'distributed
cognition'. Putman and Borko (2000:8) assert that:
The notion of distributed cognition suggests that when diverse groups of teachers with different types of knowledge and expertise come together in discourse communities, community members can draw upon and incorporate each other's expertise to create rich conversations and new insights into teaching and learning. The existing cultures and discourse communities in many schools, however, do not value or support critical and reflective examination of teaching practice.
This notion is supported by research conducted by Grossman and colleagues (Grossman et al 2001). They state that forming a professional community requires teachers to engage in both intellectual and social work, that is, developing new ways of thinking and
reasoning collectively, as well as new forms of interacting personally. Itis important to be cognisant of the fact that in the development of teacher community some people know things that others do not know and that the collective knowledge exceeds that of the individual. Learning from fellow participants requires the ability to listen carefully to fellow participants, especially as these participants struggle to formulate thoughts in response to challenging intellectual content. Listening to the ill-formed thoughts and ideas of fellow participants may be a new activity that participants have to learn to engage with.
Communities of practice alter the "linear relationships through which knowledge 'trickles down' from those who discover professional knowledge to those who provide and receive services shaped by it because the model invites and builds upon knowledge from each"
(Wesley and Buysse 2001:121). Cognition is distributed across the individual and other
persons and is not considered solely as the property of individuals (Putman and Borko 2000). Lave (1988) and Lave and Wenger (1991) suggest that cognition is distributed or 'stretched over' the individual, other participants and various artefacts and tools. The distribution of cognitive tasks across participants and tools makes it possible for the community or group to accomplish tasks beyond the capabilities of any individual participant. Participants "experience transformation in unique yet socially supportive ways", as they extend each other's thinking beyond what they might do as individuals (Long 2004: 144).Inthis way, teachers are better able to engage in learning that may influence their practice. Putman and Borko (2000) concur that for teachers to be successful in learning new knowledge and pedagogic skills, they need opportunities to participate "in a professional community that discusses new teacher materials and
strategies and that supports risk taking ... entailed in transforming practice" (Putman and Borko 2000:8).
In learning communities, teachers' professional knowledge is public and is represented in a form that enables it to be accumulated and shared with other members of the
community. This knowledge is constantly verified and improved and is communicated among colleagues through a process of collaboration (Hiebert, Stigler and Gallimore 2002). Collaboration ensures that what is discovered will be communicable because it is discovered in the context of group discussions. Itforces participants to make their knowledge public and understood by fellow participants.
Although learning communities have immense potential for improving teachers learning and practice, they also present tensions that have to be skilfully handled. Grossman et al (2001) note that the essential tension of professional development - that of curriculum development and deepening subject matter knowledge - is prevalent in teacher learning communities. Curriculum development focuses on the improvement of student learning, while teachers' attempts at deepening subject matter knowledge focuses on teachers as students of subject matter. These two perspectives are essentially a contrast between the promise of direct applicability to classroom practice and the long-term goal of personal intellectual renewal. While these two foci can be held in a productive tension, they can
also be at odds with each other (Grossman et a12001; Bolam and McMahon 2004; Adler and Reed 2002).
Grossman and colleagues note that some participants are product driven, such as wanting to develop teaching packages; others have as their aim the need to acquire subject matter knowledge through reading (Grossman et aI2001). They assert that teachers' intellectual backgrounds determine their inclination to a large extent and while there is support for the notions of lifelong learning, the occupational reality of teaching does not permit the time and space for teachers to read without an immediate apparent goal. Reading and turning newly acquired subject matter knowledge into concrete ideas for teaching certainly is a challenge for most teachers. The question of how much guidance and structure to bring into conversations and seeking an appropriate balance between presenting information and facilitating teachers' construction of new practices is a dilemma that must be carefully considered. Project leaders must negotiate their way between the teachers' current thinking and the subject matter or content to be learnt. The issue of balance can be addressed by drawing on the unique sets of knowledge and skills offered by researchers and teachers. Ideas that emerge in a well-balanced learning
community are jointly produced and further the understanding of all participants (Putman and Borko 2000).
A way to address the tension described above is to start from the premise or basic assumption that teachers cannot teach concepts they themselves have not mastered. An important rationale for the existence of a learning community "is to mitigate teachers' negative affect around difficult subject matter" (Grossman et al 2001 :962).
The issues of distributed cognition and the essential tension in learning communities are central to the present study. Attention is drawn to the notion that participants in a learning community may have differing abilities and knowledge that they share with each other.
The above discourse also highlights the essential tension in learning communities _ namely that between curriculum developmentanddeepening subject matter knowledge _
and offers insights into how learning communities and their individual participants negotiate the essential tension.
In summary, the overview of the literature on learning communities points to increasing faith in learning communities as vehicles for teacher development. Researchers have presented useful insights into various community formations. Although general agreement does exist about the positive outcomes oflearning communities, relatively little has been written about why and how learning communities work. Much of the research on learning communities has been carried out on contrived learning
communities that have either been set up by researchers or are the results of institutional prescription. Such community formations are often conceptualised with a predetermined agenda that may be in conflict with that of the community members. Research into voluntary teacher learning community formations is scarce. Much is still not known about how such voluntary formations sustain their existence. Issues on which the literature is silent or offers limited insight include, what constitutes an optimal size for a teacher learning community, the frequency of meetings, finance, the extent of the transfer of knowledge and skills to the classroom context, addressing the essential tension in teacher learning communities, and understanding the relationship between different levels of membership.
It is clear that there is a dearth of literature on teacher learning communities in South Africa. Itis important to re-emphasise that research into teacher learning communities has largely been carried out in developed countries, the results of which are often difficult to extrapolate to a developing country like South Africa.
2.3 BROAD TRENDS IN CLASSROOM RESEARCH SINCE THE 1960S