Changing Cultural Conditions for Knowledge Sharing in the Teaching Profession: A Theoretical Reinterpretation of Findings Across Three Research Projects

Abstract

How professionalism relates to developments in society has been widely discussed, and concepts such as “hybrid” and “connective” professionalism have been proposed to account for the way professionals interact with a range of actors and organisations beyond the professional realm. However, the critical role of knowledge-sharing practices for developing and maintaining professionalism has attracted less attention. Such practices have been conditioned by wider cultural dynamics, thus subjected to changes over time. In this paper, we present a theoretical reinterpretation of findings from three projects targeting knowledge-sharing practices in the Norwegian teaching profession over 14 years. We employ Knorr Cetina’s theory of epistemic cultures as nourished by the wider knowledge culture in society to analyse how changes in knowledge-sharing practices relate to cultural conditions. The paper contributes to current debates about professionalism by highlighting how connectivity and legitimacy depend on productive knowledge relations within and beyond professional boundaries.

Organisational learning in complex epistemic environments: reflections from studies of professional work in Norway

“…In the examples from the teaching profession, the complexity of the environment was related to new actors and stakeholder relations aimed at influencing teachers’ work, as well as to increased formalisation of knowledge sharing through material tools and infrastructures. These two aspects seem to have reinforced each other over time, providing productive conditions for professional and organisational learning through the way local work practices are linked to the wider expert culture (Jensen et al , 2022). Importantly, the way work is organised and the relatively low power distance that characterises the teaching profession seem to allow large groups of professionals to take part in explorative and constructive practices.…”

“…Over time, our analyses have shown increased epistemic responsibilities in teachers’ work. In the early 2000s, we depicted teachers’ knowledge culture as characterised by locally bounded knowledge sharing around practical problems of teaching, in which experience-based knowledge was given priority within primarily spoken face-to-face communication (Nerland, 2012; Jensen et al , 2022). At this time, teachers’ responsibilities for knowledge generation and engagement in epistemic practices were found to be limited.…”

“…In the school where this study was conducted, the opportunities were distributed widely and with low power distance; a team-based organisation of work was employed, in which all teachers were expected to contribute. Moreover, these practices link actors and sites in the expert culture and facilitate knowledge sharing within and across organisational boundaries (Jensen et al , 2022).…”

Methodological Insights on Teachers’ Professional Agency in Narratives

“…The study contributed to challenges in integrating different knowledge domains into teachers' professional work (Hermansen, 2020) and the need to recognise knowledge sharing and epistemic engagement as important to teachers' competencies in educating teachers (Jensen et al, 2022). For its part, it contributed to the challenge addressed in shifting attention from individual autonomy to the performance of a collective teacher community and their epistemic agency, as well as the recognition of a research-oriented teacher role (Jensen et al, 2022). Notably, forcing this example into strict categories of "strong or weak" agency or as "agentic or passive" would simply not work.…”

Epistemisk samspill - og motspill. Bruk av eksterne kunnskapsressurser i lokalt utviklingsarbeid

“…I takt med utviklingen i andre profesjoner, har også laererprofesjonens landskap blitt mer komplekst og involverer flere kunnskapsprodusenter og nye infrastrukturer for kunnskapsdeling. Det er økt behov for å anerkjenne kunnskapsdeling og epistemisk engasjement for å opprettholde og utvikle laerernes kompetanse og profesjonalitet (Jensen et al, 2022). Profesjonsutøvelse forutsetter kollektivt samarbeid, hvor profesjonsfellesskapet holder seg faglig oppdatert, velger relevante og pålitelige kunnskapsressurser, og bruker og validerer ny kunnskap for å forbedre egen praksis.…”