Inspiring teaching: learning from exemplary practitioners

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the concept of ' inspiring teaching' based on case studies of exemplary practitioners in England to inform professional development and collaborative learning and support school improvement. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a mixed methods design involving multiple perspectives. Data sources included interviews with teachers, two systematic classroom observation schedules and qualitative field notes from classroom observations. Quantitative and qualitative findings were integrated to allow for triangulation and synthesis. Findings The ‘inspiring’ sample of teachers exhibited many strengths in terms of the characteristics of more effective teaching identified in previous literature. However, the integration and synthesis of evidence also reveals core features of inspiring practice and highlighted the strong emotional and reflective components that distinguish inspiring practice, including: positive relationships; good classroom/behaviour management; positive and supportive climate; formative feedback; high quality learning experiences; enjoyment, and high levels of student engagement and motivation. Research limitations/implications This small-scale study was based on a purposive sample of 17 teachers in England therefore results cannot necessarily be generalised to other contexts. Practical implications The research findings and approaches can be used to support teachers' professional development and provide resources to promote collaboration in developing professional learning communities. Originality/value The investigation provides new evidence on the characteristics, practices and views of inspiring teachers. The use of multiple perspectives and integration of findings provides new evidence to inform and support the development of professional learning communities.

‘It ain't (only) what you do, it's the way that you do it’: A mixed method approach to the study of inspiring teachers

“…Quantitative data was also ‘qualitized’, though the process of finding and describing a discrete set of dimensions or components that could then be compared with the qualitative themes. (Sammons et al., 2016a, p. 170)…”

“…To fully explore the notion of ‘inspiring’ teachers, the research adopted a mixed methods design to investigate and identify ‘features of good practice’ as well as to ‘understand these exemplary teachers’ views and conceptions of their work and the perspectives of their students’ (Sammons et al., 2016a, p. 16).…”

“…Most participants (14 out of 17) stated that they had responsibilities in addition to their teaching role, including ‘Key Stage manager, subject department heads, assistant head teacher, deputy head teacher and advanced skills teacher’ (Sammons et al., 2016a, p. 160). Thus, the sample included middle and senior leaders, as well as teachers without specific responsibilities.…”

“…However, in addition to collecting data from participant teachers, data were also generated via tools administered to the head teachers and students taught in a class from each teacher. Instruments utilised for this research had been designed, developed ‘and/or validated in the English context’ (Sammons et al., 2016a, p. 17) during a previous ESRC‐funded study of Effective Classroom Practice (ECP) (Kington et al., ). These included: Semi‐structured interviews—face‐to‐face interviews were conducted to collect the views, opinions and perceptions of teachers (Appendix ); Classroom systematic observation—two international observational instruments were administered in each classroom to explore teacher behaviours and effectiveness (Appendix and ); Classroom qualitative field notes—these were collected in each classroom giving a rich description of the lessons under observation; Ranking sheets—these were emailed to teachers and head teachers to explore the relative importance assigned to a number of teacher attributes; Student survey—this questionnaire was administered by the research team to students taught by participant teachers to collect their perceptions and views. …”

“…The Academy chain had a tradition of funding research, both external and supporting action research within its schools. The head teachers nominated practitioners in their schools that they felt demonstrated characteristics of ‘inspiring’ teachers in order that findings from the externally funded research study could be shared later as a part of professional development programme within the CST (CfBT Schools Trust) academy chain (Sammons et al., ,b) and to support these schools’ engagement with research evidence. The main aim of the research was to study and understand good practice, with a special focus on the notion of learning from ‘inspiring’ classroom practitioners in the MAT with a view to sharing the findings to encourage collaboration among staff, and contribute to enhancing teaching and learning across the CST.…”