This document summarizes a presentation about teacher networks for professional development. It discusses the context of teachers' needs for professional development and the benefits of teacher collaboration. It presents eTwinning as a case study of a teacher network and social media platform, which currently has over 183,000 registered teachers. Social Network Analysis methods are applied to study connections between teachers in eTwinning and how information spreads through the network. The presentation concludes by welcoming attendees to an evening book launch and further sessions on teachers' use of social media in schools and the future of teacher networks in 2025.

1. Social media networks in schools and
in teachers’ lives
Media & Learning Conference
Brussels, Belgium
14.11.2012
dr. Riina Vuorikari
Tellnet project manager
European Schoolnet

2. Welcome - this session!
• Teacher networks for professional development
Riina Vuorikari,
Tellnet Project manager, European Schoolnet
• Teachers’ use of social media in schools
Janice Richardson,
Coordinator of the Insafe and SMILE, European Schoolnet
• Teacher networks in 2025
Yves Punie,
Institute for Prospective Technological Studies

3. Who am I?
• Dr. Riina Vuorikari from Finland
• Background in Education,
Hypermedia, and Information and
Knowledge Systems
• 2000-2011
in European Schoolnet as
Senior Research Analyst and
Project Manager
• 2012 -> “Free agent”

4. Teacher networks for
professional development

5. Outline of this presentation
• Context:
– What are teachers needs for professional development?
– What are teacher networks?
– What is teachers’ co-operation?
• Case study: eTwinning
– Social Network Analysis (SNA) for teacher networks

6. Some context
for this workshop

7. Context 1.
“ more than half of the teachers surveyed
reported having wanted
more professional development
than they had received.”
Teaching and Learning International Survey (Talis)
OECD, 2009

8. Context 1.

9. Index of professional dev elopment nee d
(2007-08)
Index (Max=100) Scored across 11 aspects of teachers' work
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Slovenia
TALIS
Poland
Bulgaria
Spain
Lithuania
Belgium(Fl.)
Norway
Turkey
Slovak
Estonia
Australia
Malaysia
Hungary
Brazil
Iceland
Korea
Austria
Mexico
Italy
Ireland
Denmark
Portugal
Malta
Countries are ranked in descending order of
index of professional development
Source: OECD. T able 3.4

10. TALIS, OECD, 2009

11. TALIS, OECD, 2009

12. Why are teacher networks?
• Learning networks, i.e. technology-supported
Context 2.
communities
– learners share knowledge with one another
– jointly develop new knowledge
• Can exist on many levels
– within a school
– across schools at regional, national and
international level
• More and more often, blended networks
=> digital world is mixed with the physical one
Like our
lives too!

13. Why are teacher networks?
• Includes various forms of teachers’
co-operation, i.e. teaches working together in
groups or teams to improve educational processes
and outcomes (OECD, 2009)
Context 2.
• Contribute to the quality of
– the teaching profession and
– the learning experience of students
– by encouraging collaboration and knowledge
exchange at both teacher and student level

14. Teachers’ co-operation
Context 3.
• The TALIS (OECD, 2009) studied various
forms of teachers working together
– Frequency to undertake activities on 6-point
scale ranging from “never” to “weekly”
• Possible to group activities:
– Exchange and co-ordination for teaching
– Professional collaboration

15. Teachers’ co-operation
EXCHANGE AND PROFESSIONAL
CO-ORDINATION for teaching COLLABORATION
• Discuss and decide on the selection • Observe other teachers’
of instructional media (e.g. textbooks, classes and provide feedback.
exercise books).
• Teach jointly as a team in the
• Exchange teaching materials with same class.
colleagues.
• Engage in joint activities
• Attend team conferences for the age across different classes and
group I teach. age groups (e.g. projects).
eTwinning
projects!

16. Benefits of teachers’
co-operation
• Co-operation among staff creates opportunities for
– social and emotional support,
– exchange of ideas and
– practical advice.
• It can enhance
– professionalism,
– feelings of self-efficacy and
– prevent stress and “burnout”
• Different kinds of collaboration may not have the same effects!

17. The case study
-
eTwinning

18. 183162 teachers

19. eTwinning offers Teachers’
co-operation
1. Cross-border school projects
• Using Information and Communication Technologies
2. Formal and informal professional development
• On-line: distance courses and online interest for teachers,
• Off-line: Professional Development Workshops,
national meetings
3. Social networking tools

23. Social Network Analysis (SNA) for
teacher networks
A contact of
my contact knows
a contact of your
contact!

24. Does social capital exist in eTwinning?
• Social capital
• ability of actors to derive benefits from their membership in
social networks
• a property of the teachers and of groups
Gatekeeper

25. Spreading a
positive virus
called
pedagogical
innovation.
Who will not
get the virus?

26. Channels through which
information, ideas and innovation flow


27. Who will
not get
the virus?
The ones who
are not
connected, e.g.
who are not
collaborating with
others.

28. www.tellnet.eun.org
• SNA (Social Network Analysis) methods can be well
applied to the study of Teacher networks, e.g.
eTwinning
• Teachers position in the network can be an indicator for
their “performance” in eTwinning projects and their
potential development path
• More studies are needed to understand how, when
and why teacher networks advance
learning!

29. This evening!
• The Tellnet book launch - after workshops just before the award
ceremony
• Everyone welcome!

30. Welcome - this session!
• Teachers’ use of social media in schools
Janice Richardson,
Coordinator of the Insafe and SMILE, European Schoolnet

31. Welcome - this session!
• Teacher networks in 2025
Yves Punie,
Institute for Prospective Technological Studies