Understanding Teacher Learning in Professional Learning Communities in China : Experiences from a Shanghai Junior Secondary School

Based on six-month fieldwork in a junior secondary school in Shanghai, this book qualitatively investigates the implementation of Teaching Research Groups (TRGs), a form of school-based Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) in China, and teachers’ different professional learning experiences within the structure of TRGs. The author situates teacher professional learning in TRGs within broader historical, social, and cultural contexts and further suggests that the practice of TRGs reflects the Chinese approach of balancing the seemly complex dualities (e.g., commitment and control, collaboration and authority, and individual and collective approaches) in educational settings. This book supplements the present knowledge base on PLCs in the context of China and thus enriches the global discussion on constructing effective PLCs for teacher professional learning. Scholars and students studying teacher professional learning and development, PLCs, school improvement, and Chinese schooling would find this book helpful.