Teachers' perspectives of pedagogy in a learning community: Critical Friends Groups

The study's purpose was to seek a description of teachers' perspectives of Critical Friends Groups on their pedagogy and investigate the effect of the learning community on their teacher beliefs in the suburban middle school environment. The learning community, Critical Friends Groups (CFG), examined members' perspectives to determine how CFG's involvement affected teacher members' perspectives of their pedagogy. The case study focused on CFG teachers' perspectives of instructional strategies in practice from group involvement and participation in CFG meetings.; One seven-member CFG met monthly to improve practice and implement curriculum. The CFG process created a professional, collegial community, where members discussed instruction and analyzed samples of students' work and their own work and conducted peer observations. The Critical Friends Group selected a yearlong district goal on which to focus instructional learning in monthly meetings. The following questions were explored in the suburban setting: (a) How did members of Critical Friends Group think participating in the group affected the pedagogy of members? (b) How had the Critical Friends Group affected members' perspectives on their own classrooms?; The qualitative case study examined seven CFG participants involved in one CFG, selecting a specific district goal as a yearlong meeting focus. Multiple methods of data collection and analysis were used, consisting of semi-structured interviews, closed, ongoing district documents, journal reflections, and field observations. Existing theory was verified, and additional information about effective professional learning communities and their ability to promote future reform in schools was provided in the study. Information was provided for understanding the effectiveness of studying learning communities and their effect of implementing new teaching strategies in the classroom.; Analysis of data revealed the following: (1) effects of learning new instructional strategies, (2) developing communication between group members, and (3) providing opportunities for members to practice learned strategies with feedback from other experienced group members. Each member was actively involved with extra activities in the middle school that revolved around best practices. The membership of the group affected each member by giving them new ideas, strategies, and constructive feedback and turned their teaching philosophy and views of teaching completely around for them.