Goal of social justice schooling = ambitious

and elusive

In field of educational leadership, this goal is

widely espoused and haltingly pursued

Problem: the requisite learning to pursue goal

is underexamined

Pursuing social justice = developmental process,

namely a learning process

Social learning theory can help scholars and

practitioners pursue socially just schooling

One strand of social learning theory, communities

of practice = powerful tool for analyzing

organizational learning within schools, particularly

those ostensibly learning to move toward social

justice

How do communities of practice affect learning amongst educators in an aspirant socially just school

community?

COMMUNITY:Mutual

Engagement

DOMAIN:Joint Enterprise

PRACTICE:Shared Repertoire

“who” “what” “how”

COMMUNITY:Mutual

Engagement

DOMAIN:Joint Enterprise

PRACTICE:Shared Repertoire

“who” “what” “how”

Sustained mutual relationships

An effective grapevine

Specific tools, artifacts, representations

Harmonious or conflictual

Absence of introductory preambles

Lore, shared stories, inside jokes

Shared ways of doing things together

Quick setup of a problem to be discussed

Jargon and shortcuts to communication

Mutually defining identities and mission

Collective and local processes of interpretation

Shared discourse reflecting a certain perspective on the world

Case Study

Qualitative methodologiesSemi-structured interviews with 21

educators30 hours in formal observationsArchival data

Demographic dataStudent attendance and academic recordsHistory, mission/vision, strategic planning

materials

Mission: “Provide students from diverse family, financial and cultural backgrounds” an education that develops their “spiritual, academic, social, physical and personal integrity”

Faculty

Administration

Staff

School Board

How do communities of practice affect learning amongst educators in

an aspirant socially just school community?

Issue: Growing population of linguistically diverse students

When I was working in the library a parent came in [to the school office] to look into registering her child. And somebody made an announcement over the PA that we had a Spanish speaking family. “Does anybody in the school speak Spanish?!” So then I got back to them and said, “I speak Spanish.” So then the word was out (laughing)! Then that family registered… Every year since we've had more and more Hispanics in because now they realize that there's somebody here who can assist them.

- Ms. Lopez

Communicating with

the growing Latino

Population

First Ms.

Lopez…

New materials, policies, PD

Designed

Emergent

Increase teachers’ efficacy educating culturally and linguistically diverse students

Congruent

Communicating with

the growing Latino

Population

First Ms.

Lopez…

New materials, policies,

practices

Alternate learning:

embracing this

population

Coherent theories of action through which schools actually move from theory to practice

Theory: Learning is not designed directly, but can be “designed for.”

Socially just schooling is not designed per se. Rather, educators can design for such schooling by recognizing the role communities of practice play as fields of this learning, and by supporting these communities of practice to promote transformational learning.

From focusing on structures that promote social justice, to focusing on requisite learning beneath the structures:

This learning is sociocultural, occurring within and across communities of practice (who/what/how)

Examining learning within and across communities of practice can support efforts of educational leaders to design for learning social justice

Communities of practice can facilitate or frustrate the specific learning that promotes social justice

- Thoughts about the conclusions?

- Thoughts about the case of St. Malachy?

- How does this apply to your work?

Martin Scanlan .martin.scanlan@mu.edu