Resumen de Building a Professional Community of Teacher Educators through a Self-Study Network in Chile

Adrián Rodrigo Fuentealba Jara, Tom Russell, Carolina Hirmas

• This paper analyzes and interprets the early meetings of a network of individuals in seven universities in Chile, supported by one international agency and one international critical friend. The network of 16 teacher educators focuses on the introduction of self-study of teacher education practices following the publication of a book that makes self-study methods accessible to Spanish-speaking teacher educators. The core data for analysis are recordings of the first four meetings of the network. The initial meeting focused on creating a trusting environment and explored basic questions such as ‘What is a self-study group?’ and ‘How is self-study different from reflective practice?’ Self-study is being explored from personal, professional, and institutional perspectives. Small groups within the network are working in several formats: weekly meetings with a critical friend, biweekly video analysis of one person’s teaching, and exit slips written by students and analyzed with critical friends. The group has identified several important features of the network that they find encouraging: When they attend and participate, they have a strong sense that they are not alone in their work. Also, the meetings provide space and encouragement to think differently about teaching teachers. The paper presents illustrative accounts of early changes that members of the network have made in their teaching and the effects that they have observed and documented in personal practice. Conclusions focus on strategies for constructing and supporting a self-study network and the role of critical friends in fostering trustworthiness in data analysis.