The effects of using video to enhance teacher learning in lesson study

Abstract

Lesson study (LS) is a content-specific, reflective and collaborative teacher professional learning activity. It involves investigating a lesson through several circles of planning, teaching, and discussing. LS can improve teachers’ professional knowledge and teaching practice, but several issues may hamper the effectiveness of LS. For instance, teachers sometimes lose sight of student learning during lesson observation and discussion. They may also rely excessively on personal experience rather than on classroom evidence to make pedagogical judgments. To improve LS practice, video can be a useful tool. Considerable video-based (VB) teacher learning projects enhanced teachers’ noticing and reflection abilities. However, the effects of integrating video into LS are still unclear, as VBLS can adopt very different designs compared to previous VB projects. The differences include independent use of video by teachers, video review after the live classroom observation, video clip selection by teachers, and a combination of individual and collective video analyses. Therefore, this study explored whether using video in LS can enhance teacher learning. Teacher learning in LS were examined through the lens of mathematical pedagogical content knowledge (MPCK). This study also investigated teachers’ difficulties in doing VBLS, which could inspire the future improvement. This study was qualitative and interpretive in nature. Two mathematics LS groups from two primary schools in China were recruited. Both LS groups conducted one non-VBLS and one VBLS successively. Multiple data including audio-recordings of post-lesson discussions, teacher interviews, field notes of non-participant observation, and artifacts were collected. Comparison of non-VB and VB discussions revealed positive changes in the types of teacher knowledge, integration of MPCK components, and discourse moves in VB discussions, which suggests that teachers had more productive collective MPCK building in VBLS. Interview data showed that enhancement in MPCK development was associated with teachers’ higher level of collaborative inquiry in VBLS. The use of video led to teachers’ cognitive, behavioral, social, ands affective changes. For instance, reviewing video assisted teachers to pose more questions and collect evidence and information to solve them. Video clip selection allowed teachers to exchange more ideas. Meanwhile, teachers took a stance of research rather than mentoring in video analysis. Finally, this study identified teachers’ difficulties in conducting VBLS without external support. These difficulties included sustaining teachers’ motivation to use video, performing comprehensive video analysis, and technical issues with recoding the video and timetabling the VBLS. Furthermore, four interrelated factors – teachers’ perceptions of video use, teachers’ video analysis ability, school support, and the way of using video – were identified to influence the effective and continuous use of video in LS. Corresponding suggestions for improving the use of video in LS were drawn. This study contributes an effective way to innovate LS. Also, the VBLS model is an alternative design for self-directed and sustainable VB teacher professional learning. In addition, this study establishes a framework for understanding the factors influencing the use of video for professional learning. This framework informs how multiple stakeholders can collaborate to improve LS through the VB approach.