The Future of Education

This paper presents a study of teacher and principal professional learning networks (PLNs) in coastal Kenya.  The PLNs were created by the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa Professional Development Center (PDC) to extend its outreach programs for practicing primary school principal and teachers through the creation of 2 head teacher and 2 teacher (English and Math) professional associations of program alumni.  The associations are organized in school clusters and meet monthly at cluster and association levels as self-governing professional learning networks. This research is aligned with the literature on educator networks as a strategy for in-service teacher and school leader development.  The use of networks in Low and Middle Income Country education contexts is a promising focus for practice and for research to explore the experiences, challenges and benefits of networks for participants, schools and student learning.  The research questions targeted (1) the activities of PLN participants; (2) network leadership; (3) participant outcomes; (4) impact in PLN member schools; and (5) network sustainability. The study used a multi-method qualitative research design.  It was carried out from September 2015 to March 2017, including 3 two-week field trips to Kenya. Data included: document analysis; 83 personal interviews with PLN members and other stakeholders; 4 focus group interviews; observation of 19 PLN meetings; and classroom observation of PLN teachers and a comparison group of teachers in 12 participating schools. This paper reviews challenges that have implications for school improvement and professional learning networks in many contexts, not just in the Kenya. They are thematically grouped into professional learning (deepening teacher learning and expertise, strengthening the bias for action towards learning, balancing learning of innovative practices with improvement in traditional practices), knowledge mobilization (banking and mobilizing knowledge about what works, strengthening the professional learning potential of outreach activities); network leadership and organisation (network leadership versus network management; school networks as an alternative to individual networks); and school system integration (recognition and reward for PLN participation, expanding membership in the PLNs, partnering with the education system, strengthening professional community in schools).

Keywords: Education networks, teacher development, principal development;