Teacher development in an evolving online professional learning community: an action research study

Professional learning communities (PLCs) have long been regarded as effective for professional development; their operational processes, however, are largely unexplored in the literature. This paper examines the dynamic process of an online PLC by using an action research approach to explore the role of different collaborative learning methods. Data were collected using observations, field notes, interviews, video records, and various artefacts. Surveys were also used to examine the teachers' competencies. The findings confirm the positive effects of online PLCs on teachers' competencies and the formation of a learning culture. Moreover, each of the three collaborative learning approaches has distinct advantages for teachers at different stages of development. This result highlights that the forms of collaboration in online PLCs are subject to negotiation and change as the community develops; the potential of online PLCs should be continuously explored using process-oriented, context-sensitive methods.