Linking Network Learning Capacity (NLC) to professional community and organizational learning in an International Baccalaureate (IB) school in Taiwan
Journal of Educational Administration
ISSN: 0957-8234
Article publication date: 6 July 2018
Issue publication date: 17 October 2018
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore a concept that has been less examined in empirical research on school organization, namely Network Learning Capacity (NLC). It is proposed that teachers’ professional networks enhance teachers’ individual NLC. This process leads to a formation of professional community (PC) and therefore affects the level of organizational learning (OL).
Design/methodology/approach
The quantitative study with multiple methods comprising social network analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling was conducted. Data were collected from a school implementing the International Baccalaureate (IB) programs in Taiwan.
Findings
Findings suggest that certain network positions were crucial in forming NLC on instruction. In addition, reflective dialogue, shaped by NLC, is the key component in establishing learning in this case school.
Originality/value
As the first of its kind in an educational context, the study highlights the linkages between network position and the development of professional learning community, which is mediated through NLC. This study contributes to illuminating the process of how PC practices and OL can be promoted in schools.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
An earlier version of the paper was presented at conferences such as the XXXV Sunbelt Conference of the International Network for Social Network Analysis (INSNA), Brighton, UK, 2015 and the Annual Conference of the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ISCEI), Yogyakarta, Indonesia, 2014. The authors appreciate the reviewers’ insightful comments to improve the paper.
Citation
Lin, W. and Lee, M. (2018), "Linking Network Learning Capacity (NLC) to professional community and organizational learning in an International Baccalaureate (IB) school in Taiwan", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 56 No. 6, pp. 620-642. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-10-2017-0150
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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