Investigating Knowledge Exchange amongst School Teachers, University Teacher Educators and Industry Partners - Issue 5 - Abstract and study results

Oct 15, 2026

This article reports a study in which school teachers, university teacher educators, and an industry software company formed a learning community to enable knowledge exchange on pedagogical approaches using mobile technologies. An interpretivist methodology guided the work. Collaboration fostered reflection on practice and helped develop innovative pedagogies. Outcomes differed by role: teachers gained new approaches, teacher educators improved theory-practice alignment, and the industry partner learned how to support other schools’ technology knowledge exchange.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Learning communities and professional learning

Mobile devices and pedagogical affordances

The Sydney project and stakeholders

Knowledge exchange focus and research questions

Australian Journal of Teacher Education | Volume 42 | Issue 3 | Article 5 | | --- | --- | | 2017
Investigating Knowledge Exchange amongst School Teachers, University Teacher Educators and Industry Partners.
Damian Maher
University of Technology Sydney, [damian.maher@uts.edu.au](damian.maher@uts.edu.au)
Sandy Schuck
University of Technology, Sydney, [sandy.schuck@uts.edu.au](sandy.schuck@uts.edu.au)
Rachel Perry
University of Technology Sydney | | Recommended Citation Maher, D., Schuck, S., & Perry, R. (2017). Investigating Knowledge Exchange amongst School Teachers, University Teacher Educatorsand Industry Partners.. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 42 (3). [http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2017v42n3.5](http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2017v42n3.5) This Journal Article is posted at Research Online. [http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol42/iss3/5](http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol42/iss3/5) Australian Journal of Teacher Education Investigating Knowledge Exchange amongst School Teachers, University Teacher Educators and Industry Partners. Damian Maher Sandy Schuck Rachel Perry University of Technology, Sydney Abstract: This article reports on a study in which teachers, university teacher educators and a software company formed a learning community which provided a mechanism for knowledge exchange regarding pedagogical approaches using mobile technologies. The study employed an interpretivist methodology. The findings indicated that the collaboration promoted reflection on practice and facilitated development of innovative pedagogies. All partners benefited through this knowledge exchange: the teachers developed new approaches and ways of thinking about teaching; the teacher educators gained insights informing their practice and feedback on theory-practice alignment; and the industry partner derived insights on how to support other schools in technology knowledge exchange. Introduction Educational technologies that are potentially able to enhance students’ learning are becoming more commonplace, diverse and powerful. One such technology is the mobile device. This technology has the potential to allow teachers and students to learn anywhere, anytime, inflexible ways and flexible locations. In order for teachers to successfully integrate the use of mobile devices into their teaching for effective learning, it is important that they be provided with professional learning opportunities to become familiar with the technological and pedagogical affordances of the devices. One way these opportunities can be offered is through establishment of learning communities that provide for knowledge exchange between different organisations. Establishing a learning community is often suggested as a way to support the professional learning of teachers in schools (Hsu & Sharma, 2008; MacDonald, 2008) . Most of the research on such professional learning communities has considered communities of school teachers only (Stoll & Seashore Louis, 2007). However, such communities can include a variety of stakeholders such as universities and industry partners. In particular, the roles that various organisations play in the community and the benefits gained for all partners through participation in the community may be significant. This article reports on research on a learning community comprising three different stakeholders (school, university and industry) and investigates the knowledge exchange that occurred. Communities can take a variety of forms: some meet face-to-face to support their ideas; while the advent of online collaborative spaces has meant that members can build the community Vol 42, 3, March 2017 73 Australian Journal of Teacher Education through sharing resources and ideas online in a blended community, that is, through a mix of face-to-face and online interactions. In this article, we examine how the community transcends more traditional forms of interaction.

FAQs

What learning community did the study investigate?

The study examined a community involving three stakeholder groups: school teachers, university teacher educators, and an industry software partner.

Which research method was used?

The study employed an interpretivist methodology.

How did knowledge exchange benefit the different partners?

Teachers developed new approaches to teaching; teacher educators gained insights for their practice and theory-practice alignment; the industry partner gained guidance on supporting other schools’ technology knowledge exchange.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by 4398046744996