Using the online café: usefulness and limitation

An online café was created in February in 2004 after the creation of the CoP in December in 2003. At first, the roles of the online café were somewhat limited. Teachers simply uploaded minutes of the meetings and stored teaching materials that they had developed. Over time, as each teacher had a board for his/her school and each teacher’s pupils had joined the online café, it had influenced teachers’ professional learning. In this section, roles of the online café and its effectiveness and limitations are reported.

In terms of roles of the online café, firstly, sharing each teacher’s pedagogies was the most important role. Teachers posted their pedagogies in the online café. Through reading other members’ teaching plans or materials, teachers were able to indirectly experience other members’ pedagogies.

For example, I could experience his pedagogies by seeing his teaching plans or videos that he uploaded. So, I could get some ideas like ‘Wow! This way of assessment is possible’ or ‘He developed these kinds of activities’. So I could get lots of things through the café (Judy, Interview 6).

For example, John developed an activity about first aid which contained a drama performance assessment last year, and he posted some photos and teaching plans in the online café. I could get his ideas and very specific tips. Actually I am planning to offer first aid lessons next year (laugh). Experiencing members’ pedagogies through the online café is a way to develop pedagogies (Michael, Interview 2).

Secondly, over more the ten years a lot of teaching materials had been accumulated in the online café, which allowed them it to act as a resource.

Actually I searched the online café first whenever I planned new teaching activities. It would be difficult for me to observe others’ teaching so searching the café is a kind of routes getting information and ideas. It is a starting point before asking other teachers or online surfing (George, Interview 7).

Thirdly, along with using online café as a tool for developing pedagogies, teachers also used it as a channel of their personal communications. As a community that is outside of a single school, it was difficult for teachers to meet often. Teachers shared their personal lives through posting in the online café.

If someone does not post his personal news in the online café and does not attend the meetings we couldn’t know his/her recent conditions. It is exactly the case of David … We used to share personal news in the online café. So the online café has been a way of the communications to know members’ personal lives (Judy, Interview 6).

Fourthly, the café had also a function that gave teachers feeling of sense of belonging. As all notices of the CoP were announced through a board of the online café, having a right to access to it meant that he/she had become an official member of the CoP.

First of all, all notices are announced by a board in the online café, so accessing the board means becoming a member in this CoP. It made me feel like ‘Now I could get more help from these great teachers’ (George, Interview 7).

Lastly, one of the important characteristics of the online café was that pupils in each school engaged in the café for their learning. Teachers posted teaching/learning materials which related to their lessons.

And the most important thing is that we have boards for each school. It means pupils actively do something in each school’s board, you know other online cafés of teacher learning communities just have boards for sharing information (Judy, Interview 6).

between them.

In addition to the uses for my teaching and pedagogies, it could be a mean of communications with pupils, I mean I posted pictures of teaching then pupils commented something funny (on that) and I re-commented on the comments, in this sense it is a kind of place for communications (Henry, Interview 6).

Yet, despite the usefulness of using the online café, teachers thought that they had to have face- to-face meetings for their genuine professional learning. Teachers thought that there were big differences between learning generated in the online café and the CoP meetings.

Positive relationships between members is the most important factor of the CoP. Sharing pedagogies can never occur with people who are not familiar with. This is the reason why we all prefer the CoP meeting rather than online communications … something genuine personal communications can be generated only in the CoP meetings (John, Questionnaire). There is a synergy effect (in the CoP meetings). Definitely. I mean there are clear limitations in learning online. In addition, building positive relationships with members is another important reason which I engage in this CoP. So, to me, face-to-face meetings are much more important events than sharing information online (George, Questionnaire).

In summary, despite teachers recognsing the usefulness of using the online café in their professional learning, they thought that they had to have face-to-face meetings for effective learning.