Fostering Professional Learning through Relational Teacher Development: Reconceptualizing the Delivery of Professional Development

Abstract

This article explores the importance of relationship in professional development and professional learning. The four-year relationship between the author and an experienced elementary school teacher is examined. Central to the research puzzle is how the relational stance adopted by the author contributed to the dramatic professional renewal of the teacher. Field notes and journal entries are primary sources of data for this narrative inquiry. Relational teacher development, seven learnings identified as contributing to their shared professional growth, is used as a framework for analysis of the data and is then interpreted in relation to continuing professional learning and school improvement.