The British Council and the Centre for Intrinsic Motivation (CIM) commissioned this collaborative research project, focusing on Communities of Practice (CoPs) for teacher continued professional development (CPD).

Ecctis was commissioned by the British Council to conduct project management and research activities into the current state of implementation, impact and sustainability of CoPs in Maharashtra and New Delhi.

This research project contributes to the strategic insight and innovation outputs planned as part of work done by British Council’s English Programmes team in India. The findings support the British Council’s Teaching for Success programme, which facilitates needs-based and contextualised teacher CPD.

As determined by the client, the main objectives of the research were to:

• Investigate CoPs as a potentially effective CPD model for teachers
• Recognise and establish tools, processes and behaviours that make CoPs effective and sustainable
• Develop a holistic framework that helps education systems embed the CoP model for teacher CPD successfully for overall systemic development.

Achievement of the project objectives also support the goals of India’s National Education Policy (2020) which expects teachers to engage in professional development opportunities “driven by their own interests” [1]. The intended audience of the project research and subsequent outputs is the education policymakers working in teacher education and CPD, and educational researchers and practitioners, such as teachers, head teachers and school leaders, working in schools in India.

[1] Government of India, 2020. National Education Policy. p. 22.

Ecctis devised a bespoke methodological approach to the project and to the principal research activities, which were divided into two core components.

The research activities conducted as part of Component 1 were centred around the following research questions (RQs), all of which were further composed of multiple subquestions:

• RQ1: What is the current state of implementation of CoPs as a model for teacher professional development in Maharashtra and New Delhi?
• RQ2: What has been the impact of CoPs on the professional development of teachers in Maharashtra and New Delhi? What aspects of CoPs have been most and least useful for teachers?
• RQ3: How are CoPs impacting teachers’ classroom practices?
• RQ4: How sustainable is the CoP model?
• RQ5: What factors are currently hindering or facilitating the implementation of CoPs in Maharashtra and New Delhi? What are stakeholders’ developmental needs and capacity-building needs to be able to implement successful CoP models?

The findings from the research conducted in Component 1 of the study are presented in the final report, which includes:

• Literature review
• Key findings from the location-specific analysis of CoP initiatives in Maharashtra and New Delhi
• Key findings from the cross-case study analysis of CoP initiatives in Maharashtra and New Delhi
• A summary of the key findings organised thematically, looking specifically at implementation, impact and sustainability of teacher CoPs in India
• Recommendations and a summary of best practice emerging from the research.

The recommendations are organised thematically, based on the broad themes of best practice in establishing, running and sustaining teacher CoPs in India:

• Capacity building of teachers
• Format, structure and content of the CoP meetings
• Buy-in, awareness and understanding of stakeholders
• Monitoring and evaluation

Component 2 of the research study comprises the production of the following outputs, influenced by the findings of the research conducted in Component 1:

• A toolkit for teachers: to offer practical tips and tools on maximising the value of participation in CoPs
• A CoP guidance framework: to support government and/or education systems to embed and implement the CoP model for teacher professional development.

Ecctis developed the deliverables in this component by triangulating the findings of the international literature review and the two location-specific case studies which explored the implementation, impact and sustainability of CoPs in Maharashtra and New Delhi.

Ecctis developed the content of the toolkit for teachers to be holistic, integrated, flexible and practical in its approach to supporting the implementation of successful CoPs.

The toolkit is designed for education practitioners, such as teachers, teacher educators and/or teacher mentors.

The key objective is to provide evidence-based guidance to equip education practitioners with the understanding needed to implement key practices that enable CoPs to succeed. The toolkit specifically includes a planning tool for establishing a CoP, and a range of useful resources to support the various stages of implementation and maintenance of CoP activities.

The guidance framework is designed to focus specifically on the Indian context, to support senior stakeholders and policymakers working in education policies and systems in India. The guidance framework has three core objectives:

• To raise awareness and establish a common understanding of the role of CoPs in teachers’ CPD and, ultimately, in students’ learning
• To outline potential challenges to the implementation, effectiveness and sustainability of the CoP model and offer practical solutions for how these challenges may be overcome
• To support education policymakers and government officials to embed and implement the CoP model for teacher CPD in their policies and education systems.

Although designed as a context-specific resource, the guidance framework may also provide relevant insights into the challenges and recommended solutions for CoP implementation elsewhere.

In addition to the aforementioned Component 1 and 2 deliverables, Ecctis produced and delivered a presentation to the British Council Global Team, to present the research study, its findings and its recommendations.

Ecctis’ findings from the research project contribute to the further development of teacher CPD initiatives in the following ways:

• Presenting a comparison of international best practice in teachers’ CoPs and current practice in the Indian context, to highlight areas of potential improvement
• Identifying common challenges across both CoPs, and similar ways in which these could be addressed to ensure sustainability of CoP impact on teachers’ learning and professional development
• Highlighting ongoing support measures needed to sustain the impact of CoPs on teachers’ knowledge and skills
• Highlighting a number of necessary conditions that need to be in place to ensure the effective implementation and sustainability of teacher CoPs in the future
• Enabling positive classroom learning environments and supporting students in achieving learning outcomes, through the promotion of effective teacher CPD
• Enabling teachers to develop their teaching practices, by sharing challenges and successes, and supporting teachers in an ongoing manner to make them reflective and independent professionals.

All deliverables for this study are available on the British Council research and insight page.

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