seminar
Networked Communities for Teacher Development in the Knowledge Age
This seminar explores the relevance and feasibility of networked communities for teacher development in developed as well as developing countries. The research was conducted in the context of a UNESCO policy and planning book addressing two challenges: preparing 15-25 million teachers needed in the next 15 years to meet UNESCO s Education for All goal; and to address the challenge of increasing teacher competencies needed for the knowledge age. Networked communities are defined as webs of relationships that grow from computer-mediated discussions. The webs grow from conversations among people who share a common connection (e.g., teacher educators or teachers working in the same university, school, district, or discipline) and who may differ in other ways (e.g., teachers in different locations, specializing in different disciplines or pedagogies).
Lamon is a senior research scientist with the Institute for Knowledge Innovation and Technology (IKIT) and the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. She has been with IKIT since 1996 where she was involved in the Canadian Telelearning National Centres of Excellence program designed to research information and communications technology development in K-12 education. Previously, Lamon directed the international Schools for Thought program, that integrated cognitive research from OISE/UT, Vanderbilt University and the University of California at Berkeley.
Lamon received a PhD in experimental cognitive psychology from the University of Toronto. Her research as a McDonnell post-doctoral fellow led to research in elementary classrooms where students in CSILE classrooms were encouraged to become self-directed, intentional and reflective learners. Lamon is currently researching the evolution of knowledge building communities, the development of teacher expertise, and on how knowledge building & the creation of improvable artifacts increase literacy as a by-product. She is also working on Scardamalia's Beyond Best Practice initiative designed to study and promote innovation across sectors, ages and countries.