Abstract
This study advocates for the use of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) as an effective structure to enhance professional teacher development in primary schools. There is a strong need for professional development since very little emphasis is placed on teacher development in schools and also by education districts. As a result, this has negatively impacted on effective teaching and learning in many schools in South Africa. Some of the fundamental reasons for poor student achievement as reflected in the Annual National Assessment and the National Senior Certificate examination results are teachers lack of subject expertise and teaching skills. The aim of this study was to determine how to build professional learning communities (PLC) to enhance professional teacher development in primary schools. This study uses the collaborative learning theory and andragogy to understand how adults learn and how this knowledge can be used to build collaboration among teachers. PLCs are deemed to be an aspect of professional teacher development. For this study, an interpretivist generic qualitative approach was undertaken to understand the perceptions and experiences of teachers in primary school regarding their professional development. Twelve intermediate senior teachers were interviewed and from the data collected, three themes emerged. The first theme was “Teachers understanding of professional learning communities; the second theme that emerged was “How teachers applied CPD as an aspect of PLC”; and the third theme provided insight into “The experiences and perceptions of teachers regarding CPD as an aspect of PLC”. Teachers felt that they can benefit from PLCs meetings if it had a clear agenda, a set time during school hours and had follow-up or feedback sessions to monitor their progress. Teachers recommended the use of technology to create online platforms to promote teacher development. Keywords: Professional development, Professional Learning Communities, collaboration, teacher knowledge, teaching skills
M.Ed. (Educational Leadership and Management)