School–University Collaboration for Facilitating In-Service Teacher Training as a Part of School-Based Professional Development

Abstract

Achieving equality in school–university partnerships is challenging. In this study, we examined a school–university partnership in Norway and how the partners worked together to facilitate a school-based in-service teacher training programme. For the purposes of this investigation, we used a theoretical framework specifically developed to explore cross-sectoral collaborations in general. Participants included 135 teachers (101 from an upper secondary school and 34 from a lower secondary school) who participated in and graduated from an on-site in-service teacher training programme on “mentoring and research and development” that awarded participants 15 ECTS credits upon completing the programme. We conclude that a relationship of trust is evident in the way the partners collaborated on developing a curriculum for the programme as well as the programme design throughout the implementation of the programme. We argue that the anchoring processes seem to be of great importance in encouraging internal commitment among the different partners involved. Next, we argue the importance of ‘boundary-spanning champions’ who negotiated and renegotiated the programme design based on close dialogues with the teachers. This was important not only for the internal commitment and trust obtained, but also for the successful design of a school-based programme based on both practice and theory.