Colin Biott – författare

Originally published in 1994, Collaborative Learning in Staffrooms and Classrooms seeks to widen definitions of collaborative learning beyond formal groupwork in classrooms and organised teamwork in staffrooms. This is done through examining a rich variety of actual experiences of working together. Evidence from classrooms and staffrooms is used to reconceptualise collaborative learning, in order to reduce the inertia, indifference and doubt which limit its use; and to overcome the tendency for it to be used as a means of control rather than as a support for learning.

Originally published in 1991, the material in this book was carefully organized to enhance the understanding of the role and work of the increasing number of advisory or support teachers in the United Kingdom at the time. Drawing on first-hand experience, it includes personal accounts from two semi-detached teachers who have taken the risk of doing their jobs in other people’s schools and classrooms. The book goes on to look at the implicit models of professional development which shape the practices of advisory teachers, advocating approaches which emphasize collaboration and enquiry. Issues in the management of support and advisory services are also addressed, with detailed accounts of how pilot projects, enquiries, INSET and the use of external consultants have helped schools to develop and clarify the roles, principles and procedures of support. In the final chapter, the focus shifts to the different school contexts in which the advisory teachers work. Using case-study material, it addresses the question of whether it is essential to have the right preconditions in schools before support can be effective for the whole school, or whether advisory teaching projects can contribute towards the building of those conditions. Written in a lively and accessible style, this book will be of interest to both experienced and new advisory teachers alike. Today it can be read in its historical context.