What are our learning needs?

In this phase of the cycle, the focus is on the ISTEs’ learning needs. ISTEs think about what they need to learn and do better in order to help teachers to meet their own learning needs and those of their students. In order to prioritise their learning, ISTEs need to be clear about their current knowledge, values, and beliefs. Like teachers, ISTEs identify an authentic area of concern as the basis for developing an overarching question for inquiry. It is essential that ISTEs make explicit links between their own learning needs and those of the teachers and students.

As well as gathering and analysing evidence of what their practice looks like now, ISTEs also need to gather evidence from a range of sources about what desirable practice might look like. Again, this should include evidence from formal research, such as is presented in the TPLD BES (Timperley et al., 2007). As with teachers/school leaders, it is important to gather and record evidence about current practice and learning goals so that progress can later be evaluated.

ISTEs can use the following questions to guide this part of their inquiry:

• What is the key catalyst for our inquiry?

• What is our problem of practice?

• How have we contributed to the existing school situation?

• What do we already know and do?

• What sources of evidence and/or knowledge can we utilise?

• What do we need to learn and do?

• How will we build on what we already know?

• How will we measure improvement?

Collaborative critical reflection on this information enables ISTEs to address two key questions:

• What is our inquiry question?

• What are our beliefs and assumptions in relation to our inquiry question?

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