Knowledge management strategies for sustaining Lesson Study

• Published in: International journal for lesson and learning studies Vol. 9; no. 2; pp. 167 - 178
• Main Author: Cheng, Eric C.K
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bingley Emerald Publishing Limited 31.03.2020; Emerald Group Publishing Limited
• Subjects: Explicit knowledge; Instructional Materials; Knowledge Management; Learning; Lesson Plans; School principals; Teacher Characteristics; Teaching; Teaching Methods; Knowledge management; Teacher learning; Hong Kong; Lesson Study
• ISSN: 2046-8253; 2046-8261
• DOI: 10.1108/IJLLS-10-2019-0070

Purpose The purpose of this paper is explore the relative effectiveness of people-based and information technology-based knowledge management (KM) strategies as implemented by principals in Hong Kong schools to facilitate and sustain Lesson Study for teachers’ knowledge sharing and internalization. Design/methodology/approach Data from 184 principals in Hong Kong were collected by a cross-sectional quantitative survey. Confirmatory factor analysis and reliability tests have been used to examine the constructed validity and reliability of the instrument. A structural equation model was applied to confirm the predictive effect of people-based and information technology-based KM strategies on teachers’ knowledge sharing and internalization through Lesson Study. Findings Results show that people-based KM strategy predicts knowledge sharing and internalization by and among teachers. However, while information technology-based knowledge management strategies predict teachers’ knowledge sharing, they do not predict how effectively they internalize knowledge. Practical implications Cultivating communities of practice, professional learning communities and mentoring schemes in schools can nurture a knowledge-sharing culture to facilitate and sustain Lesson Study for teacher learning. Institutionalizing an information technology system can help teachers to retrieve, share and store the school’s explicit knowledge. Originality/value The paper not only suggests school management strategies and practices for school leaders to facilitate and sustain Lesson Study, but also brings a new research dimension, KM, to the research area.