Intergenerational professional development and learning of teachers: a mixed methods study

Abstract

Schools, as in the case of other organizations, face complex challenges due to generational phenomena. In addition to an increasingly aging teaching workforce, schools are becoming more age-diverse, with coexisting multiple generations. Two consequences of this situation are the declining availability of relevant and critical knowledge for schools as teachers retire and the difficulties associated with maintaining professional relationships among teachers of different generations. These challenges have highlighted the significance of understanding the relevance of generations of teachers and identifying ways to build on generational diversity. Specifically, intergenerational collaboration and learning are needed to meet these challenges. Accordingly, this study aims to (1) examine generational diversity among teachers, (2) inquire into their interactions and the learning processes accompanying collaborative experiences in professional development, and (3) explore how these experiences and processes can enhance professional learning and practice. To this end, an exploratory mixed methods research project is conducted, comprising a multiphase design with two exploratory sequential studies (QUAL→quan). The participants are a sample of beginner, veteran, and retired teachers from Spain’s publicly funded schools. In the qualitative strands of the study, data collection techniques comprise focus groups and semi-structured in-depth interviews followed by thematic analysis. In the quantitative strands, questionnaires (a multidimensional scale and a survey experiment) are the major data sources, which are subjected to descriptive and inferential statistical (factor and conjoint) analyses. The focus is primarily on the qualitative strands.