High-engagement online discussions among teachers
A configurational analysis of a three-year professional learning community from a complex dynamic perspective
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21632860 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Mengqian Wang (0000-0002-8931-6700, Capital Normal University, corresponding author), Lijiao Wang (0000-0002-7708-2062, Capital Normal University), Tao Feng (0009-0009-7262-1432, Capital Normal University), Xin Gong (0000-0002-9018-918X, Capital Normal University), Wenfang Wang (0000-0003-1603-6166, Capital Normal University), Wang Wenfang (Capital Normal University), Lu Wang (0000-0002-9250-3988, Capital Normal University) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 34 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 2438-2452 |
| Publication date | 2026-04-21 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Interactive Learning Environments (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1049-4820 • E-ISSN: 1744-5191 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/10494820.2025.2545956 |
| OpenAlex | W4413207591 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 46 |
To deepen understanding of the mechanisms influencing teachers’ engagement in online professional discussions, this study adopts a configurational approach to explore 56 discussion cases within a three-year teachers’ online professional learning community from a complex dynamic perspective. It considers the combined influence of various discussion features – including discussion time, design, and facilitation – through two rounds of crisp-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (csQCA). Separate analysis was conducted for teachers’ individual participation and group interaction. After calculating necessity, creating truth table, verifying robustness, examining interactive effects, and explaining the configurations, we identify significant nuanced differences in the formation mechanisms of highly completed discussions versus highly interactive discussions. Highly completed discussions exhibit a periodic pattern and high authenticity, whereas highly interactive discussions show a periodic yet decreasing pattern and high collaboration levels. This periodicity in both individual learning and social learning reflects teachers’ recurring work-learning conflict and burnout. Consequently, designing and scheduling online discussions needs to take time factors into consideration. Furthermore, well-designed discussion prompts and sufficient facilitation collectively enhance teachers’ engagement in discussions within online professional learning communities, especially that practice-oriented design optimizes teachers’ individual participation, while clear collaborative requirements strengthen teachers’ group interaction
Educational technology · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Sociology · Computer Science · Educational Assessment and Improvement · Online and Blended Learning · Online Learning and Analytics · Psychology
Redesigning Social Inquiry
Communities of Practice and Social Learning Systems
Teaching Replays, Teaching Rehearsals, and Re-Visions of Practice
Teacher learning in the context of educational innovation
Professional communities and student achievement – a meta-analysis
High-tech, hard work
Crisp-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (csQCA)
Networking for online teacher collaboration
No teacher is an island
The learning behaviours of dropouts in Moocs
Qualitative Comparative Analysis in Education Research
The Comparative Method
Grappling with technology
Dialogic understanding of teachers' online transformative learning
Teachers ‘liking’ their work? Exploring the realities of teacher Facebook groups
Scaffolding Collaborative Exchanges Between Expert and Novice Language Teachers in Threaded Discussions
What Makes Professional Development Effective? Results From a National Sample of Teachers
Symmetric and asymmetric motivations for compliance and violation
Analyzing Online Teacher Networks
Assessing the Robustness of Crisp-set and Fuzzy-set QCA Results
| Highly cited | No |
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