Teachers’ experiences of collaboration in alternate education : a phenomenological inquiry

This research aimed to capture teachers’ perceptions of collaboration in alternate education with the goal of making recommendations for the future. Many studies have varying definitions and structures for collaboration, revealing the importance of context. This study used phenomenology to conduct interviews with four participants at an alternate education school that has a weekly collaboration structure within the timetable. These interviews gathered rich data of teachers’ experiences of collaboration using in vivo coding for data analyses. The findings resulted in a conceptualization of collaboration through togetherness, relevance to context, professional learning, and collaborative communities. Additionally, participants’ experiences of collaboration were influenced by planning for collaboration, attitudes towards collaboration, and engaging in collaboration. Finally, participants made suggestions to increase the effectiveness of collaboration, including restructuring collaboration, increasing teachers’ voice and choice, as well as enhancing accountability among teachers and administrators. This research suggests a need for more research on collaboration to be conducted in alternate education settings.