Opportunities for Teacher Collaborative Practices in a Self-Managed School System: the New Zealand Experience

Professional collaboration within schools, supporting ongoing adult learning, is one of the most promising ways to improve student performance. This paper charts teacher experiences of a range of collaborative activities in New Zealand schools. Although these schools enjoy considerable flexibility that should support such collaboration, national survey data shows that it varies widely and is not widespread at the high school level. The paper considers reasons for this, including the role of school characteristics, such as the greater complexity of high schools compared with elementary schools, the support given to schools, and other factors that contribute to differences in teacher experiences. Implications for policy that could better underpin in-school professional collaboration are discussed.