DEVELOPING AND SUSTAINING A COMMUNITY OF INQUIRY AMONG TEACHERS AND TEACHER-EDUCATORS

This article defines and examines a ''community of inquiry'' in a cont ext of teachers' professional development. A five-year project involvi ng teachers and university educators who meet regularly to discuss tea ching and learning (the Learning Strategies Group) is documented and a nalyzed. This extended time frame allows for an examination of the cha nges that have occurred in both substantive features of the deliberati ons in the group and the dynamic features that characterized the natur e of the communication between the participants. Sharing of knowledge, support in knowledge construction, development of collective expertis e, engagement in progressive discourse and recognition among peers are the features of the community of inquiry discussed in the article.