Multimedia Cases of Practice: On-line Learning Opportunities For School Leaders

Abstract

Computer-based multimedia technologies have great potential for providing rich learning opportunities for school leaders in the context of their work. One promising avenue is the development of hypertext narratives of practice that can capture and communicate the complexities of exemplary leadership practice. This paper discusses the construction and user-testing of a multimedia narrative of practice based on Breakfast Club, an innovative program intended to develop a professional community in an urban elementary school. First, the paper develops an account of professional expertise that suggests the practical wisdom of school leaders needs to be represented in context. Multimedia cases of practice that represent such wisdom begin with the programs school leaders design to alter the instructional programs of their schools. Second, the paper describes the development of a question-based multimedia case of practice designed around the questions that school leaders are likely to ask about new programs in order to facilitate their own understanding. Finally, the paper offers an analysis of a round of user-testing with fourteen school leaders conducted to refine and rebuild the multimedia narrative.

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