“Innovation and best practices can be sown throughout an organization –

      but only when they fall on fertile ground.”Marcus Buckingham

      1.Schools and the culture of learning organization

      OECD states: Today’s schools must equip students with the knowledge and skills they’ll need to succeed in an uncertain, constantly changing tomorrow. But many schools look much the same today as they did a generation ago, and too many teachers are not developing the pedagogies and practices required to meet the diverse needs of 21st-century learners. In response, a growing body of scholars, educators and policy makers is making the case that schools should be reconceptualised as “learning organisations” that can react more quickly to changing external environments, embrace innovations in internal organisation, and ultimately improve student outcomes. The concept of the learning organisation began to gain popularity in the late 1980s. While the literature is disparate, it is generally agreed that the learning organisation is a necessity, is suitable for any organisation and that an organisation’s learning capability will be the only sustainable competitive advantage in the future. Most scholars see the learning organisation as a multi-level concept involving individual behaviour, teamwork, and organisation-wide practices and culture. A learning organisation is a place where the beliefs, values and norms of employees are brought to bear in support of sustained learning; where a “learning atmosphere”, “learning culture” or “learning climate” is nurtured; and where “learning to learn” is essential for everyone involved.

      The so-called “teacher research” contributes to recognizing the school as a learning organization. Teacher research stems from questioning and seeking theoretical or practical solutions to issues in the teacher’s professional life. Teacher research is intentional and systematic inquiry conducted by the teachers with the goals of learning, gaining insights, coping with the changes, and gaining improvements in the lives of children. Teacher research is a higher form of professional development, maybe the highest. Why teacher research is needed?

      Scholarly research in education, conducted by university researchers or independent scholars, can have a limited impact on the educational practice. On many occasions, scholars investigate problems that teachers in schools perceive as irrelevant. Teachers see scholar work only for the purpose of publishing in peer-reviewed journals instead of disseminating their findings in schools. Teachers see scholars as impractical, that they only generalize things rather than improving school practices. And the teachers are right.

      Teachers who cannot, or do not share their knowledge and transfer skills to other colleagues, limit the development of the school’s culture of learning. One form of sharing knowledge is doing teacher research and presenting at international conferences.

      Teacher research needs help from other experienced teachers (mentors) and their work is based on teamwork. Students are always in focus of teacher research.