Patterns of Teacher Collaboration in East and Southeast Asia: Insights from TALIS 2018

Abstract

Using the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2018 data from six East and Southeast Asian systems (Shanghai in China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam), this study distinguishes two forms of teacher collaboration –exchange/coordination and curriculum-focused professional work – and examines individual and organisational correlates. A SEM-based measurement model showed good fit in the pooled data. In South Korea, the three self-efficacy facets converged into a single factor, so self-efficacy was modelled at the first order. Across the other five systems, metric invariance was supported, allowing cross-group comparison of relations. Two results are consistent. Teacher self-efficacy and a positive team-innovation climate are the most stable positive correlates of both forms of collaboration. Professional development needs also tend to promote collaboration. Personal-utility motivation is negative where significant. Perceived policy influence is more closely related to curriculum-focused collaboration, whereas the social value of teaching shows more reliable links to exchange/coordination and only occasional links to curriculum-focused work. Job satisfaction shows mixed signs across models. These patterns suggest a dual strategy: strengthen teachers’ capability and shape school conditions that normalise joint work, while tailoring policies to local motivational and policy settings.