The lesson study approach is a systematic process for producing professional knowledge about teaching by teachers, and has spread rapidly and extensively in the United States. The learning study approach is essentially a kind of lesson study with an explicit learning theory-the variation theory of learning. In this paper, we argue that having an explicit learning theory adds value to lesson study, as the variation theory of learning serves as a source of guiding principles for the teachers when they engage in pedagogical design, lesson analysis and evaluation. Through the use of two Hong Kong learning study cases, one from each of the two major ways of conducting learning study, we demonstrate the power of variation theory in explaining and predicting the relationship between what has taken place in the classroom and what the learners learn, and subsequently identifying ways to improve student learning through promoting teacher professional learning in a learning study setting.

PurposeOne important contribution of variation theory to learning study is that it brings the focus of the learning study sharply on the object of learning and provides a theoretical grounding to understand some of the necessary conditions of learning. The purpose of this paper is to argue that variation theory can serve as a guiding principle of pedagogical design.Design/methodology/approachData from two case studies are used to support the argument.FindingsThis paper shows that variation theory is indeed a guiding principle; what the teacher is supposed to do in the classroom does not follow mechanically, as exemplified by two learning study cases. The first example shows that the principles of variation theory imply what features of the object of learning has to be invariant and what should vary in the students' experience. However, this is a necessary but not sufficient condition for learning. The second example shows also that even if one is aware of the pattern of variation and invariance needed, still it might take quite a bit of ingenuity to bring it about.Originality/valueTeachers need a sound theory to help them make wise decisions about teaching. Variation theory provides a theoretical grounding to understand some of the necessary conditions of learning, so that wise pedagogical decisions can be made. This paper contributes to a deeper understanding of variation theory and its application in practice. Furthermore, the paper also shows that while a learning theory enhances the quality of a lesson study, a lesson study can also provide a platform for the testing and application of a learning theory.

This paper shows how the patterns of variation created in the teaching were critical in helping a class of Primary 3 students in Hong Kong to learn about the colour of light, so that the students attained conceptual rather than procedural knowledge. A 'Learning Study' approach was adopted, which is a Lesson Study grounded in a particular learning theory to improve teaching and learning. This study, based on the learning theory of Variation advanced by Marton and Booth, was premised on three types of variation: variation in students' ways of experiencing what is to be taught/learnt (V1), variation in teachers' ways of dealing with the 'object of learning' (V2), and the use of 'pattern of variation' as a guiding principle of pedagogical design to enhance students' learning (V3). In planning the lesson, a conscious effort was made to create relevant patterns of variation, i.e. varying certain critical aspect(s) while keeping other aspects of the object of learning invariant in order to help students to discern those aspects. Comparison between the results of the pre-and post-test shows that there was significant gain in the students' learning outcomes with respect to the intended object of learning. The findings contribute knowledge to how the Theory of Variation can be used in practice. It also illustrates how teachers can make use of this theoretical framework to analyze their own teaching and thereby, develop an analytical awareness of teaching and learning.

Purpose -Much has been written about the failure of curriculum reforms to bring about pedagogical transformation in classrooms. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue about facilitating curriculum reforms through lesson study. Design/methodology/approach -The guest editors introduce the papers while also discussing key themes and concepts. Findings -The collection of papers shows that it would be naïve to assume that the intended, enacted and lived curriculum would be the same. Teachers play a very important role in bringing the intended curriculum to life in classrooms, and lesson study provides a process through which the intended, enacted and lived curriculum could be brought closer together. Originality/value -It is only through such collaborative discourse among teachers supported by "knowledgeable others" that reform ideas can take root in classrooms and bring about lasting change. Keywords Teaching, Curriculum reform, Lesson study, Educational change, Progress in education Paper type General review Much has been written about the failure of curriculum reforms to bring about pedagogical transformation in classrooms (Hoetker and Ahlbrand, 1969; Berman and MacLaughlin, 1976;Hogan et al., 2013). There is some truth to the old adage -that the more things change, the more they remain the same. The failure of curriculum reforms taking root in classrooms could be attributed to a view of teachers as curriculum implementers and not curriculum makers (Clandanin and Connelly, 1992). Teachers are in many educational systems passive recipients of a centralized and mandated curriculum. Their voices and the professional capital that they bring to the processes of curriculum reforms are often neglected. They have no or little inputs to mandated curricula or textbooks that usually prescribe what they do in classrooms. Ball and Cohen (1996) have proposed the need to "redraw boundaries between teachers and materials in the construction of the curriculum [y] if curriculum is to play a more constructive role in improving instruction, for the curriculum that counts is the curriculum that is enacted" (p. 8). Spillane (1999) has argued that "teachers' zones of enactment play a crucial role in their implementation of instructional reform." Zones of enactment are the space where reform initiatives intersect with teachers and their practice. It is where teachers "notice, construe, construct, and operationalize the instructional ideas advocated by reformers" (p. 145).Japanese lesson study takes a very different view of teachers. It is a platform where teachers take center stage. Lesson study, as it is practised in Japan, is a teacher-directedThe current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www. emeraldinsight.com/2046-8253.htm

No abstract