Lesson study: A new approach to the professional development of teachers

The aim of conducting this research was obtaining the experiences of teachers who participated in the lesson study groups at schools. This research was conducted qualitatively using grounded theory method. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, and purposive sampling was continued until reaching saturation. Analysis of the results showed that from the viewpoint of the teachers who participated in the research, lesson study could have contributed to their professional development in three areas of knowledge, skill, and attitude. Knowledge includes: content knowledge, teaching knowledge, and lesson study knowledge; skill includes: thinking skills, teaching skills, and lesson study skills; and attitudes include: tendency to cooperate, tendency to negotiate, gaining inner satisfaction, and creating motivation and interest. Based on the results of this study, we suggest that teachers should employ lesson study for their professional development and solving teaching-learning problems, and they can participate actively in lesson study groups at schools.