Routine Interdependence and Boundary Objects. Coordinating Professional Learning Communities Among Science Teacher Educators

In this paper we investigate the significance of boundary crossing in an interorganizational network in science education called the Danish Academy of Natural Sciences. We analyze how the boundary crossings enable and constrain the interdependence of routines of this network. A central part of the academy is the work of professional learning communities (PLC) that can be described as organizational routines. The purpose of these PLC routines is to build a knowledge ecology enhancing knowledge sharing and knowledge creation within science education. Through a case study we zoom in on documents describing the local and national PLC routines and we analyze how boundaries are visualized as central parts of the routine interdependence. Routine Dynamics enables us to understand the ostensive aspects of the PLC routines (Feldman et al., 2021; Feldman & Pentland, 2003). We draw on theories on boundary crossing and boundary objects to understand the processes of the routine interdependence (Akkerman & Bakker, 2011, Carlile et al., 2013; Engeström et al., 1995; Kerosuo & Toiviainen, 2011; Star & Griesemer, 1989).