Transformative Learning in Digital Spaces

Professional development is essential for enhancing the quality of teaching in higher education. Webinars have become a common medium for delivering professional development. However, much of the existing research has focused on participant satisfaction, knowledge acquisition and attendance patterns, with limited attention to whether they lead to deeper and transformative shifts in teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and practices. This thesis investigates how webinars facilitate transformative learning among teachers, drawing on Mezirow’s Transformative Learning Theory as an analytical lens for examining perspective transformations. A qualitative case study methodology was adopted. Data were collected through semi-structured reflective diaries and stimulated recall interviews with 25 teachers who attended webinars during two academic semesters. A total of forty-three diary entries and twenty-five interviews were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s reflexive thematic analysis. The findings reveal that transformative learning through webinars is not a linear and automatic cognitive process. It is a complex process that is shaped by the interplay of individual readiness, webinar design, institutional context and ongoing support. Teachers experience perspective transformations through critical self-examination and peer dialogue. Yet, these transformations frequently remain inactive and do not translate into teaching practice due to institutional constraints, including policy rigidity, centralised decision-making, and resource limitations. The study uncovers that the staff performance evaluation system ensures participation, but it undermines transformative potential because participation reflects a compliance-driven behaviour instead of an opportunity for professional growth. The study contributes empirically by providing a rich theoretically informed account of transformative learning in higher education context. It shows how professional development webinars can support or hinder professional change of teaching practices. It identifies the conditions relating to participants’ readiness, the relevance and design of provision, the opportunity for dialogue, and the institutional context that mediate this process. It provides practical implications for enhancing the transformative impact of professional development webinars.