ABSTRACT
Norwegian school and teachers are facing more and stronger requirements to focus on a form of systematic learning. The purpose of this chapter is to show how cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) can give direction to the work in researching schools collaborating with a researcher. The content of this chapter is guided by the following research question: How can cultural-historical activity theory contribute to promoting researching schools? When using CHAT, the activity in the entire organization is included. In specific studies, the focus may be on a small system within the greater organization. In this chapter the focus is on a teacher team as the smallest unit for collective learning in school. The chapter shows how the activity system and the expansive learning cycle introduced by the researcher can be used as tools in researching schools, and that CHAT and the models developed according to this theory may be good resources for school leaders and teachers acting as leaders of research activities in their own school. The leaders in research activities must however be confident and humble, resolute and empathetic, and able to understand when they need to back off a little if they have pushed the teachers too hard.
