The ‘laboratory school’ as a traded service: travelling practices of professional learning

Transnational markets in professional learning are expanding rapidly. The commodification of standardised pedagogical models within these markets raises concerns about teachers’ capacity to exercise contextually responsive professional judgement. Drawing on policy mobilities scholarship, this comparative case study examines a university-led ‘laboratory school’ network spanning thirty-four public and private schools in England, the United States, China and India (2020-2022). The signature practice of collaborative peer review using instructional rounds was promoted as a transferable model across diverse settings. Network mapping documented reach and engagement, while eighteen semi-structured leader interviews explored the rationale for network entry, the conditions mediating enactment, and the locally-generated theories of action that emerged. The findings demonstrate how the same practice was differentially understood across settings, complicating assumptions about pedagogical practices travelling intact across borders.