Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore mathematics teachers' collaboration within their professional learning communities (PLCs), and to gain insight into how the teachers developed their collective efficacy through it to focus on improving student learning. Design/methodology/approach: Using a qualitative approach, data were collected…

Professional learning communities (PLCs) are a prominent form of high-quality professional development (PD) that can provide opportunities for teachers to collaborate, share teaching strategies, reflect on teaching practices, and create mutually supportive and collegial teaching environments. PLCs hold much promise as a PD model for music…

Purpose: Physical education teachers often report feeling isolated due to being the only specialist in a building. Professional learning communities (PLCs) are spaces where individuals who hold shared goals come together to build connections, allowing educators to feel connected, valued, and empowered. The authors sought to explore the shared…

This article explores the practice of virtual learning in New Zealand schools. It reports on a study that examined how virtual learning has evolved over the last 30 years and how it is currently experienced by students and teachers, and makes recommendations for the future. Research participants were teaching principals selected from eight small…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate how U.S. physical educators who actively engage with professional content on Twitter view it as a platform for continuing professional development. Method: Thirty-two U.S.-based physical educators participated in semistructured telephone interviews. Most of these teachers were White (n = 29;…

As a source of social capital, teachers' professional networks have been linked in the research literature with professional learning. Social media platforms have increased teachers' professional networking opportunities, suggesting more space for informal learning. Capturing the experiences of 41 school teachers in Kazakhstan using thematic…

This article reports on a case study conducted in an urban post-primary school setting, which investigated a teaching and learning group, called a T&L Club, as a model of sustainable professional development for teachers. The group consisted of 18 members from a whole staff of 90 teachers and had been in existence for four years at the time of…

The focus of professional development for teachers is to increase teaching skills and student academic success. Challenges in retaining and hiring teachers are causing local, state, and national organizations that represent teachers to rethink ways to support teachers within the profession. The professional and psychological needs of teachers have…

We share our experience of establishing a network for primary and secondary mathematics leaders working in rural and regional Catholic schools in Victoria. We evidence the influence of our sector leadership that addressed a tension concerning the leaders' work isolation through a network initiative. This network initiative was in response to the…

Professional isolation, a familiar issue in world language education, has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This article addresses this issue by providing world language educators with practical guidance related to establishing high-functioning professional networks online. Empirical findings related to computer-mediated communication…

In the last decade, social media have become important tools for educator professional development, learning and community. While education has traditionally proven to be an isolating profession, technologies such as Twitter offer opportunities for educators to collaborate beyond their school, district, region and nation. Education-related Twitter…

This article explores the current research on the state of teacher professional development practices. The literature shows that conventional professional development practices are typically deficient in addressing teacher and, indirectly, student needs. Conventional professional development practices were shown to be deficient due to their…

This mixed-methods action research study examined how implementing a Professional Learning Community (PLC) supports the development of metacognitive teaching. Participants were ten technical college science instructors. While PLCs are common in K-12 education, they are less employed at the postsecondary level. There is a gap in the literature…

Many pre-service teachers (PSTs) face a common dilemma when completing their internships: they seek to display their own strengths and competencies in teaching while also adhering to the guidance of their mentor teachers and avoiding instructional risks. The underlying structure of the internship promotes a hierarchy which positions mentoring…

This article describes a multiyear Faculty Learning Community (FLC) program as a strategy to overcome pedagogical solitude (Shulman, 1993) in a discipline-specific context. Participant interviews shed light on their FLC experiences and perceived impact on their teaching and students' learning. Grounded within the particularities of the…