This article focuses on the development of professional learning communities (PLCs), which are communities within schools, composed of voluntary participating teachers facilitated by school principals with a specific task to accomplish as part of a larger innovation project. Four PLCs were observed during 3 years by using questionnaires and…

Purpose: The study aims to examine the issues relating to workplace learning at the upper secondary school level. This study is based on the two questions. How should the professional/peer-learning community or PLC be developed and deployed to help strengthen in-service teacher training? The second question is what are the success factors which…

The Professional Learning Community model of professional growth an development is an increasingly popular method of teacher training. Commonly abbreviated and referred to as PLCs, this style of professional learning is characterized by its focus on small groups and individualized learning. While the PLC has nearly become a standard feature of the…

Professional learning communities (PLCs) are a group of educators working collaboratively to improve student achievement and expand the pedagogy of the individual as well as the group. Studies on PLCs, grounded by the social constructivism theory of Vygotsky, Bandura, and Wenger, have found that collaboration and collegiality foster a positive…

Background: Presently, models of professional development aimed at supporting teachers' technology integration efforts are often short and decontextualized. With many schools across the country utilizing standards that require students to engage with digital tools, a situative model that supports building teachers' knowledge within their…

Field experiences are important components of undergraduate music teacher education programs. This applied qualitative study investigated 12 preservice music teachers' reactions to K-12 field experiences for an undergraduate instrumental music methods course. Six weeks of course discussion board posts were analyzed via an iterative, constant…

Federal mandates have increased the pressure on school officials to improve student achievement. These mandates have forced educators across the nation to analyze different types of professional development that train teachers to provide quality lessons that are rigorous in nature. These mandates have forced a shift in pedagogy where teachers work…

Research Learning Communities (RLC) was an intervention that aimed to improve teaching quality and learning outcomes by raising teachers' awareness, understanding, and use of educational research in their teaching practice. Two Evidence Champion teachers from each school attended four RLC workshops with peers from up to four other schools.…

A study of two schools in northern Australia demonstrated the impact on Education for Sustainability (EfS) initiatives of a disruptive policy environment set in motion by neoliberal reforms focused on standards, accountability, and international competitiveness. In one of the schools, a culture characterized by trust and an emphasis on cultivating…

This paper discusses how implementation of Lesson Study (LS) has brought about evolving changes in the quality of mathematics classroom teaching in one Chinese primary school. The Japanese model of LS was adapted as a teacher professional development to improve mathematics teachers' teaching practices. The LS group consisted of five mathematics…

This dissertation is focused on intentional intervention strategies adopted in a prior five-year period by Denver Area High School for the purpose of reducing suspensions, expulsions, referrals, other minor disciplinary infractions, and reduced failure rates. Those strategies included implementing a Culture of Care, which included (a) Restorative…

School psychologists have training and expertise in consultation and evidence-based interventions that position them well to support early career teachers (ECTs). The current study involved iterative development and pilot testing of an intervention to help ECTs become more effective in classroom management and engaging learners, as well as more…

Teacher learning in the workplace is situated within a complex context involving the individual and multiple aspects of an educational organization. The present action research study uses a socio-constructionist inquiry lens to further research the local and multifaceted nature of professional learning in schools. The goal is to re-conceptualize…

This Record of Study summarizes my journey in the program and my investigation of the problem of improving mathematics instruction. The exploration of the problem space spanned three years before culminating in the problem statement. Using a positive deviance approach and understanding the values of stakeholders narrowed the scope of the problem…

Innovative educational approaches for schooling require changes to the traditional teacher role towards operating as co-facilitators and co-learners, and working in teacher teams, with considerable professional learning supporting this. Professional learning communities (PLCs) have been acknowledged as highly effective, with their characteristics…