STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) education and initiatives have grown tremendously over the past decade for children in high school, middle school, and even later elementary school. However, little research and opportunities exist for young children in early childhood (Moomaw, 2012). This qualitative case study research…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present how experiences gained from a theory-informed lesson study -- learning study (LrS) -- in regard to a specific learning goal can be shared and used by other teachers in new contexts. Design/methodology/approach: A group of teachers worked together in a cyclic, iterative process of planning,…

This phenomenological, action research study engaged a sample of teachers from a large middle school in northern South Carolina in developing a protocol and recommendations for the use of peer observations that would provide meaningful professional development for teachers at this school. Data collection methods consisted of interviews, focus…

The literature shows that collaboration is a critical part of a professional learning community and leads to higher student achievement. However, there is limited research on what collaboration actually looks like in a school setting. The purpose of this study was to examine the beliefs and strategies of elementary teachers and elementary…

"If well-trained, competent, caring teachers were present in every classroom, we would witness a staggering increase in student achievement, motivation, and character improvement along with a marked decrease in discipline problems" (Breaux & Wong, 2003, p.22). If school districts do not take the initiative to design and implement…

Professional learning communities have been labeled as effective and capable of producing continuous school improvement. Despite the merits and popularity of professional learning communities, they have been shown to be an elusive concept to implement. The problem this study addressed was the inconsistent quality of professional learning…

Fullan (1998) stated, "Student achievement increases substantially in schools with collaborative work cultures that foster a professional learning community among teachers and others" (p. 8). Vandevoort, Amrein-Beardsley, and Berliner (2004) also found that the quality of the teacher in the classroom is the single most important factor…

In "Systems for Instructional Improvement," Paul Cobb and his colleagues draw on their extensive research to propose a series of specific, empirically grounded recommendations that together constitute a theory of action for advancing instruction at scale. The authors outline the elements of a coherent instructional system; describe…

Mentor teachers (MTs) play a key role in a teacher candidate's (TC) learning to teach and teaching a TC to become a teacher is complex work. While there has been some scholarship that indicates MTs benefit from collective inquiry into and examination of their mentoring practice, there is minimum attention to engaging MTs in deliberate activity…

A university-school district partnership program designed to increase recruitment and retention of science and mathematics teachers in schools identified as low performing by the school district, paired potential or novice teachers with veteran teachers in elementary or secondary schools. All participants received mentoring to build instructional…

We write this article as educators working at Sahasatsuksa school, an urban Indigenous school in Thailand, who also maintain ties with related Redes de Tutoría work in Mexico. This article engages the stories of our trans-Indigenous teacher collective to illustrate how poetic ways of making relatives across time advanced our intellectual, ethical,…

This case study provides an overview as to how two faculty members co-taught an asynchronous online course with a service-learning component during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Within this paper, the authors recount the adjustments that were made in order to accommodate an online teaching modality while maintaining their commitment to service…

Students with disabilities are served by both special and general educators, yet teachers often feel unprepared to meet the needs of these students in their classrooms. Using data from a nationally representative survey, we examined the sufficiency of teachers' access to supports available for meeting the needs of students with high-incidence…

This paper interrogates Stacey's assertion that New South Wales (NSW) education policy is underpinned by a 'particular instance of neoliberalisation' which has significant 'direct and material impacts' on teachers. It examines the role Evidence-based Practice can play in the neoliberalist reform of education globally and analyses the Centre for…

This study utilizes a systematic review process to synthesize research on content and language integrated learning (CLIL) teachers' self-reported needs and professional development. In order to draw connections between these two areas of research and highlight gaps, this study adopted a framework composed of seven competences: linguistic,…