This explanatory design was used to develop and implement effective Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) at Target Elementary School (TES). The theoretical framework for this study began with the assumption that there was a direct link between PLCs, student data, and self-efficacy of educator collaboration. It should be the goal of every…

Professional learning communities (PLCs) are an essential avenue for high-quality change and work. Maintaining unity among groups with differing opinions is challenging. This mixed-methods study aimed to assess elementary teachers' current perceptions of PLCs to determine their effectiveness by answering four research questions: What are the…

School psychologists can impact student outcomes by consulting with teams around data. The current study investigated the effects of consultation with Professional Learning Communities (PLC) teacher teams. The study included four teacher teams, observing their PLC practices and providing consultation. Each team was observed with a…

Background & Context: Many efforts have been dedicated to building computer science (CS) teacher capacity through offering professional development (PD) programs. Previous reviews indicated the need to offer more continual support for teachers. Recent research has shifted its focus to scaling up PD and sustaining teaching capacity by…

Schools in India typically provide teachers with professional development in the form of workshops with a one-size-fits-all approach. However, a large body of international studies show this to be ineffective in transforming classroom practice, and the draft National Education Policy of India released in 2020 lists several shortcomings of current…

The framework of a Professional Learning Community (PLC) was adopted and implemented in Guam schools to foster a system of collaborative practice to improve teaching and learning. The problem addressed in this study was how teacher isolation affected the implementation and effectiveness of PLCs. The purpose of this quantitative study was to…

This study employed the explanatory sequential mixed-methods design to assess the effectiveness of PLCs in Ghanaian basic schools. Using proportional stratified random sampling technique, the study selected 650 respondents (400 teachers and 250 headteachers) from the basic schools in five regions of Ghana for the quantitative phase of the study.…

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…

In this article we document our experiences as facilitators for the "Engaging All Students" professional learning community (PLC), which was implemented to help Toronto public school teachers re-engage underachieving students. These students, who are known as "marker students," are members of the school system's most…

Successful implementation of formative assessment in classrooms relies on teachers' formative assessment literacy, which is typically supported by professional development programs. This study reports on the impact of a professional development program on a group of in-service primary teachers in Hong Kong. The authors investigated the…

Professional development should be linked to fostering best practice and improving student learning (Darling-Hammond, 2009). By providing ongoing opportunities for professional learning that focus on best practice, teachers are more likely to develop the knowledge and skills associated with high-quality teacher instruction and raising student…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the extent to which professional development practices in professional learning communities are consistent with research-based principles of effective professional development. Additionally, the study investigated potential differences in the content focus, active learning, coherence, and…

Participating in effective professional development (PD) is beneficial in many ways for teachers themselves, but also for improving school systems. "Effective" PD differs from "traditional" PD in that it employs elements known to support changes in teaching practices and in student learning. Characteristics of effective PD…

This article presents the evaluation of a two-year action research project in biology and mathematics teaching involving a primary school and a university in Sweden. The aim of the study was to contribute knowledge about a school-university intersection as a professional learning arena. The teachers' conceptions about the project implementation,…

Elementary teachers were involved in a two-year grant focused on professional development using lesson study processes to increase their understanding of mathematics content and effective mathematics pedagogy. The primary research questions focused on how 16 elementary teachers described their professional growth after being involved in lesson…