This research study examines how Illinois public high school Career and Technical Education educational leaders employ best practices in providing all students rigorous, relevant, and equitable learning experiences within a professional learning community structure. This study utilized a mixed method two-tier case study methodology. Tier one…

Teacher turnover is a critical issue for the public education community because it influences student performance, school climate, and employee morale. In a large urban school district in the northeastern United States, the turnover rate has been high; teacher morale is low, and teacher participation in the school community is lacking. The purpose…

We report on the development and evaluation of MathVision, a mobile-application designed to develop Virtual Professional Learning Communities through asynchronous discussion about 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students' mathematical thinking. MathVision allows teachers to upload videos of problems solving sessions using Cognition Based Assessment…

Educators are continuously confronted with initiatives to increase student achievement; however, teacher isolation may hinder advancements to improve student learning. Teacher isolation may be a problem at many schools in which student achievement is not progressing, and teachers are not sharing pedagogical knowledge or instructional practices.…

This two-phase sequential mixed methods study examined the relationship between professional development, whether in the form of traditional professional development, a professional learning community and/or lesson study, and teacher self-efficacy and self-directed learning in order to gain a greater understanding of the role professional…

This article explores the development of a professional learning community through a case study of three teachers--an ESOL specialist, a literacy specialist, and a fifth-grade teacher--who engaged in co-teaching and collaboration. The emerging community of practice offered these teachers a space to learn and problem-solve by utilizing their…

This article examines the case studies of 2 middle grades professional learning communities that focused on teaching and learning with new literacies strategies. The new literacies theoretical lens that frames this study recognizes literacy as multimodal (e.g., print, image, sound) and tied to one's sociocultural identities and…

The application of information and communication technology (ICT) in education has been gaining attention worldwide. Educators and school administrators are interested in the myriad possibilities offered by new technologies to enrich teaching materials and to provide ubiquitous learning environments to enhance students' learning. This case study…

Utilizing a qualitative case-study design, this study explored how a mid-sized urban high school professional learning community was used as a reform effort to increase student achievement in mathematics on standards-based assessments. From a year-long interaction with the math professional learning community, which consisted of 3 school leaders…

In the 21st century, increased school accountability has sharpened the focus of school and district leaders on improving instructional practice to raise student achievement. The implementation of professional leaning communities (PLCs) is one improvement effort in which schools establish collaborative cultures focused on increasing student…

A growing body of work has emerged regarding the responsibilities required of district leaders in establishing plans that initiate and create conditions for sustainability of continuous improvement achieved through a systemic reform structure such as professional learning communities. However, limited research exists in respect to sustaining…

This dissertation explored the beliefs of five members of a nascent professional learning community for middle school science teachers over the first semester of its existence. A professional learning community is a place for colleagues to voice and hear beliefs, and is particularly conducive to fostering the development of one's own beliefs.…

The objective of this study was to develop a model for building professional learning communities (PLCs) in schools. Samples were public primary schools that consisted of 1,826 teachers from 185 schools in Thailand. They randomized by using two-stage random sampling. The questionnaire was used to survey the level or magnitude of teacher…

District-Charter Partnerships (DCP) is an initiative that is part of the Equity and Excellence for All agenda established by Mayor De Blasio. Its goal is to support meaningful collaboration between the district and charter sector in order to increase educator capacity and student learning in all New York City public schools. The District-Charter…

The purpose of this article is to describe a study of the development of and changes in high school teacher identity through the collaborative professional learning community (PLC) model. Using Coldron and Smith's (1999) conceptual framework of teacher identity, being the craft, moral, artistic, and scientific traditions of teaching, a case study…