To support the increasing numbers of Chinese language programs in the United States, there is a need to recruit and support highly qualified teachers. In this study, we described an online professional learning community (PLC) among a small group of Kindergarten Chinese teachers. All the teachers were visiting teachers with prior teaching…

This paper explores how a professional learning community (PLC) redesigns high school mathematics lessons towards a shared commitment. We describe the nature of a PLC's collective curricular vision to illuminate how teachers can come to new understandings as a group in order to shift the ways students experience mathematics. Using the curricular…

Professional learning communities can be important sites for teacher learning depending on the quality of the conversations in these communities. This paper investigates how different activities in teacher communities support different content and depth in teacher conversations, through examining the conversations of four professional learning…

The present study aims to examine the influence of teacher collaboration within professional learning communities (PLCs) and collaborative teaching practices on both the professional growth and academic achievement of students. The study employed a mixed-methods research design that incorporated both qualitative and quantitative research…

This action research emphasizes the need to implement curricula to engage marginalized students as well as promote literacy and high levels of academic achievement. Marginalized students include minority students who perform far below their White peers on state assessments. In Chapter I, the action research problem of practice is explored. The…

The effectiveness of professional learning communities (PLCs) in schools depends significantly on the extent of fostering teacher learning. In this explanatory case study, 16 female teachers from a girls' high school in Saudi Arabia joined a reflective practice programme where they engaged in collaborative inquiry to solve a problem in their work.…

Maintaining a commitment to social justice teaching can be especially challenging when navigating the bureaucratic systems and ever-spiraling responsibilities of the education system. To better understand how social-justice-oriented educators navigate these tensions, this paper uses qualitative methods to investigate the social justice problems of…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the perceptions online adjunct higher education faculty have towards the use of professional learning communities as a component of their pedagogical training. This research emerged from two trends in higher education, adjunct faculty reliance and online education. This research addressed…

The need to improve math instruction in the United States has led to a variety of reactionary reform efforts. Often, these reforms require teachers to step away from deeply embedded instructional practices, which are difficult to change. Professional learning communities (PLC) are a common form of professional development in education that have…

This study used mixed methods to explore the impact of a university-hosted professional learning community (PLC) on teacher retention in public schools. Recent graduates (1-3 years) and mentor teachers were invited to participate. Via a case study approach, participants were challenged to look critically at their teaching and use data to…

This qualitative case study of 20 teachers enrolled in a two-year fellowship, examines the professional development of science teachers during participation in a professional learning community. Our professional development model specifically employs vertical teaming of teachers from elementary, middle, and high school levels to examine the…

Change in education is inevitable. Physical educators are being positioned to effectively manage change and control their own destiny. In order to manage and facilitate positive change, physical educators should clearly embrace and accept physical education as a public health tool, understand the educational change process in schools, and know how…

This study presents 3 case studies that examine the processes involved in the professional growth of physics teacher-leaders (TLs) in a national network of professional learning communities (PLCs). This program has been operating since 2012, using a "Fan Model" where the TLs participate in a PLC (TL-PLC) led by a team from the Weizmann…

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teaching and learning have increasingly become a part of educational practice and pedagogy. Educators, business leaders, and policy-makers seek to get involved with funding and making decisions for STEM initiatives. Stakeholders include those looking forward to preparing students for future…

This study aims at exploring the influence of The "Alliance of Thinking Schools," a multi-regional, researcher-practitioner partnered teachers' "professional learning community" (PLC) on the teaching of thinking in China, on bridging teachers' "belief-action gap." Specifically, this study aims to investigate the…