School principals are agents of change in the implementation of education policies as they oversee accountability actions that serve to monitor and evaluate student achievement and identify the measures required. In Québec, where "results-based management" (RBM) is encouraged, the "professional learning community" (PLC)…

The participants in this study were teachers and students of a large school district located on the east coast of Canada. We distributed surveys to 1,514 teachers across 84 schools and received 1,423 usable surveys for a return rate of 94%. At the time of the second data collection, three years later, 1574 teachers from 78 schools agreed to…

This case study presents the struggles faced by a school administration in implementing a professional learning community (PLC) initiative without additional funds earmarked for implementation. In this case, Emily, the principal of Bayside Public School, creates a Buddy Day system for students that provides teachers with time during the school day…

Using a naturalistic inquiry approach and thematic analysis, this paper outlines the findings of a research study that examined 12 Manitoba principals' conceptions of professional learning communities. The study found that these principals consider the development of professional learning communities to be a normative imperative within the…

This case study documents and interprets teachers' experiences in a professional development initiative called Changing Results for Young Readers in British Columbia. The reflections and discussions of a group of teachers in a rural school district were examined in order to understand how the participants constructed their realities relative to…

Professional learning communities have become a focus of educational reform in New Brunswick. The implementation and sustainability of this reform is dependent on shifting many of the organizational and operational characteristics of the traditional bureaucratic model into those that support a learning community approach in schools. The study…

The outdated manner in which we operate schools is tied to a reality that no longer exists. The society for which we prepare our students has shifted from a factory to a learning organization model. If we hope to prepare our graduates for successful participation in learning organizations we must transform both the structure and culture of our…

Economic growth in New Brunswick is increasingly dependent on the improvement of our educational system. Current initiatives to reform education and improve student performance are based on transforming the province's schools into professional learning communities (PLCs). A key factor that will determine this reform's success is the capacity of…