The problem on which this study focused was the need to organize and implement effective leadership meetings that led to improved professional collaboration. The purpose was to evaluate the use of a protocol in organizing and implementing such meetings. The research questions were framed around the four levels of the Kirkpatrick (1996) evaluation…

This study explores how a problem-solving based professional learning community (PLC) affects the beliefs, knowledge, and instructional practices of two sixth-grade mathematics teachers. An interview and two observations were conducted prior to beginning the year-long PLC in order to gather information about the participants' beliefs,…

Many schools have embraced the idea of professional learning communities (PLC's). While the term is used to describe many types of collaborative activities, PLC's are most successful when they focus intently on improving student learning. In these communities of learners there is a shared commitment to continually learn and act on that learning in…

The information age has revolutionized how people communicate, access information and learn. Today's students are locating, evaluating and using information in significantly different ways than they did just a generation ago (Holman, 2009). As students evolve their learning strategies, there is a need for teachers to evolve the way in which they…

The quality of school leadership is linked to student academic achievement (Leithwood et al., 2004; Thompson & Barnes, 2007; Glatthorn & Jailall, 1997; Lezotte, 1991; Edmonds, 1979; Hallinger & Heck, 1996; Crum & Sherman, 2008). The purpose of this study was to examine the instructional leadership (IL) of high school principals and…

Mobile technology is increasing its presence in the educational environment. The public school district in this study has made great strides improving technology usage in schools with updated hardware, extensive district-wide infrastructure, a technology plan, and professional development. While the district has been successful in some areas, like…

Attrition of special education teachers is a national problem resulting in lost monetary resources, school climate discontinuity, and lower student achievement. Within a small, rural district in southern Indiana, special education teacher attrition has risen since 2008 and continues to rise. District administrators want to retain teachers to…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive case study was to describe the perceptions of high school principals and teachers related to how inequitable distribution of federal and state educational funds between low- and high-income schools resulted in disparities in educational outcomes in two low socioeconomic status high schools in the…

My purpose in this paper is to situate a university-school mathematics and science education partnership within a social justice perspective in education. The focus of the systemic intervention endeavour was school-based teacher professional development in which university-based facilitators embarked on class visits with the aim of identifying…

Teacher collaboration is hailed as one of the most effective ways to improve student learning, and one high school in Illinois is often credited with perfecting the concept. This article features Adlai E. Stevenson High School which was one of the first in the U.S. to embrace what are known as professional learning communities. The professional…

This research study was designed to investigate the impact of constructivist-centered professional development in vocabulary instruction for 14 upper-grade elementary school teachers. The researcher facilitated 10 training sessions held in small groups, during grade level meetings at an urban public school, to develop individual and collective…

If some schools can overcome the powerful and pervasive effects of poverty to become high performing, shouldn't any school be able to do the same? Shouldn't we be compelled to learn from those schools? Although schools alone will never systemically eliminate poverty, high-poverty, high-performing (HP/HP) schools take control of what they can to…

The Curriculum Topic Study (CTS) process, funded by the National Science Foundation, supports teachers in improving practice by connecting standards and research to curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Designed for facilitators, this guide provides a robust set of professional development tools, templates, and designs to strengthen mathematics…

This article describes the SS "School Library Leadership" maiden voyage, which departed from the University of Vermont (UVM) during the 2010 fall semester. Twelve intrepid sailors followed their sense of adventure into uncharted waters with cocaptains Judy Kaplan and Susan Ballard in an online collaboration that provided a powerful…

Educational reform is not easy. As school leaders search for a format that leads to improvement on many fronts concurrently, data teams is one such promising practice. The data team design not only involves sensemaking of data as evidence of effective teaching and learning, but also builds a professional learning community, distributes leadership,…