The professional learning experiences of K-12 educators are a critical and complex part of continuously improving teaching and learning within a school. This case study brings to light the experiences of three teams of middle school teachers participating in a professional learning model called instructional rounds. The purpose of this research is…

In this paper, I share results of collaborative inquiry with youth and teachers into how the arts can create more relational learning spaces in the classroom. I offer a framework for relational teaching and learning through the arts guided by the questions: Who am I? Who are you? And who are we? Through these dimensions, I explore how arts-based…

There is extensive evidence showing that the climate system is warming and human behavior is linked to the change. Despite increasing attempts to integrate climate change into school curricula, teachers have challenges in preparing and implementing climate change lessons. The study aims to look at (a) the kinds of wondering questions middle school…

This study sought to determine how three teachers experienced learning when engaged in ongoing reflective inquiry regarding their teaching beliefs, teaching behaviors, and the comparison of those beliefs and behaviors. Three case studies describe teachers writing educational platforms, comparing their platforms to their classroom behaviors, and…

The time we live in is characterised by social and cultural changes, but teaching in physical education (PE) does not necessary match these changes. Consequently, the present project explored how second-order reflection (SoR) as a tradition-challenging and developing form of reflection can be stimulated by an inquiry-based learning (IBL) approach…

In this paper, we explore middle school science teachers' learning of inquiry-based instructional strategies through reflection on practice teaching sessions during a summer enrichment program with middle level students. The reflection sessions were part of a larger year-long inquiry professional development program in which teachers learned…

This qualitative case study examined how middle school science teachers conducted collaborative inquiry and reflection about students' conceptual understanding, and how individual teachers in the middle school science group acted and made reflections in response to their collaborative inquiry. It also examined external influences that affected the…

A common theme has been consistently woven through the literature on teacher professional development: that practice-based designs and collaboration are two components of effective teacher learning models. In addition to collaboration and practice-based designs, inquiry cycles have been long recognized as catalysts for teacher professional…

This qualitative case study examined how middle school science teachers conducted collaborative inquiry and reflection about students' conceptual understanding, and how individual teachers in the middle school science group acted and made reflections in response to their collaborative inquiry. It also examined external influences that affected the…

This study investigated a professional development model designed to improve teachers' inquiry teaching efficacy as well as the quality of their inquiry instruction through engaging teachers in practice-teaching and reflection sessions. The programme began with a two-week summer Institute focused on both inquiry pedagogy and science content and…

The authors worked with 22 middle school math and science teachers for one year with the goal of improving the quantity and quality of inquiry-based instruction implemented in the classroom. The professional development experience was framed by the 4E x 2 Instruction Model, which combines key components of inquiry instruction (Engage, Explore,…

This paper is based on an online graduate program for middle school science and mathematics teachers in Texas titled Integration of Science, Mathematics and Reflective Teaching (iSMART). Launching the program for its first cohort in fall 2010, the authors attempted to answer the following two questions in this paper: (a) How do the members of the…

"Becoming a Teacher" revisits the concept of Teacher Lore (Schubert and Ayers, 1992), by providing a cross-disciplinary approach linking elements of narrative theory to all aspects of pre- and in-service teaching. In essence, it embraces the notion that what teachers say matters. The rationale behind this text is the idea that narrative can not…

The purpose of this action research study was to investigate undergraduate preservice student-teachers' interpretations of written reflections and how these written reflections impacted their thoughts about teaching practices. A second question was to investigate how preservice teachers talked about their processes of reflection beyond the…

This article illustrates how community service-learning can be defined and implemented as a group inquiry project in which students apply academic knowledge and social problem-solving skills. The authors examined eleven different community service-learning projects put into practice by elementary and middle school teachers who participated in…