Educators across the U.S. participate in professional development (PD) to improve their teaching competencies. Numerous legislatures have mandated PD to develop highly qualified teachers; however, literature on PD has shown that teachers feel PD does not meet their needs. With consideration for the diverse needs of teachers, in this study I sought…

Collaborative teaching may provide classroom support, professional development, and mentoring for teachers (Gallo-Fox & Scantlebury, 2016; Guise et al., 2017; Friend et al., 2015; Rytivaara et al., 2019). Recent scholarship in music education has indicated that collaborative teaching may also provide a more holistic approach to student teacher…

The beginning years of a new teacher is a critical period and one that results in turnover 40-50% of the time (Ingersoll & Smith, 2003). This study gained insight into perceptions of induction activities of new teachers in Ohio Independent STEM schools. STEM-based pedagogies such as problem-based learning, inquiry, and student-centered…

This qualitative case study investigates how faculty members in a Title I middle school engage in collaborative practices to enhance professional growth without formal professional learning. Framed within a descriptive lens (Merriam, 1998) and informed by Brown and Duguid's Community of Practice (CoP) framework (1991), the study addresses two…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine teacher mentor actions, specifically through the conversations between early career teachers and their mentors within a mentoring program in one Georgia metropolitan school system. The researcher sought to explore the meaning that early career teachers made of these conversations.…

Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) provide the best setting for building collective teacher efficacy (CTE). CTE has been identified as having the highest positive effect on student achievement. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore perceptions of teachers and administrators regarding the effectiveness of PLCs for building…

Communication and collaboration between classroom teachers and student support teachers are critical in supporting student outcomes, and effective and productive lifelong relationships. The purpose of this action research study was to investigate the current process of obtaining student support at a Montessori school to improve the communication…

This qualitative dissertation explores the use of an original table-top role-playing game as a framework for community-building among independent community educators who lack a central geographic nexus. The study utilized an action research approach, involving the creation and development of the game in collaboration with participants for a period…

The purpose of this action research study was to examine the perspectives of an instructional leadership team as they fostered a culture that encouraged teachers to unlearn habits associated with isolation and to learn practices of collaboration. The theory of change was situated in the unlearning processes by segmenting new practices into…

This research examines the intersection of competency-based education (CBE) and efficacy in schools, aiming to construct theories explaining how CBE contributes to teachers' beliefs in their ability to influence student achievement, foster collaboration, and strengthen collective efficacy. Employing a critical constructivist grounded theory…

It is acknowledged that English language learners (ELL) perform lower than their non-ELL peers and that their lack of language acquisition impacts their graduation rates. However, the approaches taken to reduce the achievement gap between ELL and non-ELL students varies widely. To maximize ELL graduation rates, content area and ELL teachers need…

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to determine if, or to what extent, a correlation existed between teachers' collaboration and the intrinsic, extrinsic, and general job satisfaction of K-12 teachers in the Southwestern United States. The sample of this studied consisted of 113 K-12 public school teachers, in Arizona, that…

Public higher education institutions in Liberia have employed various mitigating measures to improve instruction quality and increase learning outcomes; however, little was known about remote instructional collaboration as a strategic approach in Liberian higher education classrooms. This qualitative study, based on Everett Rogers' Diffusion of…

Prior to this study being conducted, it was not known how teachers describe the PLC collaboration among teachers and school leaders that supports faculty development. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how teachers in Texas describe the PLC collaboration among teachers and school leaders that supports faculty development.…

Many states have used the READ 180 intervention program as an instructional tool to improve reading performance outcomes. The problem was that despite teachers' implementation of the READ 180 program, students at Wonderful Middle School were not learning or developing as well as desired despite the intervention. The purpose of this study was to…