This two-year study followed a professional learning community (PLC) of STEM Teachers Leaders, referred to as L-PLC. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated changes in the focus of many professional development frameworks from face-to-face to online communication. We sought for new ways and tools to follow the professional development and…

A large suburban school system in the mid-Atlantic United States identified the Data Wise Improvement Process (DWIP) as a systemic strategy to achieve the district-wide goal of student achievement for college and career readiness. Elementary science teachers marginally participated in school-based instructional team meetings to analyze student…

Lesson study (LS), a teacher-oriented, student-focused professional development (PD) approach that originated in Japan, has spread globally. However, existing literature on the implementation of LS and its effectiveness provides inconsistent results, suggesting a need to review current research on LS. With a focus on LS in mathematics education,…

Purpose: In the Fall of 2019, Marietta College and Marietta City Schools, in Marietta, Ohio, piloted a program to improve literacy knowledge and pedagogy through completing LETRS training, a two-year literacy professional development based on the science of reading, as peers. Design/methodology/approach: This project was aligned to effective…

The problem addressed in this study was that most opportunities for professional learning in the field of education have been created and assigned without the teacher giving input through a needs assessment. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to understand the experiences of veteran K-5 teachers who participated in an online…

This research aimed to investigate by utilizing the Research and Development (R&D) methodology, to yield innovative educational outcomes. The focus was on efficiently deriving educational innovations from experimental research that had been conducted in field settings. The intended applicability of the research findings was directed towards…

This article investigated teachers' self-efficacy, educational practices, challenges and support for students with disabilities in the inclusive classroom. Students with disabilities face many adversities today, such as rejection, stigma, discrimination and lack of support in the classroom. We employed an interdisciplinary and pluralistic approach…

This article describes a collaborative self-study of seven early career mathematics teacher educators. Our collective group sought to improve our practice in, and enhance transparency around, supporting prospective teachers as they engaged in equity-based mathematics pedagogies. The collaboration evolved into a critical friendship and provided a…

Teaching mathematics is inherently complex, requiring a deep understanding of both the subject matter and the pedagogical strategies that foster effective learning. Effective mathematics teachers must possess a robust grasp of the mathematical content they are teaching--a proficiency often honed over years of educational and practical experience…

Purpose: In professional learning communities (PLCs), teachers collaborate and learn with the aim of improving students' learning. The aim of this study is to gain insight into teachers' perceptions of their schools' changing toward PLCs and conditions which support or hamper this change. Design/methodology/approach: Questionnaires were completed…

Schools committed to equity are experimenting with creative and powerful ways for teachers to ensure all students receive what they need to learn in the classroom. Many of these efforts focus professional learning on strengthening the instructional core -- teachers' knowledge of and relationships with students, teachers' deep and critical…

Collaboration has been found to be a powerful tool for professional development and central for creating opportunities for teachers to reflect on their practice. However, school districts continue to have difficulty both implementing and sustaining collaboration. The purpose of this research was to investigate the experience of the teacher in a…

This quantitative research study explored the relationship between the quality of teacher collaboration in Professional Learning Communities and teacher sense of efficacy. The research has demonstrated that collective efficacy and teacher sense of efficacy have direct impacts on student achievement. Studies have found significant relationships…

While both citizen science engagements and computational thinking practices can mutually support student ownership in the science classroom, both face similar challenges to adoption in that they require teachers to openly position themselves as learners alongside their students. This dual role--as a teacher and as a learner--poses self-efficacy…

This research investigates the perceptions of a group of secondary science teachers (26) from six schools in a remote part of northern Scotland of the opportunities afforded to them for effective professional learning. Focus groups of science teachers were conducted, and the findings identified a number of key areas they perceived as effective…