Download or read book The Impact of Professional Learning Communities on Math Achievement of 7th Grade Students written by Farzin Khosroshahi Dunning and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) on math achievement of 7th grade students in one middle school in Southern California. The hypothesis was that increased teacher collaboration within professional learning communities may increase student achievement. The researcher designed a mixed-method study to identify the impact of professional learning communities on student achievement. Qualitative data were collected through surveys and interviews with teachers and administrators, and quantitative data were gathered from California Standardized Test (CST) scores. Thirteen math teachers of grades 6-8 were invited to participate in a survey consisting of a Likert scale and an interview. Three administrators were also invited to participate in an interview. The findings indicated that there was a link between increased level of collaboration among 7th grade teachers and increased student achievement in math. The goal of this study was to add to the body of knowledge about the impact of professional learning communities on student achievement. The findings of this study provided school administrators with information regarding effective strategies that can be implemented regarding the development of professional learning communities within a middle school setting.
Download or read book The Effects of Professional Learning Communities on Middle School Math Teachers in Developing Curriculum Instruction and Assessments for Common Core written by Jessika Kim and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abstract: The world of education in the K--12 setting is constantly changing. The most recent shift in educational reform is the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). These new standards require students to think critically and demonstrate higher depths of knowledge. As a result, teachers are faced with the large task of realigning curriculum, instruction, and assessments to meet the new demands of Common Core. Unfortunately, with new standards and new expectations for assessments, teachers may feel overwhelmed and overextended. Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) offer a structure in which educators are able to collaborate and align content across grade levels. The six guiding principles outlined by DuFour, DuFour, and Eaker require PLC teams to state a shared vision, maintain a collaborative culture, collective inquiry, action orientation, commitment to continuous improvement, and result orientation. These principles, when combined with curriculum, instruction, and assessments, and the key elements of the CCSS provided the conceptual framework for this study. This study confirms when PLC structures are implemented with authenticity; individual members are better equipped to withstand the unpredictable changes in education. This qualitative case study sought to better understand the manner in which PLC structures supported the development of curriculum, instruction, and assessments for 7th and 8th grade Common Core math. Through semi-structured interviews during the beginning and end of the first semester, multiple observations of PLC meetings, and document analysis, this study determined the following findings. First, this case study found that curriculum development for the Common Core Standards was supported as individual members built capacity between each other to redevelop new district-mandated textbooks. Second, instruction strategies for the new standards was maintained as PLC members demonstrated high levels of trust with each other in an effort to share individual shortcomings and challenges. Third, assessment development required teachers to reflect on both curriculum and instruction in an effort to promote student achievement. Finally, an unexpected finding of shared decision making was determined through participant interviews. Participants longed for greater autonomy within their PLC structures, and hoped to have greater input in the larger overarching decisions made school wide. The implications of this study encourage educators in various school settings—urban, suburban, and rural—to continuously improve year after year through PLCs. Regardless of new reforms in education, PLC structures provide a stable environment for educators to professionally learn in their site communities. The recommendations for this qualitative case study include suggestions for policy, practice, and future research. For policy, district members and officials would be well advised to provide additional professional development days for all certificated staff on how to authentically implement PLC structures at school sites. For practice, the major themes of capacity building, trust, reflection, and shared decision making can guide PLC teams as they practice true collaboration through PLC structures. Once PLC structures are authentically implemented, curriculum development can begin, instructional strategies can be shared and improved, and assessments can be effectively aligned to new standards. For future research, it is recommended that the scope of study be expanded to include the K--12 grades as well as extend the study for multiple years. As educators and school sites continue to make greater meaning of the CCSS, the impact of PLC structures in relation to student achievement will improve. Therefore, additional research on the effectiveness of PLC structures in relation to curriculum, instruction, and assessments will be richer as Common Core continues to be implemented.
Download or read book Transforming Professional Development Into Student Results written by Douglas B. Reeves and published by ASCD. This book was released on 2010-04-15 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides a blueprint for how to ensure professional development can improve student learning by focusing on, evidence of student learning, feedback on teacher and principal decisions, and depth of implementation.
Download or read book The Impact of Professional Learning Communities on Student Achievement in American Public Schools written by and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The goal of this thesis is to outline what a professional learning community (PLC) is and the procedures used in its implementation. More importantly, this study then determines if PLCs can improve a school climate and increase student achievement. The study includes research on American public schools through the decades, various policies developed to promote student learning and to eliminate the gap in achievement among students of varying backgrounds. It looks at the policy of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and how that policy was altered to become the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The study then outlines the elements and implementation of PLCs, describing the role that everyone involved plays. Although more research is being conducted, there is existing evidence that PLCs have a positive impact on school climate and student achievement."--leaf 4.
Download or read book The Effectiveness of a Professional Learning Community on Student Achievement in Elementary Reading and Mathematics in a Large Urban School District written by Jacqueline Hayles Landry and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The study was to determine the impact of a Professional Learning Community on student achievement as measured by the state's criterion referenced reading and mathematics achievement tests. Data for this study were extracted from the school district's student database. Two cohorts of 90 students each were randomly selected from a population of approximately 600 students in 3 schools that participated in a Professional Learning Community (treatment) and 3 schools that did not (control). Professional Learning Communities known as PLCs, can serve as a major theoretical framework to promote the improvement of classroom teachers' instructional practice, teacher effectiveness and student achievement. Reading and mathemtics mean scale scores were extracted at three time points (year 1, year 2, and year 3) across three grades (grade 3, grade 4 and grade 5). Test for equality of variance found that no statistically significant difference existed between the mean scale scores of the two cohorts at the beginning of the study. The findings revealed that both cohorts trend toward increased academic achievement from year to year individually; however, when compared to each other, no statistically significant difference existed. Further research is indicated to examine each PLC for implementation, support and leadership as they relate to the PLC and a focus on instruction and learning.
Download or read book The Relationship Between Student Achievement and Professional Learning Communities at the Middle School Level written by Michael S. Burde and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 139 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For nearly two decades, schools throughout the United States and beyond have utilized the Professional Learning Community (PLC) model to foster teacher collaboration in hopes of improving student achievement outcomes. At the turn of the century, much of the research suggested a positive relationship between student achievement outcomes and the implementation of PLC’s in the school setting. The more recent research suggests little to no relationship between PLC’s and student achievement outcomes. In an effort to bring clarity to the conflicting research, data was collected from a sample of 12 schools which included 275 teachers and nearly 6,000 students. Teacher survey data was collected using Olivier, Hipp, and Huffman’s (2010) Professional Learning Community Assessment – Revised (PLCA-R) survey instrument, which deconstructs PLC’s into six elements. Student state assessment data in mathematics and reading in grades seven and eight was also collected. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed statically significant differences between the 12 buildings in both PLCA-R and state assessment data; therefore, hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to determine whether any of these differences could be attributed to any of the six PLCA-R elements. After controlling for the effects of student and school-level covariates, HLM analyses revealed that none of the variance in student achievement data could be attributed any of the six PLCA-R elements. The analyses also indicated low socioeconomic status had a profound impact in explaining student achievement variance. Future studies should consider a multi-region or multi-state sample to capture more variation between buildings. Moreover, future researchers would be wise to consider a six to ten point Likert scale to capture what may potentially be a larger degree of PLC implementation variance.
Download or read book On Common Ground written by Richard DuFour and published by Solution Tree Press. This book was released on 2009-04-01 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This anthology presents the recommendations of education leaders, and each chapter contributes to a sound conceptual framework and offers specific strategies for developing PLCs. These leaders have found common ground in expressing their belief in the power of PLCs although clear differences emerge regarding their perspectives on the most effective strategy for making PLCs the norm in North America.
Download or read book The Five Disciplines of PLC Leaders written by Timothy D. Kanold and published by Solution Tree Press. This book was released on 2011-08-01 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Make the transition from traditional, whole-group reading instruction to the 21st century classroom by integrating three innovations that will dramatically improve elementary reading instruction: RTI, differentiated instruction, and technology. Detailed ex
Download or read book Real World Professional Learning Communities written by Daisy Arredondo Rucinski and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2016-12-08 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a professional learning community (PLC), teachers are organized into teams, committed to meeting on a regular basis to study their teaching strategies and the effects of those strategies on the students in their classrooms. The teacher teams can be of varied form and composition. Whatever the organizational structure, the teams have one goal – that is to improve teaching so that student learning is improved. Policy developers, legislators, and educational leaders have encouraged the adoption of collaborative professional learning teams as a school reform model for improving schools. In this book we describe the results of studies of professional learning communities in real schools and the effects of the teams on student learning. Much of the time school innovations are not examined in depth. Instead authors and developers simply advocate that they be used. In this book, school principals and administrators describe how their teachers used the PLC teams to improve student learning in their schools. In other words, this book presents actual research on the effects of the use of PLCs rather than testimonials.
Download or read book The relationship between grade level team implementation of professional learning communities and student achievement in math written by Peter V. Lesar and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Impact of Professional Learning Community Design on Teacher Instruction written by Carol Jeanette Turner and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This descriptive case study closely examined a professional learning community in an Arkansas middle school. The site was selected because the school was removed from the state's school improvement list after implementing professional learning communities. The purpose of the study was to determine how the design of a professional learning community impacts teacher instruction in a middle school setting. The literature reviewed included historical perspective, definitions and characteristics of professional learning communities, teacher professional development, and teacher effect on student achievement. Eight teachers, one principal, and one instructional facilitator were interviewed about the professional learning communities in their school. The interviews focused on the characteristics of professional learning communities and the perceived impact of professional learning communities on instructional practices. Observations of professional learning community meetings were conducted, and related documents were also reviewed. The data revealed that a culture of collaboration, data-driven decisions, and supportive leadership impact instruction. Combined, these three factors created the conditions for teachers to build their capacity and provide better instruction to students. The data also revealed that the annual school-wide book studies were an important aspect of professional development for the teachers at this school; many described it as the most beneficial professional learning community strategy utilized by the school.
Download or read book An Investigation of the Relationship Between Professional Learning Communities and Mathematics Achievement by Students written by Amy Andersen and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 141 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Professional Learning Communities written by Aaron R. Medsker and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Professional Learning Communities at Work written by Richard DuFour and published by Solution Tree. This book was released on 1998 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides specific information on how to transform schools into results-oriented professional learning communities, describing the best practices that have been used by schools nationwide.
Download or read book Middle School Mathematics Professional Development Impact Study written by Michael S. Garet and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Student achievement in mathematics has been a focal concern in the United States for many years. The National Research Council's 2001 report and the recent report of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel (2008) both called attention to student achievement in mathematics, and both called for all students to learn algebra by the end of eighth grade. Reports have argued, further, that achieving this goal requires that students first successfully learn several topics in rational numbers--fractions, decimals, ratio, rate, proportion, and percent. These topics are typically covered in grades 4 through 7, yet many students continue to struggle with them beyond the seventh grade. The National Mathematics Advisory Panel wrote that--difficulty with fractions (including decimals and percent) is pervasive and is a major obstacle to further progress in mathematics, including algebra. The panel also specified that by the end of seventh grade, students should be able to solve problems involving percent, ratio, and rate, and extend this work to proportionality. The U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Educational Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE)--within the Institute of Education Sciences--initiated the Middle School Mathematics Professional Development Impact Study to test the impact of a professional development (PD) program for teachers that was designed to address the problem of low student achievement in topics in rational numbers. The study focuses on seventh grade, the culminating year for teaching those topics and has three central research questions: (1) What impact did the PD program provided in this study have on teacher knowledge of rational number topics? (2) What impact did the PD program provided in this study have on teacher instructional practices? and (3) What impact did the PD program provided in this study have on student achievement in rational number topics? The study produced the following results: (1) The study's PD program was implemented as intended; (2) The PD program did not produce a statistically significant impact on teacher knowledge of rational numbers (effect size = 0.19, p-value = 0.15); (3) The PD program had a statistically significant impact on the frequency with which teachers engaged in activities that elicited student thinking, one of the three measures of instructional practice used in the study (effect size = 0.48); and (4) The PD program did not produce a statistically significant impact on student achievement (effect size = 0.04, p-value = 0.37). This report presents the study's findings after 1 year of implementing the PD in the treatment schools. A subsequent report will present findings after 2 years of implementing the PD. Chapter 1 presents an overview of the study. Chapter 2 describes the study design and its realization, including a description of the sample and tests of baseline equivalence of the treatment and control groups on observed characteristics. Chapter 3 describes the design and implementation of the PD program and the extent of service contrast between the treatment and control groups. Chapter 4 addresses the impact of the PD program on teacher knowledge, instructional practice, and student mathematics achievement. Chapter 5 provides several nonexperimental analyses that explore additional questions related to the impact findings. Appended are: (1) Data Collection; (2) Details of the Study Samples and Analytic Approaches; (3) Supplemental Information on the Design and Implementation of the PD Program; (4) Supporting Tables and Figures for Impact Analyses; and (5) Exploratory Analyses: Approaches and Additional Results. (Contains 9 exhibits, 9 figures, and 90 tables.).
Download or read book Innovation up Close written by A. Michael Huberman and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-06-29 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: School improvement, like motherhood, has many advocates. Everyone is for it, without having to campaign actively on its behalf. And just as the 100% of people who have had mothers think they know how mothering could be done better, so the (nearly) 100% of people who have been pupils in schools, or have even taught in or managed them, think they know how schools can be im proved. More precisely, they are sure that schools ought to be improved. The trouble is that they propose a staggering, conflicting range of methods of improving the schools, from ;'back to the woodshed" to teacher merit pay, a stiffer curriculum, a stronger tax base, reorganization, a more humane climate, "teacher-proof" innovations, community involvement-the list is nearly end less. Furthermore, the issues are not merely technical, but normative and po litical. The term improvement is itself problematic. One person's version of improvement is another's version of wastefulness or even of worsening the schools. Furthermore, the versions that win out in any particular school are not Improvement sometimes turns out to be merely a necessarily technically "best. " code word for the directives that administrators have successfully put into place, or for the agreements that teachers have lobbied into being. How much do we really know about school improvement? The available research literature is quite substantial, but not as helpful as it might be.
Download or read book Revisiting Professional Learning Communities at Work written by Richard DuFour and published by Solution Tree Press. This book was released on 2009-11-01 with total page 592 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This 10th-anniversary sequel to the authors’ best-selling book Professional Learning Communities at WorkTM: Best Practices for Enhancing Student Achievement merges research, practice, and passion. The most extensive, practical, and authoritative PLC resource to date, it goes further than ever before into best practices for deep implementation, explores the commitment/consensus issue, and celebrates successes of educators who are making the journey.
