Changing Classroom Practice: The Evaluation of the School Network Learning Project in Jordan

Abstract

In 2007, the Columbia University Middle East Research Center (CUMERC), with the support and patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah, facilitated the founding of the Queen Rania Teacher Academy (QRTA) to help advance education in Jordan and throughout the Middle East. Through CUMERC, QRTA and Teachers College, Columbia University (TC) formed a new partnership whose goal was to use high quality in-service training to improve the quality of the public schools in Jordan. The Consortium for Policy in Education at TC (CPRE) took on this work and began collaborating with QRTA to engage current educators in the adoption and use of evidence-based instructional practices in Jordan’s elementary and secondary schools. This initiative became known as the School Networks Learning Project and supported networks of schools in different regions of the country as vehicles for providing professional development of teachers in English, mathematics, and science as well as leadership training for principals and education supervisors to support the desired changes in classroom practice. Five core practices were emphasized during the professional development with the goal being that teachers would focus on these practices and take them back to their classrooms. Schools and teachers made a 2 to 3 year commitment to the project. At the time of the writing of this report, three cohorts have completed the Project and two additional cohorts have begun the Project. Across the three completed cohorts, 2,158 teachers, 894 school leaders, and 104 other educators participated in the School Network Project, totaling 3,130 participants over the almost six years of the Project’s implementation. Disciplines Educational Administration and Supervision | Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Comments View on the CPRE website. This report is available at ScholarlyCommons: http://repository.upenn.edu/cpre_researchreports/83 CHANGING CLASSROOM PRACTICE: The Evaluation of the School Network Learning Project in Jordan Presented by Jaunelle Pratt-Williams Senior Research Assistant Thomas Corcoran Director CHANGING CLASSROOM PRACTICE: The Evaluation of the School Network Project in Jordan Opinions expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the Queen Rania Teacher Academy, Jordanian Ministry of Education, Jordanian Ministry of Planning, Columbia University Middle East Research Center, the Columbia Global Centers, CPRE Teachers College, or the participating schools. TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 OVERVIEW OF SCHOOL NETWORK LEARNING PROJECT 6 Goals of the School Network Learning 7 EVALUATING THE PROJECT 9 Data Sources and Methods 10 THE SCHOOL NETWORK FRAMEWORK 11 Participation and Attrition 13 Modifications and Adaptations to Professional Development 16 FINDINGS FROM CPRE’S THREE FOCUS AREAS 18 Change: The Reflective Classroom Initiative 18 Self-reported Changes and Challenges from Surveys 22 Similar Findings from Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 27 Building Capacity within QRTA 27