Teacher Professional Learning Research Articles

‘It didn’t feel like something extra we had to do; it was something we all looked forward to’ - how school-based professional learning communities can reimagine teacher professional learning for inclusive practice

ABSTRACT The development of inclusive education has become a policy priority across the world, yet the reality of enactment is inconsistent. While many barriers contribute to creating inclusive classrooms, effective teacher professional learning (PL) presents a significant challenge. Professional learning communities (PLCs) have been identified as potentially transformative models of PL but despite the growing research base on PLCs, there is limited research on their role in the context of inclusive education. We address this knowledge gap and build upon previous research that demonstrated the positive impact of a PLC on sustained PL for inclusive practice. Situated in the Republic of Ireland, PLCs for inclusive practice were developed in four schools, supported by a school-university partnership, comprising one academic and four teacher leaders. Focus group interviews with the PLC participants (n = 33) and observation of practice in two schools indicated teacher change. Of note, PLCs that transform PL for inclusive practice can be internally led when teachers are empowered through a school-university partnership. This paper strengthens the research on the potential of PLCs as transformative models of PL for inclusive practice and offers a framework that includes design principles for school-university partnerships to support the PLCs for inclusion across diverse school contexts.

Teachers’ professional learning: Do instructional leadership and teacher leadership make a difference in Turkiye?

Numerous studies have explored teachers’ professional learning, yet ongoing efforts persist to understand the influence of leadership factors on this concept. This study aims to analyse the relationship between school principals’ instructional leadership behaviours, teacher leadership and teachers’ professional learning. A structural model was created and tested using data from 346 Turkish teachers. Results confirmed that teacher leadership behaviours mediate the relationship between principals’ instructional leadership behaviours and teachers’ professional learning. In contexts where principals demonstrate instructional leadership, teachers tend to exhibit more teacher leadership behaviours, fostering positive attitudes towards professional learning. Teachers engaged in teacher leadership behaviours prioritise activities enhancing their professional learning. This study concludes that the impact of instructional leadership on teacher leadership and professional learning hinges on principals’ implementation of instructional leadership and teachers’ integration of professional learning into their practices, contributing to leadership literature.

Longitudinal analysis of teacher self-efficacy evolution during a STEAM professional development program: a qualitative case study

Despite the widespread advocacy for the integration of arts and humanities (A&H) into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education on an international scale, teachers face numerous obstacles in practically integrating A&H into STEM teaching (IAT). To tackle the challenges, a comprehensive five-stage framework for teacher professional development programs focussed on IAT has been developed. Through the use of a qualitative case study approach, this study outlines the shifts in a participant teacher’s self-efficacy following their exposure to each stage of the framework. The data obtained from interviews and reflective analyses were analyzed using a seven-stage inductive method. The findings have substantiated the significant impact of a teacher professional development program based on the framework on teacher self-efficacy, evident in both individual performance and student outcomes observed over eighteen months. The evolution of teacher self-efficacy in IAT should be regarded as an open and multi-level system, characterized by interactions with teacher knowledge, skills and other entrenched beliefs. Building on our research findings, an enhanced model of teacher professional learning is proposed. The revised model illustrates that professional learning for STEAM teachers should be conceived as a continuous and sustainable process, characterized by the dynamic interaction among teaching performance, teacher knowledge, and teacher beliefs. The updated model further confirms the inseparable link between teacher learning and student learning within STEAM education. This study contributes to the existing body of literature on teacher self-efficacy, teacher professional learning models and the design of IAT teacher professional development programs.

Impacting teaching and learning through collaborative reflective practice

ABSTRACT The article focuses on the final years of my PhD research in which I (Bernadette) explored in-school professional learning opportunities with a group of teachers who were working to support collaborative teaching methodologies to allow pupils to take an active role in their learning. This was set in the context of the development phase of Cosán, the national framework for teachers’ learning in Ireland, in which the profession could examine what it would mean for them in the context in which they practise. Explicit in this framework is the emphasis on the growth of teacher professional learning to enhance student outcomes. Central to this is reflective practice. The reader will see how this research shows that our facilitated engagement in the process of reflection through ongoing, sustained, critical and collaborative conversations allowed us not only to celebrate successes but also to challenge values, beliefs, and assumptions about why we do what we do, supporting us to make conscious decisions about possible future actions. In taking ownership of our practice, we were motivated to take the risk to examine it and take collective responsibility for making a difference in each other’s learning and in the interests of improving student learning.

Promising practices for online professional learning

This study took place at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic when most schools worldwide were making the transition to online teaching and learning. Through this single-case study design, the study examined the learning experiences of a group of teachers engaged in interactive, inquiry-based professional learning focused on math, making and coding during a shift to emergency remote teaching. The primary objective was to identify promising practices for online professional learning (PL) focused on math and coding using a maker-pedagogies approach to teaching and learning, based on the teachers’ learning experiences. Study participants included 20 teachers from a rural school board in Northern Ontario, Canada. Findings indicated that the following may be considered as promising practices when developing and implementing virtual math and coding PL from a maker perspective. It is important to: a) balance sessions focused on specific math and coding content with more general sessions focused on learning the various maker-technology tools; b) include both synchronous and asynchronous learning opportunities for the variety of teachers involved in the learning; c) include collaborative learning in the teacher PL and a virtual platform that can support this type of social learning; d) ensure the PL sessions are on-going as opposed to one-off or isolated sessions. This research suggests that online professional learning sessions need to consider three elements: the teacher, the content, and the learning environment and offers important recommendations for future work in this area.

Exploring Pre-Service Teacher Professional Learning on Their Preparedness for Teaching Practicum

The teaching practicum is essential in pre-service teacher education, allowing aspiring teachers to apply theoretical knowledge in real classrooms. It helps them to develop practical skills, build communication abilities, and connect with clients, colleagues, and mentors. This study investigates pre-service teachers' perceptions of their readiness for teaching practicums, the influencing factors, and the contribution of professional learning programs on their preparedness. Using a mixed-method approach with an explanatory sequential design, the research was conducted in Metro City, Lampung. Data were collected through a close-ended questionnaire from 80 pre-service teachers and semi-structured interviews with 9 pre-service teachers who were ready as the volunteers. Descriptive statistics and qualitative analysis were used to analyze the data. Results indicated that professional learning programs significantly enhance preparedness in pedagogical training, content knowledge, classroom management, understanding diverse student needs, and technology integration. These programs boost confidence, competence, and the ability to create effective learning environments. Informal learning, such as roles as teaching assistants and using social media, also contributes significantly to innovative teaching. Integrating formal and informal learning experiences is crucial for the holistic development of pre-service teachers

A Comprehensive Analysis of Teacher Professional Learning Communities: A Scopus Based Review (2019–2024)

Professional learning communities (PLCs) play a pivotal role in fostering continuous professional development for educators. However, the broad picture of PLCs has been under investigated in recent years. We filled this research gap by conducting a mixed systematic review of PLCs. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) model, 27 publications from Scopus between 2019 and 2024 were extracted and analyzed. Our analysis primarily focused on discerning the prominent research trends in this field, scrutinizing research article counts, and examining countries, authors citation counts, and keywords of the selected articles. The findings reveal the existence of 12 issues pertaining to recent teacher PLCs. Notably, the number of research articles addressing this topic exhibited an upward trajectory, with the journal Teaching and Teacher Education serving as the preferred publication outlet for authors. Among the influential contributors in this domain, the research conducted by Yin et al. (2019) from Hong Kong held the greatest sway. Commonly recurring keywords in the analyzed articles include learning, professional, community, and teacher. Consequently, this research review offers a comprehensive overview of teacher PLCs, thus providing valuable guidance for educational researchers and practitioners in shaping future research endeavors.

Complexity, Struggle, and the Dialogical Self: Learning from New Teachers to Shift the Paradigm of Teacher Education and Professional Learning

Getting started in any new profession can be daunting, but the learning curve associated with becoming a teacher is particularly steep given the complexity of both the act of teaching (e.g., planning lessons, assessing learning) and the roles teachers occupy (managing relationships, responding to policy directives) that new teachers must master with levels of support that are, historically, uneven. This transition is further complicated by simplistic notions that dominate conceptions of teacher learning and practice. This article draws upon a study of the challenges new teachers encounter and the participants’ responses to those challenges. The data index the importance of viewing teacher development, practice, and identity formation from a complexity perspective. Working from the data generated during this study of the new teachers’ lived experiences, which are situated against a backdrop of the literature chronicling a problematic lack of progress in supporting new teachers, this article describes how Dialogical Self theory can play a crucial role in a paradigm shift in approaches to teacher development and practice that accounts for complex and contextually dependent nature of teacher learning, practice, and identity formation.

Priorities and possibilities for teacher professional learning in a (post)COVID-19 era

ABSTRACT This paper aims to strengthen understandings of both the current status of and future directions around teacher professional learning in Canada. Bearing in mind the significant shifts in teacher professional learning as a result of the pandemic, the paper utilises an existing framework around the features of high-quality professional learning from a prior study to analyse recent trends in teacher learning needs and professional learning modalities to identify priorities and possibilities for the future of teacher learning in the (post) COVID-19 era. Particular attention is paid to what we refer to as the COVID conundrum. On the one hand, the proliferation of online learning opportunities necessitated by the pandemic resulted in an increase in access for educators who have not been served well by traditional face-to-face models of professional learning. By the same token, however, the sheer volume of learning opportunities, combined with the privatisation and globalisation of online teacher learning (Educational International 2020a), presents challenges around ensuring professional learning is relevant and contextualised to local teaching and learning contexts.

The Implementation of Bilingual Education in Taiwan: A Case Study of Two Junior High Schools with a Bilingual Curriculum in Taipei City Using the FERTILE Model

The development of bilingual education has rapidly grown in the past few decades, with v and ying implementations reflecting each country’s political, social and cultural contexts. In response, the Taiwanese government launched the Bilingual 2030 policy in Taiwan to improve international competitiveness and communication. Employing the FERTILE model as the theoretical framework, this case study focuses on (1) comprehending the role of the administrative team in implementing bilingual education within schools and (2) exploring the function of bilingual teacher professional learning communities. The results indicate that the involvement of school administrative teams, along with the support from BPLCs, are essential for implementing bilingual education in schools. More importantly, this research highlights the importance of administrative teams in providing a supportive environment. Also, the support from administrative teams is significant for enhancing the function of BPLCs, which play a key role in improving teachers’ instructional strategies. The findings of this study can generate both theoretical and practical contributions to bilingual education in Taiwan. First, the findings provide schools and policy makers in Taiwan with valuable insights for fostering bilingual teacher professional learning communities. Second, the findings from the two case studies, which utilised the FERTILE model to implement bilingual education, can serve as references for its nationwide promotion.

Exploring Shared Instructional Leadership Strategies to Improve Teacher Professional Learning: A Case Study in a Southeastern School System

ABSTRACT The present study aims to identify shared instructional leadership strategies administered by school principals and instructional coaches to enhance teacher professional learning within a southeastern school system. Using a qualitative case study approach, we collected data through semi-structured interviews with six principals and six instructional coaches from seven elementary schools. Qualitative content analysis was utilized to analyze the data. The results revealed various shared instructional leadership strategies across three key components: structuring the school environment to facilitate professional learning, fostering a culture of ongoing learning, and nurturing interpersonal relationships conducive to teacher development. We discuss implications for policy and practice.

“It actually helped”: students’ perceptions of feedback helpfulness prior to and following a teacher professional learning intervention

This study investigated the effects of a teacher professional learning intervention, underpinned by a student-centred model of feedback, on student perceptions of feedback helpfulness. The study was conducted in the context of primary education English writing in Queensland, Australia. No overall differences in feedback perceptions of students in 13 intervention and 9 comparison schools were identified following the intervention. However, more detailed analyses revealed significantly greater increases in perceived helpfulness among intervention group students for six feedback strategies. This suggests the intervention changed teachers’ feedback practices, enhancing student perceptions of feedback helpfulness. Student focus group data provided valuable qualitative insights into student feedback perceptions. Overall findings highlight the interrelatedness between feedback strategies across the feedback cycle for enhancing student learning.

“These two worlds are antithetical”: epistemic tensions in integrating computational thinking in K12 humanities and arts

ABSTRACT Background While advocates for integrating Computational Thinking (CT) into existing K12 classrooms have acknowledged and aimed to address various barriers to implementation, we contend that a more foundational issue – tensions between the epistemology of computing and those of existing disciplines – has largely been overlooked. Studies of contact between heterogeneous disciplinary perspectives in both pedagogical and real world professional settings point to other risks, and harms, that educators may need to consider as they attempt to integrate CT into their teaching. As such, designing for integrated CT pedagogies does not simply require addressing functional problems such as teacher professional learning and limited classroom time, but rather implicates complex epistemological navigations. Objective This manuscript explores epistemic tensions between Computational Thinking (CT) and K12 humanities and arts disciplines and possibilities for their resolution. Method Based on a Delphi study with 43 experts from three disciplines – language arts, social studies, and arts – as they engaged in 20 hours of focus group conversations exploring potential approaches to integrating CT these disciplines, analysis focused on identifying perceived epistemic tensions that can arise in the context of instruction and directions for their resolution. Findings We found 5 epistemic tensions that are explored in detail: contextual reductionism, procedural reductionism, epistemic chauvinism, threats to epistemic identities, and epistemic convergence, as well as a number of potential directions for navigating them. Implications The study’s findings provide insights that bear on both scholarship and pedagogical design aimed at promoting substantive interdisciplinary learning with CT, and, critically, navigating potential tensions that can arise within it.

Drivers of Digital Realities for Ongoing Teacher Professional Learning

Drivers of Digital Realities for Ongoing Teacher Professional Learning

EXPLORING THE CONTRIBUTION OF MASTER’S ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION PROGRAM ON TEACHER PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

Teacher professional learning (TPL) has been considered a significant need to strengthen teachers’ professional growth, which in turn fosters high-quality teaching and enhances students’ learning experiences. It has become a prominent interest in education around the globe, including in Indonesia. However, little is known about the contribution of a university program, especially a Master's program, towards TPL in the Indonesian context. This study aims to investigate the contribution of the Master's English Language Education (MELE) Program towards TPL on graduate students who have become teachers at once. The data were collected from graduate students of the program. A focus group was conducted with nine representatives of two classes that were categorized into two different groups. Constant comparison analysis was used as the data analysis method. The findings revealed three important themes namely applying knowledge into practice; transforming teaching through teachers’ self-inquiry; and improving knowledge, skills, and attitudes toward academic publication. The paper also presents the empirical evidence that takes place during the program and how it contributes to their professionalism.

Moving from transmissive to transformative: Closing the policy‐practice gap in teacher professional learning in Scotland

Moving from transmissive to transformative: Closing the policy‐practice gap in teacher professional learning in Scotland

Using English as a Language of Instruction in Rural Schools in Thailand: Key Challenges for Teaching and Learning

Primary school teachers in Thailand are encouraged to use English as a language of instruction across all curriculum areas in their classrooms, not just in English lessons. However, many non-English major teacherswho teach in rural schools struggle to deliver lessons in English due to the lack of professional knowledge and ongoing support for English language usage. This paper considers the experiences of non-English major teachers working in rural schools in Thailand who participated in a coaching and mentoring program to support their motivation and confidence to use English as a language of instruction. A participatory case study research design was used for this study, which included classroom observations and semi-structured interviews with teacher–participants before, during and after the coaching and mentoring program. Some of the key challenges that arose included the use of Thai as a language of instruction, lack of resources and support for the use of English as a language of instruction, lack of clarity in school policies and the limited availability of professional learning for teachers in rural schools.There is an urgent need for additional professional learning support for teachers, especially those working in rural schools, to ensure success of the Thai government’s policy aim to make English available as a language of instruction in all primary schools.

“It shouldn’t be something you have to create on your own.” Personal practical knowledge construction and professional learning for teachers in Swedish school-age educare.

Teachers who work in school-age educare (SAEC) in Sweden possess a variety of educational qualifications. They hold a dual role working as teachers both within the compulsory program and school-age educare. This dual competence requirement means that their professional needs are unique and often different from that of their colleagues who only work in the compulsory school system (Berglund, Lager, Lundkvist and Gustavsson Nyckel, 2019). They reside in a complex context when it comes to opportunities for constructing their personal professional knowledge. Considering that already in 2021, the government announced the creation of a national professional learning program (Regeringen 2021), it is essential to understand what type of professional learning is deemed needed by the SAEC teachers themselves. Through narrative interviews with SAEC teachers, this study aims to map an understanding of how the teachers construct their personal professional knowledge as SAEC teachers. The main research question in this study is: How do SAEC teachers describe the role of professional learning as part of creating and developing their personal professional knowledge? The findings indicate a need for a systematic approach to recognize the qualification of experienced teachers and create a framework for professional learning opportunities for all teachers in SAEC.

What factors affect teacher professional learning: a qualitative meta-analysis based on the Onion model

Purpose Current academic research on teacher learning is increasing in number and deepening in quality, but at the same time, the heterogeneity is growing significantly. Similar work is challenging to cross-check regarding conclusions due to the different research foci. This paper aims to provide a reliable theoretical framework and offers solid insights based on the existing research. Design/methodology/approach Based on the Onion model, 67 core literature in English and Chinese were coded through qualitative meta-analysis methods to explore environmental, behavioral, competence, belief, identity, mission and other factors that may impact teacher learning. Findings It was found that the quantitative structure of the current relevant studies was in an inverted triangular shape with three levels of steps, respectively, which can be summarized as structural environment, core behaviors and dominant mission. The heterogeneity between the findings mainly originated from two situations, oppositional and complementary and some structural adjustments were made to the Onion model according to the coding results to better represent the interaction of influences between the levels. It also analyzes current research trends and the centrality of learned behaviors based on the coding results. Social implications The design of teacher learning activities should combine theoretical, practical and inquiry learning to ensure that teachers are kept fresh and motivated by sustained and varied stimuli. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to analyze teacher learning influences through qualitative meta-analysis and create node saturation to analyze the results, resulting in highly credible and valuable research findings.

Research on the Construction of Teacher Professional Learning. Community in the Web 3.0 Era

China’s teacher education reform has always advocated the establishment of a teacher-professional learning community to promote teacher professional development and school progress. In the Web 3.0 era, the increasingly open, secure, and fair network has created conditions for the teacher professional learning community to conduct data confirmation. However, in China, the phenomenon of a “silent spiral” has emerged in the professional learning community of teachers, that is, the inferior opinions of teachers in the professional learning community turn to “silent”, and the superior opinions shout, which to a certain extent hinders the creation, protection, and sharing of teacher metadata, affects the development of data right confirmation in the field of education, and slows down the pace of teacher education practice. This study mainly focuses on the value of building a Chinese teacher professional learning community in the Web 3.0 era, the specific difficulties and reasons, and how to develop a Chinese teacher professional learning community in the future. This study mainly adopts the method of documentary review and draws on the “spiral of silence” theory, which regards the expression of opinions and the spread of “silence” as a spiral process of social communication, and influences and restricts public opinion by creating an “opinion environment”. It is found that under the background of the Web 3.0 era, there is an information cocoon in the professional learning community of teachers, and teachers are affected by the diversity of information. Teachers fear independence and generally produce a herd mentality. It is easy to ignore the disadvantageous climate in the professional learning community of teachers, resulting in the continuous silence of teachers. In addition, teacher groups tend to be too stressed and unable to resist the opinion environment. Therefore, the research draws the following conclusions, the construction of teacher professional learning community should adhere to positive guidance, cultivate the correct learning concept, and build the core value concept; Strengthen teachers’ group consciousness, establish a common vision, and make teachers have a sense of belonging to the community; Coordinate the “online + offline”, build a learning mechanism, and salvage the silent voice of the group in the professional learning community of teachers; Provide supporting conditions around the key development issues of the community to promote the growth of opinion climate.