College bound students are faced with not only navigating a new environment but also faced with finding their "place" in a new community. Educators have a role to support students' academic growth, self-efficacy (Schunk & DiBenedetto, 2020; Bandura, 1977), and sense of belonging (Brady et al., 2020; Hurtado & Carter, 1997) on…

This article describes how one elementary school's professional development model helped both new and veteran teachers grow in their knowledge and practice of balanced literacy. Created in partnership between university faculty, school administration, and elementary teachers, this multifaceted whole-school PD effort enabled teachers to learn…

The idea of transformative and troublesome "threshold concepts" has been popular and influential in higher education. This article reports how teachers with different disciplinary affiliations responded to the "concept of thresholds" in the course of a cross-disciplinary research project. It describes how the idea was territorialised and enacted…

Collaborative inquiry groups, such as professional learning communities and lesson study groups, are proliferating in schools across the United States. In whatever form, the potential for impacting student learning through this collaborative work is expanded or limited by the nature of teachers' conversations. Polite, congenial conversations…

A school that ensures that all students--regardless of race, creed, color, socioeconomic status, gender, or disabilities--have access to and receive the highest-quality education has achieved a key measure of social justice. Since the most significant factor in whether students learn well is quality teaching, and teaching is enhanced through…

"What Matters Most: Teaching for America's Future" by the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future tells that teacher quality is the single most important factor in determining student achievement, so principals are wise to put their efforts into improving teaching in their schools. However, principals do not need to take on…

This article describes how teachers who were once isolated by distance and the nature of their jobs are connecting across schools in online professional learning communities. While riding the wave of technology, St. Mary's County Public Schools in Leonardtown, Maryland, is providing a connection for teachers that extends beyond school walls.…

In this article, two teacher educators examine two curriculum moments they have experienced, one with children and the other with pre-service teachers. They find possibilities for shifts in their understandings and insights into their own identity making and that of students. Drawing upon Connelly and Clandinin's (1992) notion of teachers as…

A first-year interest group (FIG) is a learning community using course clusters. An effective model of FIGs and an innovative faculty development process are briefly described. Evaluation results found that University of Hartford FIGs improved student learning, improved curricular integration, fostered student community, and promoted faculty…

Teacher researchers in a Professional Development School context identify two important shifts in traditional school cultures in order for teacher inquiry to thrive as a means for teacher development: a shift to community and a shift to uncertainty. PDS teachers in this study spoke about their need for supportive learning communities where they…

A group of teacher educators adopted collaborative teamwork to cope with a too large teaching load. The authors reflect on the experience of working together in a critical friendship group, highlighting the role that conversation plays in this process. The experience of a collaborative approach and its impact on teaching and professional…

Turning Points helps middle schools create challenging, caring, and equitable learning communities that meet the needs of young adolescents as they reach the "turning point" between childhood and adulthood. Based on more than a decade of research and experience, this comprehensive school reform model focuses on improving student learning through…