With the increasing demand for improved student achievement in mathematics, few studies have been conducted examining teacher efficacy when continuously supported through a collaborative professional learning community (PLC) structure. This study examined teacher efficacy within PLC activities in a middle school. Both the belief that mathematics…

The pandemic has not only increased economic inequities within various communities, but it has also exacerbated the social, emotional, and math achievement inequities of middle school students, creating an environment that increases the potential for heightened anxiety and peer conflict. Now, more than ever, it is imperative that educators not…

There is a sense of urgency among P-12 educators to dismantle systemic school-based racism and radically transform conditions for teaching and learning in ways that advance equity, social justice, and social-emotional learning (SEL). This transformation cannot be achieved through typical top-down, short-term approaches to school improvement or…

In this paper, science lecturers' perspectives on how they authentically prepare to teach are explored, to establish how academic development practices can better support them. Science lecturers in higher education do not always feel comfortable engaging with pedagogical training initiatives, often finding the ideas presented confusing,…

This study explored the extent to which distance learning tutors found sharing practice through participating in a tutor-led online programme of online events helped them to develop as practitioners and hence support students more effectively. The regular online sessions, delivered by tutors for tutors, was a staff development initiative…

Reform initiatives for improving undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education have identified graduate students as important stakeholders in these efforts. Graduate students often serve as graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) at some point in their graduate education and are positioned as future STEM faculty and…

Lesson Study (LS) is a teaching improvement and knowledge-building process that has origins in Japanese elementary education. In Japanese LS, teachers work in small teams to plan, teach, observe, analyse and refine individual lessons called research lessons. This study examined a small sample of primary school teachers' perceptions of LS as a…

In this article, we describe a dissertation in practice (DiP) conducted by the first author. The DiP focused on a social justice issue--providing pre-service teachers with highly effective preparation for working with culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. As part of the article, interludes have been inserted prior to each major…

This paper summarizes research on the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Leadership Learning Community (ELLC) and the University Principal Preparation Program (UPPI). The Wallace Foundation created these efforts and supported them financially to test ideas for improving the work of principals and enhancing the supports they receive on the job.…

Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) student teachers participate in work-integrated learning to develop their professional skills by critically reflecting on their school experience. This study examined how PGCE student teachers perceived Communities of Practice during their work-integrated learning. This study adopted a generic…

In Thailand, in-service teachers' professional development has been implemented through the Professional Learning Community (PLC) program for more than four years to develop teachers' sustainably. The sustainable development program has spread across the country in the Thai Teacher Council network. The research goals are as follows: (1) to…

Those from marginalized populations, many of whom are first-generation college students (FGCS), often face barriers to accessing secondary education (Pitre & Pitre, 2009). Additionally, when students from such groups do successfully enroll in post-secondary educational opportunities, their graduation rates remain low (DeAngelo, Franke,…

Improving STEM education is pivotal to our country's economic future and security. Unfortunately, most young students have limited access to standards-based science education. Science instruction is notoriously difficult to implement in the early grades. This dissertation explored the root causes for the lack of effective science instruction in…

A writing program based on brief regular writing sessions can greatly improve research productivity. Ten years' experience with a program at the University of Wollongong provides insights into the benefits and challenges in supporting a new writing habit.

This study is about adult learning and empowerment in a challenging context. The data from this study comes from interviews with women non-operating landowners who attended a learning circle event designed to inform them about conservation opportunities on their land. The findings show there were several aspects of the learning circles that…