Addressing the complexities of literacy and urban teaching in the USA: strategic professional development as intervention

This study was undertaken in order to get some sense of the role of life experiences in preservice and inservice teachers' conceptions of the purpose(s) and practices of education. Content analysis of narratives written by graduate students in education at one college was utilized to ascertain how they view the field and their (current or prospective) role as teachers. We found that the majority of students saw teaching as an opportunity to make a difference, and as reflective of who they were rather than as "just a job". This finding provided the opportunity to address the strengths and vulnerabilities of such an idealistic conception of teaching, and the corresponding possibilities vis-à-vis teacher educators' roles. We conclude by noting the study's limitations and making several recommendations for future action and research based on our findings.     

Providing school-based learning in elementary school mathematics: the case of a professional development school partnership

Abstract

School–university partnerships also known as professional development school (PDS) partnerships provide potential for universities and schools to establish partnerships that can benefit university faculty, school teachers, university students, and school students. This study examines the impact of a PDS partnership in which the author served as a school-based mathematics coach for two years in a high-need elementary school. Data sources included interviews, surveys, and field notes from classroom observations. Inductive qualitative analyses which were situated in a multi-level framework for researching professional development found that teachers posed more cognitively demanding mathematical tasks and high-level questions in year two compared to year one of this project. Further, student achievement was noted on both state-wide and district-created assessments. Also teachers reported that the school-based approach to professional development led to some teachers taking on more informal leadership roles to support their colleagues’ mathematics instruction. Implications for school-based learning opportunities across the world include the need to establish specific university–school partnerships, and carefully designing research studies to examine the impact of these learning opportunities.     

Four spheres of knowledge required: an international study of the professional development of literacy/English teacher educators

This paper reports on a research study of 28 literacy teacher educators (LTE) in four countries: Canada, the USA, England and Australia. It identifies three main forms of professional development: informal, formal and communities of practice and four spheres of knowledge: research; pedagogy of higher education; literacy and literacy teaching; and current school district and government initiatives. The study reveals the sheer scale of knowledge required to be an effective LTE and demonstrates how participants used the three forms of professional development to enhance their knowledge in each sphere. It concludes that the professional development of teacher educators is not conducted systematically; rather, it is quite ad hoc with much of it occurring through learning while doing. All had to construct their own programmes for professional development, which added yet another layer to their responsibilities.     

The role of teacher professional development in financial literacy education: A systematic literature review

This paper examines the elements essential to effective teacher professional development (TPD) in financial literacy education by means of a systematic literature review. We provide a theoretical underpinning for the literature review by proposing a revised presentation of an existing general TPD model. Our results provide insight into the student learning goals in financial literacy education, the desirable teaching behaviour, the required teacher quality and the contextual factors that play a role. However, our findings also suggest a lack of studies that systematically investigate whether and how TPD initiatives enhance the effect of financial education on students' financial literacy. Furthermore, existing literature fails to provide insight in how the six key features of TPD should be implemented to optimize its effectiveness.     

The impact of an integrated approach to science and literacy in elementary school classrooms

This study investigates the efficacy of an integrated science and literacy approach at the upper‐elementary level. Teachers in 94 fourth grade classrooms in one Southern state participated. Half of the teachers taught the treatment unit, an integrated science–literacy unit on light and energy designed using a curriculum model that engages students in reading text, writing notes and reports, conducting firsthand investigations, and frequent discussion of key concepts and processes to acquire inquiry skills and knowledge about science concepts, while the other half of the teachers taught a content‐comparable science‐only unit on light and energy (using materials provided by their districts) and provided their regular literacy instruction. Students in the treatment group made significantly greater gains on measures of science understanding, science vocabulary, and science writing. Students in both groups made comparable gains in science reading comprehension. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 49: 631–658, 2012     

Promoting early literacy through the professional development of preschool teachers

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a professional learning program on the emergent literacy skills of preschool children. Building Blocks for Literacy^® is a program consisting of training supported by mentoring designed to teach early childcare providers how to promote the development of early literacy skills. A previous investigation found positive effects of the program on the pre-literacy skills of children in Vermont. The current study extended their work by replicating the training for Head Start teachers (n?=?27) in another state. Teachers were divided into three groups. One group received the training and live mentoring; a second group received training and distance mentoring; and a third group of teachers served as controls. The results indicate that children (n?=?97) served by teachers who received the training (n?=?18) made higher gains on a measure of early literacy skills than those children (n?=?36) served by control teachers. The gains made by children in the treatment groups were consistent for teachers who received either live or distance mentoring. Implications for practice are discussed.     

Linking literacy teaching with assessment: a continuing professional development initiative for secondary schools

As part of a professional development initiative helping secondary school teachers use assessment data to guide their instruction, teachers in this study changed their knowledge, skills and dispositions. Over time, they were able to identify assessments, administer these assessments, interpret the results and plan instruction. As a result, the students who were tutored by these teachers increased their achievement compared with a control group.     

Enhancing literacy practices in science classrooms through a professional development program for Canadian minority-language teachers

Literacy in the Science Classroom Project was a three-year professional development (PD) program supporting minority-language secondary teachers’ use of effective language-based instructional strategies for teaching science. Our primary objective was to determine how teacher beliefs and practices changed over time and how these were enacted in different classrooms. We also wanted to identify the challenges and enablers to implementing these literacy strategies and practices at the classroom, school, and district levels. Data collection involved both qualitative and quantitative methodologies: student questionnaires; interviews with teachers, principals, and mentor; and focus groups with students. The findings suggest that the program had an impact on beliefs and practices commensurate with the workshop participation of individual teachers. These language-enhanced teacher practices also had a positive impact on the use of talking, reading and writing by students in the science classroom. Finally, continuing PD support may be needed in certain jurisdictions for strengthening minority-language programs given the high teacher mobility in content-area classrooms evident in this study.     

Power and perspective: the discourse of professional development school literature

This paper reports on the results of a study in which the discourse within 75 professional development school (PDS)-related publications was examined to determine where the power, influence, and representation lies in PDS partnerships, as indicated by how those partnerships are described in writing. The results found that while university faculty overwhelmingly wrote the articles, their perspectives and experiences were under-represented in the literature and, moreover, their influence within the partnerships appeared to be negligible. School and university administrators were similarly absent in PDS writing. Significantly, university authors and researchers represented themselves in a way that was highly deferential to practitioners and denigrated the role of theory and research in PDS work. In contrast to the traditional image of university dominance of partnerships, this research suggests that the real power and influence in PDS partnerships are the classroom teachers. The paper concludes with suggestions for creating a new, shared PDS discourse that tries to blur the artificial lines between theory and practice.     

Impact of sustained professional development in STEM on outcome measures in a diverse urban district

Sustained professional development can support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) reform. The authors describe a 3-year study of sustained professional development for 3 diverse urban schools across the salient factors of fidelity of implementation of project-based learning, development of professional learning communities, and student achievement. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected. The students who experienced the greatest fidelity of implementation exhibited the greatest gains (d = 1.41–2.03) on standardized test scores, while those with the lowest fidelity of implementation exhibited negative gains (d = –0.16 to –0.08). Qualitative data indicated teachers perceived there were multiple benefits from the implementation of project-based learning.     

Contribution of a professional development programme to the quality and retention of teachers in an urban environment

This study examined the effects of a professional development programme aimed at equipping teachers for the challenges of teaching in urban schools. The contribution of the programme to teacher quality and teacher retention was evaluated using a mixed research design in which both quantitative (N?=?133) and qualitative (N?=?42) approaches were used. The results showed a significant effect of the programme on teacher knowledge and self-efficacy. Furthermore, teachers greatly appreciated the programme and they perceived a positive impact on their competences, self-efficacy and professional orientation. The opportunity to share experiences within a network of teachers was considered the most valuable element of the programme.     

Children's literacy funds of knowledge in an urban Mexican elementary school: changing the approach

In this article, we share the vernacular literacy practices of a sixth grade students in Mexico City. From a sociocultural, ethnographic perspective and based on the contributions of the sociolinguistics of mobility and funds of knowledge, we describe the experiences and knowledge that children bring with them from home and the community to school, to write and read texts on their own during class. The findings show how they appropriate literacy practices to provide meaning to their reading and writing through the relationship between school and everyday literacy and the continuum between their oralities and literacies. Children construct literacy according to their day-to-day experiences, in and out of the classroom, and embed their literacy practices within their funds of knowledge developed at home with their families. Based on these findings, we question the significance and quintessential role that has been attributed to the school in the teaching of reading and writing, as well as the prevalence of individualistic and rigid approaches to the teaching of reading and writing.     

Using common formative assessments as a source of professional development in an urban American elementary school

By implementing a system of common formative assessments, the teachers at an American urban elementary school improved student achievement and facilitated their own professional development. By aligning content standards with assessments and purposeful instruction, the teachers at this school developed a depth of knowledge about their content standards, improved their ability to design assessments, learned to better link assessments with instruction, and planned for intervention for students who continued to struggle with reading and writing.     

发展为本的课程目标与中小学教师的专业发展

基础教育正在进行新一轮课程改革．从课程目标、教学方法到学生的学习方式以及成长要求,都在发生根本性的变革。课程目标由社会为本、知识为本转变为以人的发展为本。这就要求中小学教师的教育理念、能力素质随之变革和发展。     

美国教师专业发展学校的形成与发展

“专业发展学校”的建立是美国教师教育改革的新举措，它对美国教师教育的发展和教学质量的改善起了重要作用。该文从美国教师专业发展学校的产生因素、形成过程及其意义三方面对其形成和发展进行了探讨。     

Taking the risk to engage in race talk: professional development in elementary schools

Developing public education where every child has the right to learn requires that teachers pay attention to and engage in race talk – open discussion about race, social construction of race, and racism. While it is clear that children engage and reflect critically about these aspects of race even at a young age, teachers rarely engage in race talk with them. In this study, an African-American preservice teacher and a White teacher educator explore how African-American, Polynesian, and White in-service teachers, participating in Courageous Conversations professional development, address or avoid race talk in their elementary schools through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and what risks they take when they do. Findings, through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, demonstrate that (1) racism was observed and/or experienced by all teachers in elementary schools; (2) lived racial experiences impacted teachers’ approach to conversations about race; (3) creating an open space was crucial for race conversations; (4) Courageous Conversations provided a ‘new language’ to talk about race; and (5) administrative support facilitated more attention to race. Findings indicate the road to greater equity in schools requires more professional development about race talk in elementary schools.     

The impact of a Framework‐aligned science professional development program on literacy and mathematics achievement of K‐3 students

This study investigates the effect of a Framework‐aligned professional development program at the PreK‐3 level. The NSF funded program integrated science with literacy and mathematics learning and provided teacher professional development, along with materials and programming for parents to encourage science investigations and discourse around science in the home. This quasi‐experimental study used a three‐level hierarchical linear model to compare the Renaissance STAR Early Literacy, Reading, and Mathematics scores from 2015 to 2016 of K‐3 students in treatment and control classrooms in a large Midwestern urban school district. The statistically significant results indicate that, on average, every year that a student has a program teacher adds 8.6 points to a student's spring STAR Early Literacy score, 17.0 points to a student's STAR Mathematics score, and 41.4 points to a student's STAR Reading score compared to control students. Implications for early elementary teacher education and policy are discussed. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 54:1174–1196, 2017     

我国教师专业发展学校:推广的必要性及对策

教师专业发展学校是融职前教师教育、在职教师培训、大学教师发展为一体的教师教育模式,推行广泛并取得了巨大成效。我国教师教育发展模式相对滞后的现状迫切需要我们认真学习国外先进经验,加快发展我国的教师专业发展学校建设。     

职业学校教师专业学习团队——一种基于校本课程开发的教师专业发展途径

教育质量是职业学校发展的生命线,提高职业学校教育质量的关键在于教师专业的发展,而校本课程开发是教师专业发展的有效途径。本文提出职业学校要依托校本课程开发这一平台,以建构教师专业学习团队为途径,通过促进教师专业发展来提高职业学校的教学质量。     

Examining focus,duration, and classroom impact of literacy and mathematics professional development

Over $18 billion is spent annually on professional development for in-service teachers. This study examined the focus, duration, and impact of professional development activities in which elementary (students ages 5–11) and middle school (students ages 11–14) teachers participated. Ninety-eight teacher-participants completed an online survey about their professional development experiences. In the analysis of literacy survey items and mathematics survey items, there were similarities in focus areas that received greater participation and areas that received less. There were also noticeable differences in frequency of participation in literacy and mathematics professional development. Comparisons between literacy and mathematics professional development indicated that more teachers reported participating in literacy experiences. This included workshops as well as ongoing support through planning meetings and mentorship. Overall, the consensus from teachers was that professional development was effective and has a beneficial impact on their classroom. Researchers share implications for the design and research of future professional development programs.