This proposal seeks to evaluate existing knowledge about STEM teachers in professional learning communities (PLCs), both prospective teachers and classroom teachers across grades K-12. It will comprehensively synthesize peer-reviewed research but will also examine additional types of knowledge that influence the field. The project methods adapt those of Knowledge Management and Dissemination project, funded by NSF MSP and seeks to further advance the scope and rigor of knowledge synthesis. The reasons identified for this interest are: (a) PLCs ameliorate undesirable working conditions leading to dissatisfaction that drive teachers from the classroom; (b) PLCs are grounded in theory developed in the literature on how people learn; and (c) PLCs are supported by initial research on the effectiveness of modes of professional development that involves sustained collaborative effort over time, with an emphasis on tasks that are authentic to the participants? work. Researchers systematically find relevant knowledge and evaluate the methodological integrity and evidentiary utility of each research study or knowledge claim. Four kinds of knowledge on this topic are being analyzed and synthesized: (1) empirical and descriptive studies published in peer-reviewed journals; (2) research published in venues other than peer-reviewed journals (including online); (3) published expert knowledge and advice located in periodicals or on websites, and (4) current practice-based knowledge acquired through an online Expert Practitioner Panel.
Intellectual Merit This Synthesis-category grant was the first intensive examination of existing knowledge about professional learning communities (PLCs) that focused specifically on ones involving science and/or mathematics teachers, grades K-12. Research studies provided evidence that STEM learning teams can have positive effects on STEM teachers and their teaching in the following ways. Participating in learning teams can successfully engage STEM teachers in discussions about content knowledge, i.e., the mathematics and science that they teach. Further, STEM teachers understood mathematics and science better, and felt more prepared to teach mathematics and science content. STEM teachers also improved their practice by using more research-based methods for teaching mathematics and science (e.g., more use of student inquiry), paying more attention to students’ reasoning and understanding, and using more diverse modes of engaging students in problem-solving. The few existing studies of mathematics teacher PLCs’ effects on student achievement showed positive results. Both research studies and the panel convened for this project of experts involved in creating and running STEM PLC projects or programs identified features that are key in designing PLCs: shared value and goals, leadership support, time, use of student data and work, collective responsibility, good facilitation, and trust. NCTAF is now incorporating these design principles in the implementation of Learning Studios teacher teams at the middle and high school levels who create project-based learning experiences that integrate STEM subjects. Across 40 organizations, there was universal support for or even advocacy of using PLCs in STEM education. However, organizations’ position statements and guidance also pointed out that if PLCs are weakly implemented, they may not yield the kinds of impacts that arose from PLCs that were well-implemented in the course of research studies. Note that while the greatest amount of knowledge found was about mathematics teachers in PLCs, with fewer studies examining science teachers in PLCs and very little knowledge about ones involving technology and engineering teachers, this summary refers collectively to the previously studied experiences as STEM PLCs. Little research existed on versions of PLCs that can be done in the confines of STEM pre-service teacher education or in online professional development specific to STEM teachers. An intensive analysis showed that the methodological rigor of the research studies generally was weak, but in keeping with the kinds of challenges generally found for educational research on effects of professional development. Broader Impact The body of research and expert knowledge analyzed and synthesized during this grant validates for the STEM education community that PLCs do work for STEM teachers. Further, members of the STEM education community can use the project’s 74-page report for readily finding 69 research or other articles on STEM PLCs that can inform them about: design principles for effective STEM PLCs, varied models of STEM PLCs, and documented outcomes stated in STEM education specifics. The insights about designing effective STEM PLCs and the kinds of outcomes that they can produce generally mirror those obtained in the literature about PLCs at large. Finally, a 32-page summary for STEM education leaders and STEM professional developers was released at a Congressional briefing by a panel of experts in the field on June 24 2011. The brief and the full report are available at the websites of NCTAF (www.nctaf.org) and WestEd (www.wested.org).
