Effective Teacher
Professional Development
Linda Darling-Hammond, Maria E. Hyler, and Madelyn Gardner,
with assistance from Danny Espinoza
JUNE 2017
Effective Teacher
Professional Development
Linda Darling-Hammond, Maria E. Hyler, and Madelyn Gardner,
with assistance from Danny Espinoza
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank their LPI colleagues Jessica Cardichon and Kathryn Bradley for their
contributions to the research and writing of this paper. We also thank Naomi Spinrad and Penelope
Malish for their editing and design contributions to this project, and Lisa Gonzales for overseeing
the editorial process. Without the generosity of time and spirit of all of the aforementioned, this
work would not have been possible.
The S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation and the Sandler Foundation have provided operating support for
the Learning Policy Institute’s work in this area.
External Reviewers
This report beneted from the insights and expertise of two external reviewers: Laura Desimone,
Associate Professor, Education Policy, Penn Graduate School of Education; and Michael Fullan, former
Dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. We thank them for the
care and attention they gave the report. Any remaining shortcomings are our own.
The appropriate citation for this report is: Darling-Hammond, L., Hyler, M. E., Gardner, M. (2017).
Effective Teacher Professional Development. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute.
This report can be found online at https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/teacher-prof-dev.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution—NonCommercial 4.0 International
License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ii
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments.................................................................................................................................... ii
Executive Summary.................................................................................................................................. v
Introduction ...............................................................................................................................................1
Defining Effective Professional Development................................................................................2
This Study ......................................................................................................................................2
Goals and Outline of This Report..................................................................................................3
Design Elements of Effective Professional Development ..................................................................4
Content Focus ..................................................................................................................................5
Active Learning.................................................................................................................................7
Collaboration....................................................................................................................................9
Use of Models and Modeling ....................................................................................................... 11
Coaching and Expert Support...................................................................................................... 12
Feedback and Reflection.............................................................................................................. 14
Sustained Duration....................................................................................................................... 15
Realizing the Promise of Professional Learning Communities...................................................... 17
The Benefits of Analyzing Student Work and Student Data........................................................ 17
Learning From Professional Communities Beyond the School ................................................... 18
Creating the Conditions for Effective Professional Development:
Opportunities and Challenges ............................................................................................................. 20
School Level ................................................................................................................................ 20
System Level ............................................................................................................................... 21
Conclusions and Policy Implications .................................................................................................. 23
Implications for Policy ................................................................................................................. 23
Implications for Implementation and Practice ............................................................................ 24
Appendix A: Methodology .................................................................................................................... 25
Appendix B: Summary of Studies Reviewed for This Report .......................................................... 27
Appendix C: Elements of Effective Professional Development by Study ...................................... 48
Endnotes ................................................................................................................................................. 53
About the Authors ................................................................................................................................. 64
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT iii
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT iv
Executive Summary
Teacher professional learning is of increasing interest as one way to support the increasingly
complex skills students need to learn in preparation for further education and work in the 21st
century. Sophisticated forms of teaching are needed to develop student competencies such
as deep mastery of challenging content, critical thinking, complex problem-solving, effective
communication and collaboration, and self-direction. In turn, effective professional development
(PD) is needed to help teachers learn and rene the pedagogies required to teach these skills.
However, research has shown that many PD initiatives appear ineffective in supporting changes in
teacher practices and student learning. Accordingly, we set out to discover the features of effective
PD. This paper reviews 35 methodologically rigorous studies that have demonstrated a positive link
between teacher professional development, teaching practices, and student outcomes. We identify
the features of these approaches and offer rich descriptions of these models to inform those seeking
to understand the nature of the initiatives.
Defining and Studying Effective Professional Development
We dene effective professional development as structured professional learning that results in
changes in teacher practices and improvements in student learning outcomes. To dene features
of effective PD, we reviewed studies meeting our methodological criteria (see Appendix A) that
emerged from our extensive search of the literature over the last three decades. We coded each of
the studies to identify the elements of effective PD models.
Using this methodology, we found seven widely shared features of effective professional
development. Such professional development:
Is content focused: PD that focuses on teaching strategies associated with specic curriculum
content supports teacher learning within teachers’ classroom contexts. This element includes an
intentional focus on discipline-specic curriculum development and pedagogies in areas such as
mathematics, science, or literacy.
Incorporates active learning: Active learning engages teachers directly in designing and trying
out teaching strategies, providing them an opportunity to engage in the same style of learning they
are designing for their students. Such PD uses authentic artifacts, interactive activities, and other
strategies to provide deeply embedded, highly contextualized professional learning. This approach
moves away from traditional learning models and environments that are lecture based and have no
direct connection to teachers’ classrooms and students.
Supports collaboration: High-quality PD creates space for teachers to share ideas and collaborate
in their learning, often in job-embedded contexts. By working collaboratively, teachers can
create communities that positively change the culture and instruction of their entire grade level,
department, school and/or district.
Uses models of effective practice: Curricular models and modeling of instruction provide
teachers with a clear vision of what best practices look like. Teachers may view models that
include lesson plans, unit plans, sample student work, observations of peer teachers, and video or
written cases of teaching.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT v
Provides coaching and expert support: Coaching and expert support involve the sharing of
expertise about content and evidence-based practices, focused directly on teachers’ individual needs.
Offers feedback and reection: High-quality professional learning frequently provides built-in
time for teachers to think about, receive input on, and make changes to their practice by facilitating
reection and soliciting feedback. Feedback and reection both help teachers to thoughtfully move
toward the expert visions of practice.
Is of sustained duration: Effective PD provides teachers with adequate time to learn, practice,
implement, and reect upon new strategies that facilitate changes in their practice.
Our research shows that effective professional learning incorporates most or all of these elements.
We also examine professional learning communities (PLCs) as an example of a PD model that
incorporates several of these effective elements and supports student learning gains. This
collaborative and job-embedded PD can be a source of efcacy and condence for teachers, and can
result in widespread improvement within and beyond the school level.
Creating Conditions for Effective Professional Development: Opportunities
and Challenges
Research has established that the educational system within which PD occurs has implications for
its effectiveness. Specically, conditions for teaching and learning both within schools and at the
broader, system level can inhibit the effectiveness of PD. For example, inadequate resourcing for
PD—including needed curriculum materials—frequently exacerbates inequities and hinders school
improvement efforts. Failure to align policies toward a coherent set of practices is also a major
impediment, as is a dysfunctional school culture. Implementing effective PD well also requires
responsiveness to the needs of educators and learners and to the contexts in which teaching and
learning will take place.
Implications for Policy and Practice
Examples of PD that have been successful in raising student achievement can help policymakers
and practitioners better understand what quality teacher professional learning looks like. Policy can
help support and incentivize the kind of evidence-based PD described here. For instance:
1. Policymakers could adopt standards for professional development to guide the design,
evaluation, and funding of professional learning provided to educators. These standards
might reect the features of effective professional learning outlined in this report as well as
standards for implementation.
2. Policymakers and administrators could evaluate and redesign the use of time and school
schedules to increase opportunities for professional learning and collaboration, including
participation in professional learning communities, peer coaching and observations across
classrooms, and collaborative planning.
3. States, districts, and schools could regularly conduct needs assessments using data
from staff surveys to identify areas of professional learning most needed and desired
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT vi
by educators. Data from these sources can help ensure that professional learning is not
disconnected from practice and supports the areas of knowledge and skills educators want
to develop.
4. State and district administrators could identify and develop expert teachers as mentors
and coaches to support learning in their particular area(s) of expertise for other educators.
5. States and districts can integrate professional learning into the Every Student
Succeeds Act (ESSA) school improvement initiatives, such as efforts to implement
new learning standards, use student data to inform instruction, improve student literacy,
increase student access to advanced coursework, and create a positive and inclusive
learning environment.
6. States and districts can provide technology-facilitated opportunities for professional
learning and coaching, using funding available under Titles II and IV of ESSA to address
the needs of rural communities and provide opportunities for intradistrict and intraschool
collaboration.
7. Policymakers can provide exible funding and continuing education units for learning
opportunities that include sustained engagement in collaboration, mentoring, and
coaching, as well as institutes, workshops, and seminars.
In the end, well-designed and implemented PD should be considered a essential component of a
comprehensive system of teaching and learning that supports students to develop the knowledge,
skills, and competencies they need to thrive in the 21st century. To ensure a coherent system that
supports teachers across the entire professional continuum, professional learning should link to
their experiences in preparation and induction, as well as to teaching standards and evaluation. It
should also bridge to leadership opportunities to ensure a comprehensive system focused on the
growth and development of teachers.
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LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT viii
Introduction
As demands for deeper and more complex student learning have intensied, practitioners,
researchers, and policymakers have begun to think more systematically about how to improve
teachers’ learning from recruitment, preparation, and support, to mentoring and other leadership
opportunities. Sophisticated forms of teaching are needed to develop 21st century student
competencies, such as deep mastery of challenging content, critical thinking, complex problem-
solving, effective communication and collaboration, and self-direction. In turn, opportunities are
needed for teachers to learn and rene the pedagogies required to teach these skills.
However, major questions remain about how
Sophisticated forms of teaching
teachers can learn these skills and how PD can
play a role in improving teacher practice. Recent
are needed to develop 21st
research on PD has underscored the importance
century student competencies.
of these questions, given the mixed ndings
often generated.
1
For example, one recent study
of four districts serving a largely low-income
student population found that even with large nancial investments in teacher PD, both teacher
practice (according to teacher evaluations) and student learning (according to state assessments)
saw little change. The study found that teacher evaluations stayed the same, or declined in the span
of 2-3 years, while more than $18,000 of PD money per teacher was spent in these districts. In spite
of their ndings, the authors of the four-district study did not recommend dropping investment in
teacher PD. Instead, recommendations included redening what it means to help teachers improve,
reevaluating current professional learning and support programs,and reinventing how we support
effective teaching at scale.
2
It is certainly true that PD does not always lead to professional learning, despite its intent.
3
Fullan
(2007) argues that external approaches to instructional improvement are rarely “powerful enough,
specic enough, or sustained enough to alter the culture of the classroom and school.”
4
Indeed,
research on PD in the United States found that most teachers receive PD of short duration (less than
eight hours on a topic, usually in afterschool workshops) and that, during the No Child Left Behind
Era, there was an increase in this short-term approach and a decline in access to more sustained
professional learning approaches.
5
In addition, some school contexts pose equity challenges related
to the potential impact of PD on student learning (e.g., poor leadership, inadequate resources, or
countervailing school or district mandates).
6
At the same time, a growing number of rigorous studies establish that well-designed PD can, when
effectively implemented, lead to desirable changes in teacher practice and student outcomes. These
studies build on an expansive body of research that has previously described positive outcomes
from professional learning using teacher and student self-reports or observational designs.
7
As
states and districts work to create new structures and strategies for PD, it is useful to evaluate
what this research has to say about the kinds of professional learning that improve instruction and
student achievement.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 1
Defining Effective Professional Development
In this review, we dene effective professional development as structured professional learning
that results in changes to teacher knowledge and practices, and improvements in student learning
outcomes. We conceptualize professional learning as a product of both externally provided and
job-embedded activities that increase teachers’ knowledge and help them change their instructional
practice in ways that support student learning. Thus, formal PD represents a subset of the range of
experiences that may result in professional learning.
This Study
In this paper, we examine the research on
This paper offers rich descriptions
professional learning that has proven effective
in changing teachers’ practices and improving
of the combined characteristics
student outcomes to identify elements prevalent
of professional development that
in successful PD models. To dene features
research has found to positively
of effective professional development, we
reviewed 35 studies that emerged from our
relate to student outcomes.
extensive search of the literature over the last
three decades which met our methodological
criteria: They featured a careful experimental or
comparison group design, or they analyzed student outcomes with statistical controls for context
variables and student characteristics. (Appendix A details our methodology and Appendix B details
each reviewed study.) We coded each of the studies to generate the elements of effective PD models.
Appendix C indicates the elements exhibited by each of the PD model(s) featured in each study.
We recognize that this methodology has limitations. Because studies of professional development
typically examine comprehensive models that incorporate many elements, this paper does not seek
to draw conclusions about the efcacy of individual program components. Rather, it offers rich
descriptions of the combined characteristics of PD that research has found to positively relate to
student outcomes.
We are also unable to comment on the studies of PD that do not appear to yield positive results on
student achievement. Although many studies lack the rigorous controls needed to draw inferences
about outcomes, there are a number of well-designed studies of PD that share some of the features
we highlight here but did not nd positive effects. We located six studies with strong methodologies
that failed to nd impacts on student learning. Several found positive inuences on teacher
knowledge and/or practices but not on the measure of student outcomes used.
8
These measures of
student outcomes were sometimes designed to evaluate the specic goals of the PD and sometimes
were a more generic commercial instrument or state test.
Authors noted a number of potential reasons for their ndings, including lack of implementation
delity in the conduct of the PD,
9
lack of opportunity for teachers to implement what they learned
in the PD in their classrooms,
10
and teacher turnover that reduced many teachers’ access to the
PD.
11
In one study, Garet and colleagues (2016) make a critically important point when they note
that the content of PD could be misdirected—that, is not focused on the actual teaching knowledge
and skills that are needed to support student learning.
12
It is obviously most important that what
teachers are taught reects the practices that can actually make a positive difference for student
learning. That is, the content of professional development matters, along with its form.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 2
Another crucial element is the knowledge
that teachers bring to the PD experience—and
whether it is sufcient to support their learning
of particular pedagogical strategies. In one
interesting case, where mathematics PD was
conducted in a district that had very large
numbers of uncredentialed teachers, researchers
found positive effects on student learning only
for those teachers who began with a higher
level of content knowledge, signaling that the
We aim to provide a research-
based understanding of the kinds
of PD that can lead to powerful
professional learning, instructional
improvement, and deeper student
learning.
effectiveness of PD may depend in part on
how solid a content foundation teachers have with which to absorb its lessons.
13
These and other
considerations may inuence the effectiveness of PD, even when it may share some of the features
we identify here. Although it is beyond the scope of this paper to unpack why specic initiatives
have proved less than fully successful, we identify barriers to the implementation of effective PD as
identied by researchers later in this paper.
Goals and Outline of This Report
Our primary goal is to illuminate the features of PD that have been found to be effective, in hopes
that this analysis can help inform policymakers and practitioners responsible for designing,
planning, and implementing potentially productive opportunities for teacher learning.
We aim to provide practitioners, researchers, and policymakers with a research-based understanding
of the kinds of PD that can lead to powerful professional learning, instructional improvement, and
deeper student learning. By examining information about the nature of effective PD, policymakers and
practitioners can begin to evaluate the needs of the systems in which teachers learn and do their work
and consider how teachers’ learning opportunities can be more effectively supported.
In the sections that follow, we rst review the elements of effective PD initiatives identied through
our review of recent literature, offering examples from specic studies and PD models. We then
explore how the currently popular phenomenon of professional learning communities—often
supercially implemented—can be effectively organized. Next, we provide an overview of the
broader conditions that support or inhibit effective teacher PD in the United States, drawing on the
broader PD literature. We conclude with considerations for policy and practice.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 3
Design Elements of Effective Professional Development
In recent decades, a “new paradigm” for PD has emerged from research that distinguishes
powerful opportunities for teacher learning from the traditional, one-day, “drive by” workshop
model.
14
The research on effective PD has begun to create a consensus about key principles in the
design of learning experiences that can impact teachers’ knowledge and practices.
15
The ongoing
expansion of this literature provides an opportunity to build upon this consensus with new
insights, particularly given the increased prevalence of rigorous research designs in PD studies
that boost condence in the validity of ndings.
Although research on the effectiveness of PD has been mixed, positive ndings have stimulated a
general consensus about typical components of high-quality professional learning for teachers.
16
This consensus, articulated by Desimone (2009) and others, holds that effective PD possesses a
robust content focus, features active learning, is collaborative and aligned with relevant curricula
and policies, and provides sufcient learning time for participants. Our review conrms and
expands upon this ve-part framework, providing additional specicity about the types of active
and collaborative practices that underlie powerful teacher PD.
Using the methodology detailed in Appendix A, we identify seven characteristics of effective
PD. Specifically, we find that it:
1. Is content focused
2. Incorporates active learning utilizing adult learning theory
3. Supports collaboration, typically in job-embedded contexts
4. Uses models and modeling of effective practice
5. Provides coaching and expert support
6. Offers opportunities for feedback and reection
7. Is of sustained duration
Successful PD models generally feature a number of these components simultaneously. The Reading
Recovery program, described in detail in the box that follows, is an example of one program that
possesses all seven elements and has been found to generate positive student gains. Other effective
programs may possess most but not all of the seven features.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 4
Effective Professional Development in Practice: Reading Recovery
Reading Recovery is an example of a professional development model that has demonstrated effectiveness in
supporting student learning gains in dozens of studies over several decades on multiple continents.
17
Reading
Recovery was originally designed to provide individualized interventions for struggling readers in New Zealand,
and has since been widely implemented in the U.K., Canada, and Australia. It was first implemented in the U.S.
in 1984, and grew to serve a peak number of 152,000 students nationwide in the 2000–01 school year.
18
In
2010, the Ohio State University—the U.S. seat of Reading Recovery—received a $45 million federal i3 grant
to fund the expansion of Reading Recovery. The university partnered with 19 universities across the U.S. to
recruit and train teachers and schools to participate in the Reading Recovery program. The i3 grant supported
teacher PD for 3,747 teachers, who served 387,450 students in one-to-one lessons, classroom teaching, or
small-group instruction.
19
The Reading Recovery theory of change asserts the critical role of the teacher in identifying students’ strengths
and needs, and facilitating their learning by providing appropriate opportunities to acquire and use new reading
skills.
20
The teacher’s practice is highly diagnostic and grounded in a substantial knowledge base about the
learning-to-read process for diverse learners, as well as a sophisticated set of teaching skills applied in an
individualized fashion for each learner. The basis of the Reading Recovery PD model is similarly informed by a
very deliberate approach to acquiring and applying knowledge that is individualized to the needs of the teacher.
To prepare teachers to play this critical role, Reading Recovery provides intensive PD that incorporates all
seven of the elements of effective PD. In groups of 8 to 12, teachers complete a yearlong graduate-level
training course taught by a literacy coach. This sustained training involves model lesson observation, teacher
demonstration of effective teaching techniques, and frequent collaborative discussion between participants.
After the training course, faculty from the partnering university support teachers in their classrooms and
facilitate program implementation within their area.
21
Additional, ongoing PD for these teachers includes
a minimum of six sessions with a Reading Recovery teacher leader and colleagues; opportunities for
interaction and collaboration with school leaders and colleagues; and ongoing access to conferences and
training institutes.
22
A 2016 evaluation of the i3 funded initiative found that students who participated in the U.S. expansion of
Reading Recovery significantly outperformed students in the control groups on measures of overall reading,
reading comprehension, and decoding.
23
Moreover, these gains were nearly three times as large as average
gains for similar broad instructional interventions. This effect translates to Reading Recovery students in the
study gaining an additional 1.55 months of learning compared to the national growth average for 1st graders.
Of particular interest during the i3 scale-up study was the performance of English language learners (ELLs) and
rural students. Results indicated that there was a similarly large positive impact on their performance.
24
These
findings suggest that the Reading Recovery PD program is capable of positively impacting student achievement
on a large scale and can help drive equitable learning outcomes for ELL and rural students.
The section continues with a description of each characteristic with supporting literature and examples.
Additional information about each study described in this section is available in Appendix B.
Content Focus
Professional learning that has shown an impact on student achievement is focused on the content
that teachers teach. Content-focused PD generally treats discipline-specic curricula such as
mathematics, science, or literacy. It is most often job embedded, meaning the PD is situated in
teachers’ classrooms with their students, as opposed to generic PD delivered externally or divorced
from teachers’ school or district contexts. This type of PD can provide teachers the opportunity to
study their students’ work,
25
test out new curriculum with their students,
26
or study a particular
element of pedagogy or student learning in the content area.
27
Ideally, the PD is aligned with school
and district priorities, providing a coherence for teachers, as opposed to having PD compete with
differing school and district priorities.
28
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 5
Thirty-one of the 35 studies we reviewed
featured a specic content focus as part of the
PD model. Among the PD models without a
specic content focus, two focused on specic
pedagogies that were not discipline specic,
29
and one study focused on supporting teachers in
promoting inquiry-based learning and leveraging
technology in support of standards-based
instruction.
30
A nal study provided insufcient
description of the PD to determine whether or
Ideally, the PD is aligned with
school and district priorities,
providing a coherence for
teachers, as opposed to having PD
compete with differing school and
district priorities.
not the PD was content specic.
31
One study of PD for upper elementary teachers, which focused on helping teachers analyze science
teaching and improve pedagogy, illustrates job-embedded and content-focused PD. Roth et al.
(2011) studied teachers participating in The Science Teachers Learning from Lesson Analysis
(STeLLA) program.
32
The project focused on both science content and pedagogy using a video-based
analysis-of-teaching PD model. The PD began with a three-week summer institute focused on
science content taught by faculty at a local university. Teachers in the STeLLA program also engaged
in video analysis of teaching during the summer institute. In follow-up sessions throughout the
school year, teachers utilized Student Thinking and Science Content Storyline Lenses, creating
PD that was both content specic and classroom based. The Student Thinking portion of the PD
focused on understanding students’ ideas for use in planning, teaching, and analysis of teaching—
particularly in anticipating student thinking to assist teachers in responding to students’ ideas and
misunderstandings in productive ways. The Science Content Storyline portion of the PD focused
on the sequencing of science ideas and how they are linked to help students construct a coherent
“story” that makes sense to them. STeLLA teachers met in small groups facilitated by a program
leader and discussed video cases of teaching that could include video(s) of one classroom, student
and teacher interviews, teacher materials, and student work samples.
33
STeLLA teachers also taught a set of four to six model lessons themselves and analyzed their teaching
using a structured protocol. Half of a study group would teach the lessons to their students, and the
entire group would collaboratively analyze the teaching and student work, and revise the lessons for
the other half to use. The roles would then switch and the second half of the group would teach the
lessons in their classrooms, followed by collaborative analysis and subsequent revision. The analysis
was highly scaffolded by the PD facilitators. STeLLA groups met for 58 hours of analysis throughout
the school year, in addition to 44 hours during the three-week summer session for a total of 102
hours. Roth et al. (2011) studied this group of teachers in comparison to a group of teachers who only
attended the science content portion of the PD program.
34
The content-only teachers received just the
44 hours of PD, and it was not explicitly connected to their classroom contexts.
Results of the study showed that teachers who participated in the STeLLA program had students who
achieved greater learning gains than comparison students whose teachers received content training
only, as determined by pre- and post-test science content exams. Statistical analyses linked these
gains in student learning with teachers’ science content knowledge, teachers’ pedagogical content
knowledge about student thinking, and teachers’ ability to create a cohesive science content storyline.
STeLLA teachers outperformed the content-only teachers and, moreover, were able to retain their
content learning whereas content-only teachers were not.
35
A second randomized study of the STeLLA
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 6
program similarly found positive effects for students of participating teachers.
36
This study, similar to
other studies in this review, suggests that PD that treats only content learning is not as effective as PD
that links content learning to pedagogies supporting teachers’ students and practice.
37
Teacher professional learning that is context specic, job embedded, and content based is
particularly important for addressing the diverse needs of students (and thus teachers) in differing
settings. For example, in one study of PD for elementary science teachers in an urban school
district, teachers of Latinx students learned science content as well as conversational Spanish
and strategies for using culturally relevant pedagogies.
38
In another program targeting teachers of
Latinx dual-language learners, monolingual teachers were provided with a range of instructional
strategies to support children’s primary language
development in Spanish.
39
The key features
Adults come to learning with
of focusing on students’ culture and language
experiences that should be
in these content- and context-specic PD
utilized as resources for new
models illustrate teacher professional learning
opportunities designed for teaching content
learning.
to specic student populations with targeted
strategies to support their achievement.
Active Learning
The design of PD experiences must address how teachers learn, as well as what teachers learn.
Trotter (2006) outlines several theories of learning and adult development and identies themes
that are relevant for designing teacher PD.
• Adults come to learning with experiences that should be utilized as resources for new
learning.
• Adults should choose their learning opportunities based on interest and their own
classroom experiences/needs.
• Reection and inquiry should be central to learning and development.
40
These themes provide a general framing that helps to explain why teacher PD that incorporates
active learning experiences is effective in supporting student learning and growth. “Active learning”
suggests moving away from traditional learning models that are generic and lecture based toward
models that engage teachers directly in the practices they are learning and, preferably, are
connected to teachers’ classrooms and students. Active learning, in sharp contrast to sit-and-listen
lectures, engages educators using authentic artifacts, interactive activities, and other strategies to
provide deeply embedded, highly contextualized professional learning. Active learning is also an
“umbrella” element that often incorporates the elements of collaboration, coaching, feedback, and
reection and the use of models and modeling.
Opportunities for “sense-making” activities are important.
41
Such activities often involve modeling
the sought-after practices and constructing opportunities for teachers to analyze, try out, and
reect on the new strategies.
42
Active learning opportunities allow teachers to transform their
teaching and not simply layer new strategies on top of the old, a hallmark of adult learning theory.
43
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 7
Greenleaf et al. (2011) describe an active teacher professional learning model that improved
student science learning.
44
California high school biology teachers participated in PD integrating
academic literacy and biology instruction through a program called Reading Apprenticeship. The
PD was inquiry based, subject focused, collaborative, and designed to address teachers’ conceptual
understandings as well as pedagogical content knowledge. Each session was designed to immerse
the teachers in the types of learning activities and environments they would then create for their
students. Teachers engaged in activities to simulate their own discipline expertise in relation
to literacy, and they also engaged in analysis of texts to identify potential literacy challenges to
learners.
45
In addition, teachers analyzed student work, videotaped classroom lessons, and studied cases of
student literacy learning designed to foster high expectations of student learning. Metacognitive
routines such as think-alouds and reading logs for science investigations were used in PD sessions.
Teachers also practiced classroom routines to build student engagement and student collaboration
(e.g., “think-pair-share,” jigsaws, text-based student discussion, and problem solving). An important
part of the PD was a metacognitive reection after each session that focused on the session’s impact
on teachers’ learning and potential impact on their students’ development.
46
The program employed 10 sessions over the course of a year. An initial ve-day institute took place
the rst summer of the study, followed by two follow-up days of PD during year 1 and a nal three-
day PD follow-up the summer after the academic year. During the study year, participants engaged
in collaboration on a listserv that fostered the exchange of resources and ideas and was moderated
by PD coaches. This multimodal, active learning PD model resulted in student achievement
equivalent to a year’s reading growth compared with students of teachers assigned to a control
group. Students of treatment teachers also performed better than their counterparts in control
classrooms on state assessments in English language arts and biology.
47
The opportunity for teachers to engage in the
same learning activities they are designing for
The opportunity for teachers to
their students is often utilized as a form of active
engage in the same learning
learning. Several studies in this review highlighted
activities they are designing for
PD programs that had teachers engage as learners
through the use of curriculum and materials that
their students is often utilized as a
they would then employ with their students. For
form of active learning.
instance, Buczynski and Hansen (2010) describe
how 4th through 6th grade teachers had the
opportunity to participate in “constructivist,
hands-on experiences” through the use of science kits.
48
These were the same science kits that
teachers would then go on to use in their classrooms with their students. Similarly, teachers in a study
by Heller et al. (2012) completed the same scientic investigations they analyzed in written teaching
cases.
49
In other studies, pedagogical and content experts would “teach” model lessons with teachers
engaging as learners.
50
Additionally, two studies incorporated role-playing as a part of teachers
“practicing” lessons with their peers to better understand students and their learning.
51
Overall, 34 of the 35 studies incorporated some element of active learning in the design of the PD,
while one study did not provide enough description of the PD model to ascertain whether active
learning was present.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 8
Collaboration
As schools have increasingly
As schools have increasingly structured teaching
as a collaborative community endeavor, it makes
structured teaching as a
sense that teacher collaboration is an important
collaborative community endeavor,
feature of well-designed PD.
52
“Collaboration”
it makes sense that teacher
can span a host of congurations—from
one-on-one or small-group interactions to
collaboration is an important
schoolwide collaboration to exchanges with
feature of well-designed PD.
other professionals beyond the school.
In a program studied by Allen et al. (2011),
teachers collaborated with a one-on-one coach.
53
In this study, Virginia high school teachers
enrolled in My Teaching Partner-Secondary, a web-mediated coaching program designed to improve
teacher-student interactions. Teachers participated in an initial training workshop followed by
twice-monthly coaching from a remote mentor. For each coaching session, teachers were asked to
submit short videos of their practice, reect on their teaching, and respond to questions from their
coach regarding the relationship between teacher practice and student engagement. Each reection
was followed by a 20- to 30-minute phone conference with the coach. Teachers also attended
monthly booster workshops and were given access to an annotated video library for the duration of
the program.
54
Overall, the program offered 20 hours of in-service training over 13 months, in addition to the
focused work teachers were doing in their classrooms to design and reect on their practice.
Students whose teachers had participated in the program the previous school year demonstrated
gains in student achievement relative to the control group, with student learning gains equivalent
to an average increase from the 50th to 59th percentile.
55
A replication study featuring an extended,
two-year version of the My Teaching Partner-Secondary model found similar promising results.
56
This model of PD is especially promising for teachers who may be in remote or rural schools and
may not have access to professional learning opportunities more readily available in suburban or
urban areas.
Other studies have looked at collaboration at the school level.
57
One New Zealand study focused
on schoolwide PD efforts in 195 schools spread across four cohorts of teachers.
58
Teachers in
these schools participated in a exible whole-school professional development model designed to
improve student literacy, particularly for low-performing students. Each of the participating schools
selected a focus on reading or writing for the duration of the two-year project and was assigned an
expert literacy facilitator to provide PD for teachers and school leaders.
Facilitators visited each school biweekly to conduct classroom observations, model literacy
instruction, provide coaching and feedback, and engage in discussion and other activities with
school staff. Facilitators also trained a literacy leader at each school who provided additional
support for colleagues. The project provided resources such as classroom observation and
facilitation tools, as well as training and feedback for the expert facilitators throughout the
two years. Students attending schools participating in the project outperformed achievement
expectations relative to a nationally normed sample, especially in writing. Students in schools with
a focus on improving writing improved at 2.9 to 3.5 times the expected rate. Students in schools
with a focus on improving reading improved at 1.4 to 1.6 times the expected rate.
59
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 9
Such collaborative approaches have been found
to be effective in promoting school change that
Such collaborative approaches
extends beyond individual classrooms.
60
When
have been found to be effective
whole grade levels, departments, or schools
in promoting school change
are involved, they provide a broader base of
understanding and support at the school level.
that extends beyond individual
Teachers create a collective force for improved
classrooms.
instruction and serve as support groups for each
other’s work on their practice. Collective work
in trusting environments provides a basis for
inquiry and reection into teachers’ own practices, allowing teachers to take risks, solve problems,
and attend to dilemmas in their practice.
61
Other studies focused on districtwide collaborative PD in efforts to bring larger-scale improvements
to teaching and learning.
62
For example, in one Texas district, teachers engaged in on-site,
small-group PD to promote inquiry-based, literacy-integrated instruction to improve English
learners’ science and reading achievement.
63
Through the program, teachers and paraprofessionals
participated in workshops where they reviewed upcoming lessons, discussed science concepts with
peers, engaged in reections on student learning, participated in inquiry activities as learners,
and received instruction in strategies for teaching English learners. Researchers also provided
teachers with lesson plans that incorporated strategies for effective instruction of English learners.
Teachers met biweekly for collaborative, three-hour sessions, receiving six hours of PD per month;
paraprofessionals met monthly for three hours. The program also included a focus on new and
enhanced instructional activities for English learners.
Students who received enhanced instructional activities and whose teachers received PD
demonstrated signicantly higher science and reading achievement than students who were
engaged in business-as-usual instruction. Treatment students also earned passing and commended
scores on district science benchmarks at higher rates than control group students.
64
By focusing
on improving the practice of teachers of English language learners, this kind of collaborative,
districtwide PD can have important implications for improving the equity of whole systems.
Technology-facilitated PD such as the web-mediated coaching program studied by Allen et
al. (2011) can also foster cyber collaboration,
65
which can be effective in improving student
achievement.
66
Landry et al. (2009), for example, describe a well-designed online PD program that
improved early literacy outcomes for young children.
67
In that study, described in additional detail
later in the Feedback and Reection section, early childhood educators participated in a facilitated
online course on language and literacy instruction. The interactive course included videos models,
message boards, and opportunities to practice skills in small groups. In this case, technology
facilitated the incorporation of collaboration and other effective PD elements, such as active
learning and modeling, in the professional learning design.
Overall, 32 of 35 studies we reviewed incorporated some element of collaboration to support
teacher professional learning, while three studies did not provide sufcient description to
determine whether or not collaboration was a part of the model design. When PD utilizes effective
collaborative structures for teachers to problem-solve and learn together, it can positively
contribute to student achievement.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 10
Use of Models and Modeling
PD that utilizes models of effective practice has proven successful at promoting teacher learning
and supporting student achievement. Curricular and instructional models and modeling of
instruction help teachers to have a vision of practice on which to anchor their own learning and
growth. The various kinds of modeling can include
• video or written cases of teaching,
• demonstration lessons,
• unit or lesson plans,
• observations of peers, and
• curriculum materials including sample assessments and student work samples.
All 35 studies reviewed here included curricular models and/or modeling of effective instruction
in the delivery of content and pedagogical learning for teachers. For example, Heller et al. (2012)
conducted a randomized experimental design of three intervention groups and one control
group to study the effects of PD on elementary students’ learning in science.
68
The PD focused
on pedagogical science content knowledge for elementary teachers, utilizing three different
interventions, all of which proved successful in improving student achievement.
One group of teachers analyzed written
teaching cases, drawn from actual classrooms
Curricular and instructional models
and written by teachers. Thus, the PD was
and modeling of instruction
an “analysis of practice” approach that
help teachers to have a vision of
incorporated models for student work analysis,
student teacher dialogue analysis, and teacher
practice on which to anchor their
thinking and behaviors. A second group
own learning and growth.
analyzed their own students’ work in relation
to their teaching. Teachers in this intervention
experienced carefully structured, collaborative
analysis of their own students’ work, which required that they teach a unit. Discussion protocols
for the analysis of student work were employed that focused teachers’ analysis on student
understanding of content. These teachers took turns bringing in student work samples and
formative assessment tasks that they analyzed collaboratively. Teachers also had access to a
“task bank” of formative assessment model items they could use with their students. A third
group utilized metacognitive analysis of their own learning experience in the form of reective
discussions about their own learning processes as they engaged in science content activities.
The course was designed to help teachers identify concepts they found challenging to learn,
examine the logic behind their own common misunderstandings of the content, and analyze the
roles of hands-on investigations, discourse, and inquiry in science learning. Expert staff developers
delivered a series of three courses (the PD was delivered in 8 three-hour sessions, for a total of 24
contact hours with a facilitator).
69
Findings of this study showed that students of teachers who participated in any of the PD
opportunities had signicantly greater learning gains on science tests than students whose teachers
did not participate (with average gains of 19-22 percentage points compared to 13 points for control
students). These effects were maintained a year later. Student justication of correct answers in
year 1 of the study showed signicant improvement from pre- to post-test for those students whose
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 11
teachers analyzed student work samples (which incorporated the use of model assessments, as
noted above). In the follow-up year, teachers who utilized cases of teaching also had signicantly
higher answer justication scores. Those teachers who focused on metacognitive analysis of their
own learning experience showed no student gains in written justication of correct answers. The
ndings of this study are notable because the strongest effects on written justications of answers,
a task more complex than identifying correct answers on a content exam, are connected to the PD
that focused on models of effective practice, including curricula and instruction, in combination
with student work analysis and classroom pedagogical practice.
70
The importance of providing professional
learning in conjunction with model curriculum
The importance of providing
and classroom materials should not be
professional learning in
underestimated. Several studies in this review
conjunction with model curriculum
compared groups of teachers who had access to
curriculum with no support to those teachers
and classroom materials should
who received curriculum with additional
not be underestimated.
support. For example, Kleickmann et al. (2016)
found that teachers who utilized educational
curriculum materials alone had lower student
achievement than those teachers who had access to those materials and expert support combined
with collaborative active learning opportunities that focused heavily on sequencing and presenting
science concepts to facilitate student learning.
71
Doppelt et al. (2009) reported similar ndings.
72
Teachers in this study participated in content-
based collaborative inquiry sessions as support for a new 8th-grade science curriculum focused on
electronics. Teachers participated in active learning based on the new curriculum—they engaged
in the model lessons just as their students would. In addition, they spent much time in the
workshops reecting on instructional activities in their classrooms. They shared student work and
instructional materials, actively discussing and reecting on instruction. Students whose teachers
used the new curriculum and participated in PD had statistically greater achievement than those
students whose teachers used the new curriculum with no PD. Even more signicant, achievement
for students of those teachers who continued to use the older standard curriculum was greater than
that of those students whose teachers used the new curriculum with no PD.
73
That suggests that
students were better off if their teachers did not attempt to utilize new curricular materials without
effective PD supporting them.
Coaching and Expert Support
The previous sections foreshadowed the role experts can have in helping to guide and facilitate
teachers’ learning in the context of their practice. In their work with educators, experts—typically
educators themselves—often play this critical role by employing the types of professional learning
strategies outlined above, such as modeling strong instructional practices or supporting group
discussion and collaborative analysis of student work. Such coaches may also share expertise about
content and evidence-based practices, as well.
The practice of providing coaching or other expert support for educators was identied in 30 of the
35 studies reviewed. Four of the studies did not specify who delivered the PD or whether expert
support was offered. In one case, coaching and expert support were not offered as part of the PD:
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 12
Shaha and Ellsworth (2013) describe a web-based PD platform with opportunities for teachers
to engage with PD content through objective-setting, videos, forums, and communities, without
specied expert support.
74
One common structure for providing expert support is one-on-one coaching in the context of a
teacher’s own classroom.
75
Experts also shared their knowledge as facilitators of group workshops
76
or as remote mentors utilizing technology to communicate with educators.
77
Individuals with
a variety of backgrounds can ll the role of expert; in the reviewed studies, coaches and other
experts ranged from specially trained master teachers
78
and instructional leaders
79
to researchers
and university faculty.
81
For example, Roth et al. (2011) relied on both program leaders to facilitate
small-group learning and university-based scientists to teach science content to educators.
81
The coaching model studied by Powell and colleagues (2010) offers an example of expert support
that contributed to student learning gains.
82
The PD was designed to provide early childhood
educators with individualized feedback to improve early literacy instruction. Educators attended
an initial two-day orientation that introduced program content and fostered relationship building
between coaches and educators. Educators then participated in biweekly coaching sessions with a
university-based literacy coach, in person or remotely.
Across both formats, coaches and teachers worked together to choose a specic instructional
practice on which to focus each session. Coaches then observed the teachers’ practice and provided
both supportive and constructive feedback. On-site coaches observed educators for approximately
90 minutes, then the two met for 30 minutes to debrief the observation and provide oral and written
feedback, including recommendations to improve practice. For remote coaching, educators shared
15-minute video clips and coaches provided detailed written feedback, supported by links to video
exemplars and other materials available through the program. The semester-long program included
16 hours of workshops and seven coaching sessions.
83
A two-year randomized control trial found that
classrooms led by educators who participated
Coaching or other expert
in this coaching model demonstrated larger
scaffolding can support the
gains and higher performance on a valid and
effective implementation of new
widely used early childhood classroom quality
curricula, tools, and approaches
assessment than did control group classrooms.
Children whose teachers participated in the early
by educators.
literacy coaching program showed signicantly
larger gains and better performance on a number
of early language and literacy skills than did
those whose teachers had not participated.
84
Recent literature also suggests that coaching or other expert scaffolding can support the effective
implementation of new curricula, tools, and approaches by educators.
85
This is consistent with
earlier research providing evidence that teachers who receive coaching are more likely to enact
desired teaching practices and apply them more appropriately than those receiving more traditional
PD.
86
Taken together, the literature demonstrates that expert supporters can play a critical role in
creating effective PD.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 13
Feedback and Reflection
Feedback and reection are two other powerful tools found in effective PD; they are often employed
during mentoring and coaching but are not limited to these spaces. As noted earlier, feedback
and reection are critical components of adult learning theory. Professional development models
associated with gains in student learning frequently provide built-in time for teachers to think
about, receive input on, and make changes to their practice by providing intentional time for
feedback and/or reection. While feedback and reection are two distinct practices, they work
together to help teachers move thoughtfully toward the expert visions of practice that they may
have learned about or seen modeled during PD.
Thirty-four of the 35 reviewed studies specied
that PD included efforts to support educators
in reecting on their practice; one study
offered no data about reections on practice.
Greenleaf and colleagues (2011) documented
one approach to incorporating reection into
PD models.
87
After high school biology teachers
participated in literacy activities as learners,
they participated in a debrief, describing the
elements of the activity that extended their
Professional development models
associated with gains in student
learning frequently provide built-in
time for teachers to think about,
receive input on, and make
changes to their practice.
literacy learning and considering implications
and adaptations of the pedagogy for their classrooms. This reection process was designed to
bolster teachers’ own learning and to support their teaching literacy in science.
In addition, 24 studies outlined processes for providing educators with feedback on their practice.
(The remaining 11 did not specify whether feedback was provided to participants). Landry
and colleagues (2009) describe multiple opportunities for educators to receive feedback in a
program targeting early childhood educators’ ability to promote children’s language and literacy
development.
88
In the program, which was implemented across four states, educators enrolled
in a facilitated online course focused on language and literacy instruction, eCIRCLE. The course
included videos of model lessons, online coursework and knowledge assessments, and opportunities
to plan lessons and practice skills in small groups and in teachers’ own classrooms. The course also
offered interactive message boards that were moderated by expert facilitators. Teachers participated
in four hours of this coursework per month throughout the school year. Participating educators also
received a supplemental curriculum on preschool language and literacy skills and were encouraged
to monitor children’s language and literacy progress using a standardized tool. In addition, some
educators participated in biweekly onsite mentoring sessions with the expert facilitators. For those
educators receiving mentoring, mentors rst observed teacher practice, then facilitated reective
follow-up and provided both positive and constructive feedback to educators using a structured
format. Whether through online forums or in-person coaching, teachers participating in the
program were offered opportunities to receive feedback from specially trained experts.
89
The researchers’ randomized controlled study of the program found that students of teachers
who received PD through the program demonstrated greater gains in phonological awareness, an
important emergent literacy skill, than students of those who did not.
90
Researchers also found
that students of teachers who received both expert mentoring and feedback on children’s progress
experienced the greatest gains on a variety of language and literacy outcomes.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 14
In effective PD programs, the practices of generating feedback and supporting reection often
include opportunities to share both positive and constructive reactions to authentic instances of
teacher practice, such as lesson plans, demonstration lessons, or videos of instruction.
91
These
activities are frequently undertaken in the context of a coaching session
92
or a group workshop
facilitated by an expert.
93
In a few cases, feedback was shared among teachers.
94
In each of these
settings, effective PD programs leveraged feedback and opportunities for reection to create richer
environments for teacher learning.
Sustained Duration
Providing PD that exhibits the aforementioned
The traditional episodic and
characteristics and results in meaningful
professional learning requires time and quality
fragmented approach to PD does
implementation. Though research has not yet
not afford the time necessary
identied a clear threshold for the duration
for learning that is rigorous and
of effective PD models, it does indicate that
meaningful professional learning that translates
cumulative.
to changes in practice cannot be accomplished
in short, one-off workshops.
95
The traditional
episodic and fragmented approach to PD does
not afford the time necessary for learning that is “rigorous” and “cumulative.”
96
Professional
development that is sustained, offering multiple opportunities for teachers to engage in learning
around a single set of concepts or practices, has a greater chance of transforming teaching practices
and student learning.
None of the PD initiatives described in this review occurred in the context of a single, isolated
encounter.
97
The programs instead typically spanned weeks, months, or even academic years, with
ongoing engagement in learning by teachers. These ndings are consistent with previous literature
on the duration of effective PD, which suggests that professional learning must be sustained to
have an impact.
98
Beyond the ndings of many studies of individual PD programs, Wenglinsky
(2000) found in an analysis of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data that
spanned many different teacher experiences across the country that stronger instructional practices
in mathematics and science were associated with professional development that was extended
and sustained.
99
In a review of literature, Yoon et al. (2007) identied nine studies of PD using
experimental or quasi-experimental designs and found that the effective PD models examined in
these studies offered an average of 49 hours of development per year, with an associated average
boost in student achievement of 21 percentile points.
100
Thirty-one of the 35 studies we reviewed explicitly described PD that was sustained over time
through recurring workshops, coaching sessions, or engagement with online platforms; the
remaining four studies did not specify a particular format or duration. The most common model for
PD among these studies was participation in an initial, intensive workshop, followed by applications
in the classroom and additional development days or coaching sessions to extend and reinforce
educator learning.
101
For example, teachers participating in the middle school science PD program
described by Penuel et al. (2011) attended a two-week summer workshop, followed by ongoing work
in their classrooms supported by four development days throughout the school year.
102
Several other
studies engaged teachers in formal coursework that followed a traditional academic schedule.
103
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 15
Another common strategy is to engage teachers in multiple sessions of a similar structure, often
over a semester or school year, to promote meaningful professional learning.
104
The program
described by Heller et al. (2012) included 8 three-hour sessions in which certain ideas about science
instruction were taught and discussed, while teachers also engaged in related activities in their
classrooms between the sessions. The model studied by Doppelt et al. (2009) was delivered in
ve workshops, each lasting four hours.
105
Between workshop classes, the teachers implemented
related activities, which were grist for their reections and discussion in the workshops. Although
these models varied in the overall duration of the PD and the distribution of hours across the
program, all provided opportunities for learning across multiple engagements, along with the
ongoing connected learning that occurred for teachers within their classrooms as they applied the
curriculum ideas and teaching strategies they were working on in the course or workshop series.
One benet of sustained PD may be the opportunity for teachers to continue their learning
outside the formal meetings of the program, whether in their own classroom, in collaboration with
colleagues, or by less formal means. As Darling-Hammond et al. (2009) argue: “The duration of
professional development appears to be associated with stronger impact on teachers and student
learning—in part, perhaps, because such sustained efforts typically include applications to practice,
often supported by study groups and/or coaching.”
106
By returning to PD settings over time, teachers
have an opportunity to rene and apply their understanding of material in their classrooms.
For example, the two-year PD model studied by
By promoting learning over time,
Johnson and Fargo (2014) engaged teachers in
intensive summer workshops as well as ongoing
both within and between sessions,
learning during the school year to enhance
PD that is sustained may lead to
science instruction for Spanish-speaking
elementary school students.
107
The program
many more hours of learning than
began with a two-week summer workshop that
is indicated by seat time alone.
included graduate-level coursework on teaching
elementary science, as well as an orientation
to a new, inquiry-based science curriculum and
strategies for culturally relevant pedagogy. Teachers’ learning from this intensive workshop was
reinforced through occasional release days and monthly grade-level workshops with professional
learning communities. These additional sessions supported teachers in deepening their learning
and provided space for ongoing support in implementing the new curriculum. This cycle was
repeated in the second year, with an additional summer workshop and continued release days.
108
This model not only offered teachers the opportunity to return repeatedly to the PD material over
the course of a semester, but also to apply their learning within the context of their classroom
between workshops. By promoting learning over time, both within and between sessions, PD that is
sustained may lead to many more hours of learning than is indicated by seat time alone.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 16
Realizing the Promise of Professional Learning Communities
This review has so far offered rich descriptions of professional development models that have
incorporated various elements of effective PD. One currently popular model is the use of
Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). While many professional learning community efforts
have been poorly implemented and supercial in their design and impact, there is evidence that
PLCs can, when implemented with a high degree of quality, support improvements in practice, along
with student learning gains. Well-implemented PLCs provide ongoing, job-embedded learning that
is active, collaborative, and reective.
This section moves beyond our review of effective PD models to explore the growing body of
research about the conditions under which PLCs can be an effective strategy for supporting ongoing
teacher learning within and across schools.
The Benefits of Analyzing Student Work and Student Data
The examination of student work is often a focus of productive professional learning communities.
Analyzing student work collaboratively gives teachers opportunities to develop a common
understanding of what good work is, what common misunderstandings students have, and
what instructional strategies may or may not be working and for whom.
109
For example, a study
investigating three high-achieving schools that have continuously beaten the odds on standardized
tests found that teachers’ use of multiple student data sources to collectively reect upon and improve
instructional practices in team meetings contributed to increases in student achievement.
110
While qualitative studies have sought to examine
Analyzing student work
how professional communities are formed and
how they operate, several large-scale studies
collaboratively gives teachers
have illustrated how collaborative, job-
opportunities to develop a
embedded, professional learning that is focused
on student performance has resulted in changed
common understanding of what
practices and improved student achievement.
111
instructional strategies may or
In a comprehensive ve-year study of 1,500
may not be working and for whom.
restructuring schools, Newman and Wehlage
(1997) analyzed three sets of data (School
Restructuring Study, National Educational
Longitudinal Study, and Study of Chicago School Reform) to understand how various reforms
inuence improved educational experiences for students.
112
In their ndings, the authors linked
successful professional learning communities to reduced dropout rates among students; lower
absenteeism rates; and academic achievement gains in mathematics, science, history, and reading.
Another nding had important implications for school equity: The particular characteristics
of strong professional communities—shared intellectual purpose and a sense of collective
responsibility for student learning—reduced the “traditionally strong relationship between
socioeconomic status and achievement gains in mathematics and science.”
113
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 17
Learning From Professional Communities Beyond the School
Positive effects of professional communities that operate beyond the school level have also been
documented by a number of researchers.
114
These are often organized via networks that connect
teachers around subject matter or other shared educational concerns. Lieberman and Wood (2002)
reported on the work of the National Writing Project (NWP), one of the most successful teacher
networks, to understand how teacher learning in a community can be a source of efcacy and
condence in the process of adopting new practices.
115
The NWP, initially called the Bay Area
Writing Project, began in 1973 as a partnership in California between the University of California,
Berkeley, and local school districts. It has grown to more than 185 sites in all 50 states, the District
of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
116
The heart of the model is the local school-
university partnerships, which operate as autonomous sites to support context-specic strengths
and meet context-specic challenges. “These sites are designed to be robust professional and social
communities that occupy an intermediary or ‘third space,’ neither wholly of the university nor
wholly of the school districts.”
117
Despite the autonomy of the local sites, there
are common design features and core principles
Teacher learning in a community
that guide each site and are aligned with all the
can be a source of efficacy and
elements outlined above. The national network
confidence in the process of
focuses on supporting the success of each local
adopting new practices.
site. NWP local sites rst focus on creating
community among a small group of teachers
during a ve-week summer institute in which
teachers engage in writing, share their work,
and critique their peers. In the process of making their work public and critiquing others, teachers
learn how to make implicit rules and expectations explicit, and how to give and receive constructive
feedback for students. These summer institutes are held at each site and run by “teacher
consultants” who are trained and supported by the national network.
118
The summer institutes, which were designed to promote risk-taking and collaboration, provide
a foundation for ongoing learning for teachers once they have left. These ongoing professional
learning programs are collaboratively designed by schools and universities and led by teacher
consultants, NWP veteran teachers. In addition, NWP provides many ways to promote active,
collaborative learning within and across sites; newsletters, annual conferences, and opportunities to
lead workshops are catalysts for the continuous engagement of teachers, creating the intersection
of professional learning communities within the school and across the profession.
119
An important aspect of the NWP’s success is the inclusion of program research starting from the
very rst summer institute. NWP collects internal, site-based, practitioner-directed research, as well
as external, national, and independent research that directs the evolution of its work. The following
box offers study results from the NWP College Ready Writers Program.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 18
Effective Professional Development in Practice:
National Writing Project’s College-Ready Writers Program
The College-Ready Writers Program (CRWP) is a National Writing Project program that focuses
specifically on the argument writing of students in grades 7 through 10 by introducing teachers
to new instructional practices based on higher standards for college- and career-ready writing. A
two-year random assignment study of the program’s implementation in 12 local Writing Project
sites has demonstrated its promise for supporting student learning.
120
SRI conducted the study of CRWP in 22 high-poverty rural districts across 10 states—Alabama,
Arizona, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and
Tennessee. Despite such geographical and contextual diversity, the CRWP was implemented with a
high degree of fidelity. The study design randomly assigned 44 high-poverty rural districts to either
the CRWP program or a control group. The CRWP components included: PD of at least 90 hours
over two years with supports that included demonstration lessons, coaching, co-designing learning
tasks, co-planning, curricular resources including lesson units for argument writing, and formative
assessment tools to help teachers focus on student learning. In contrast, the control group
engaged in “business as usual” PD.
121
The program succeeded in supporting both teacher and student learning despite the challenges
that high-poverty rural districts often face for implementing effective PD. CRWP was found to
have a positive, statistically significant impact on three of four attributes of student writing:
content, structure, and stance. The remaining attribute, writing conventions, was marginally
significant. Authors of the study note, “… this study of teacher professional development is one
of the largest and most rigorous to find evidence of an impact on student academic outcomes,”
indicating the power of high-quality PD to affect student achievement improvements at scale.
122
There are several characteristics of the CRWP that distinguish it from many other programs and
which align with research on quality PD. Three key elements are:
1. A sustained focus on learning over time with explicit modeling, engagement in, and feedback
about pedagogical writing strategies.
2. A teacher-driven system that is enacted with collaboration at the center of the professional
learning work.
3. Active learning focused on classroom practices with student work at the center.
Additionally, this PD is focused on a particularly complex task—using nonfiction text as the evidence
for writing a well-reasoned argument.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 19
Creating the Conditions for Effective Professional
Development: Opportunities and Challenges
This review of research on professional
development models that have positively
impacted student learning has aimed to identify
and illustrate professional learning elements
in order to help shine light on powerful
teacher learning experiences. Examples of
PD that have raised student achievement can
help policymakers and practitioners better
understand what goes into quality teacher
professional learning. This review does not
Examples of PD that have raised
student achievement can help
policymakers and practitioners
better understand what goes
into quality teacher professional
learning.
explain, however, why some well-designed PD
does not improve student achievement.
123
In this section, we consider studies both within and
beyond the scope of our review to explore factors that support or complicate the implementation
of effective PD. We nd that conditions for teaching and learning both within schools and at the
broader systems level can inhibit the effectiveness of teacher PD.
School Level
Several researchers have sought to understand why some PD has proven insufcient to affect
teaching practice and raise student achievement in schools.
124
In their study of 4th to 6th grade
teachers, Bucznyski and Hansen (2010) discussed several barriers to the implementation of PD.
125
They challenge the notion that PD is only as effective as a teacher’s will to employ the knowledge
and skills gained. They note, “… teachers that are willing to implement professional development
practices in the classroom often face hurdles that are beyond their control.”
126
Teachers may also
face hurdles that are within their control, but which are difcult, if not impossible, to attend to,
given the challenging nature of their specic school environments.
Among these barriers are a lack of time allotted to teaching curriculum that uses the newly acquired
knowledge and skills; the need to teach mandated curriculum on a pacing guide; challenges
of teaching English learners without specic PD to address students’ learning needs; a lack of
resources (such as curriculum materials, technology, or science equipment); and classroom
management issues. Of these barriers, the study’s authors noted that lack of resources was the
largest barrier to PD implementation, commenting that teachers often have to pay for their own
materials for their classrooms. As a result,
[w]hen funds are out of pocket for teachers, a nancial divide is in place for students
of more afuent teachers and students of teachers whose own nancial resources are
limited. Other resources provided by schools, such as technology, are also limited.
127
One teacher in the study noted on a survey, “Having to locate, borrow, or purchase items for an
experiment is time consuming and not always possible.”
128
These barriers affect students and teachers in a wide range of contexts; they are of particular
concern for schools and districts located in high-poverty neighborhoods where nancial constraints
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 20
are often particularly acute. The researchers recommend that teachers be given strategies during PD
to proactively address possible obstacles as they arise.
129
Johnson and Fargo (2010) echoed these equity challenges, discussing the specic obstacles to
applying the lessons of PD in urban schools.
130
They note, “Teachers in urban schools often get
caught up in the many distractions occurring on a daily basis and struggle to engage learners who
are often distracted by complicated lives outside of school.”
131
Crises such as school closings and the
uncertainty of employment were cited as examples of the type of “turbulence” that urban science
teachers faced in the course of acquiring and implementing new learning from PD opportunities.
132
These examples also demonstrate how the obstacles faced by teachers in schools may actually be
manifestations of broader issues that stem from systemic problems. In the case of limited funding,
for example, the learning experiences of teachers as well as students are inuenced by broader
policy about resource allocation.
System Level
Challenges to implementing effective PD extend beyond the school and classroom. A New
America report from Tooley and Connally (2016) identied system-level obstacles to effective PD
and concluded that there are four overarching areas where improvement is needed to facilitate
increased effectiveness of PD.
1. Identifying PD needs: Teacher PD is often determined without understanding what
teachers need. This shortfall is frequently exacerbated by a lack of shared vision around
what excellent teaching entails. In addition, preparation and training for principals and
instructional leaders often fail to address how leaders can identify and organize needs-
based PD. Without systems in place to ensure teachers’ needs are being identied and met,
PD will not be as effective as it should be.
2. Choosing approaches most likely to be effective: As noted in this review, there is a
reasonably strong consensus about the kind of professional learning opportunities likely
to yield student achievement. Still, a great deal of PD is implemented that does not meet
these standards. “One-off” workshops are easy to schedule and require less time and
human capital to implement than evidence-based approaches. Teacher contracts and state
recertication requirements also tend to encourage these models by emphasizing seat time
as the metric for gauging engagement with PD.
3. Implementing approaches with quality and delity: Even when educators have
knowledge of effective PD models, implementation presents its own obstacles. For example,
a school or district may create a program that includes coaching for teachers. However, it
is not sufcient to simply designate coaches and have them available for teachers; many
other variables affect coaches’ effectiveness. The authors note, “The coach’s expertise in
the teachers’ grade span, subject, and/or school context; the depth of observation, feedback,
and suggestions for things to try differently; the authority of a coach to recommend next
steps; time and accountability for teachers to follow through with recommended next steps”
have implications for the success of the program.
133
Other implementation barriers include
the lack of an integrated, coherent approach to instruction and insufcient capacity.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 21
4. Assessing PD outcomes: Few schools, districts, or state education agencies have created
good systems of tracking PD, let alone systems for analyzing the quality and impact of PD.
Without a sense of what is working and why, it is hard to adopt and implement professional
learning for teachers that is evidence based and designed to address potential obstacles.
134
Even in the case of well-designed PD, these obstacles can impede the effectiveness of professional
learning and hinder its impact on student learning and achievement. The challenges with
implementing and scaling evidence-based practices underscore that translating promising PD
research into practice remains one area ripe for improvement.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 22
Conclusions and Policy Implications
Professional development is an important strategy for ensuring that educators are equipped to
support deep and complex student learning in their classrooms. However, research shows great
variation in the extent to which PD programs accomplish this goal. This paper has examined recent
studies of successful PD models that report student learning gains. We identify seven common
design elements of these effective PD approaches.
1. They are content focused.
2. They incorporate active learning strategies.
3. They engage teachers in collaboration.
4. They use models and/or modeling.
5. They provide coaching and expert support.
6. They include time for feedback and reection.
7. They are of sustained duration.
Across the reviewed studies, these elements have been combined in a variety of ways to support
teachers’ professional learning. Indeed, none of the successful programs featured attributes in
isolation: As Hargreaves and Fullan (2012) note, the combination of these elements creates a
collaborative culture that results in a form of collective professional capital that leverages much
more productive, widespread improvement in an organization than would be possible if teachers
worked alone in egg-crate classrooms.
135
Regardless of the specic model employed, PD should
be well designed, incorporating elements of effective PD, as we have described. It should also be
linked to identied teacher needs, should ensure that teachers have a say in the type of learning
they require to best support their students, and should be regularly evaluated so that quality can be
continually improved.
Implications for Policy
Supporting and incentivizing the kind of evidence-based PD we have reviewed here could be
facilitated by changes in policy. For example:
• Policymakers could adopt standards for professional development to guide the design,
evaluation, and funding of professional learning provided to educators. These standards
might reect the features of effective professional learning outlined in this report as well as
standards for implementation.
136
• Policymakers and administrators could evaluate and redesign the use of time and school
schedules to increase opportunities for professional learning and collaboration, including
participation in professional learning communities, peer coaching and observations across
classrooms, and collaborative planning.
• States, districts, and schools could regularly conduct needs assessments using data
from staff surveys to identify areas of professional learning most needed and desired
by educators. Data from these sources can help ensure that professional learning is not
disconnected from practice and supports the areas of knowledge and skills educators want
to develop.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 23
• State and district administrators could identify and develop expert teachers as mentors
and coaches to support learning in their particular area(s) of expertise for other educators.
• States and districts can integrate professional learning into ESSA school improvement
initiatives, such as efforts to implement new learning standards, use student data to inform
instruction, improve student literacy, increase student access to advanced coursework, and
create a positive and inclusive learning environment.
• States and districts can provide technology-facilitated opportunities for professional
learning and coaching, using funding available under Titles II and IV of ESSA to address
the needs of rural communities and provide opportunities for intradistrict and intraschool
collaboration.
• Policymakers can provide exible funding and continuing education units for learning
opportunities that include sustained engagement in collaboration, mentoring, and
coaching, as well as institutes, workshops, and seminars.
Implications for Implementation and Practice
At the same time, well-designed programs must also be implemented well to be effective. Even the
best designed PD may fail to produce desired outcomes if it is poorly implemented due to barriers
such as
• inadequate resources, including needed curriculum materials;
• lack of shared vision about what high-quality instruction entails;
• lack of time for planning and implementing new instructional approaches;
• conicting requirements, such as scripted curriculum or pacing guides; and
• lack of adequate foundational knowledge on the part of teachers.
Common obstacles to PD should be anticipated and planned for during both the design and
implementation phases of PD. Implementing PD well also requires responsiveness to the needs of
educators and learners and to the contexts in which teaching and learning will take place.
In the end, well-designed and implemented PD should be considered an essential component of a
comprehensive system of teaching and learning that supports students to develop the knowledge,
skills, and competencies they need to thrive in the 21st century. To ensure a coherent system that
supports teachers across the entire professional continuum, professional learning should link to
their experiences in preparation and induction, as well as to teaching standards and evaluation. It
should also bridge to leadership opportunities to ensure a comprehensive system focused on the
growth and development of teachers.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 24
Appendix A: Methodology
This paper builds upon an earlier review of effective teacher professional development by Darling-
Hammond et al. (2009). To identify elements that are prevalent in effective PD, we reviewed the
empirical literature on models that have demonstrated benets for student learning. Our review
includes studies from recent decades that use rigorous methodologies to demonstrate a positive
link between teacher PD and student outcomes.
Specically, each study included in the review either employs an experimental or quasi-
experimental comparison group, or uses appropriate statistical modeling and hypothesis testing
to estimate the effect of teacher PD on students’ academic outcomes, with controls for context
variables and student characteristics. The review includes studies that nd positive, statistically
signicant effects of PD on student achievement. All studies included in the review appear in peer-
reviewed journals, or represent rigorous, large-scale research studies submitted to federal agencies
and subject to review.
We drew on Darling-Hammond et al.’s (2009) survey to identify articles published before 2010
with methodologies and ndings to qualify for inclusion in the current review. We paired this
approach with a thorough scan of more recent literature, using database searches to identify studies
published from 2010 on that meet the criteria for inclusion. Researchers used keyword searches to
cull relevant literature from Google Scholar, ERIC, EBSCO, JSTOR, and SAGE in early fall of 2016 and
again in spring 2017. Key terms used in these searches include: “teacher professional development,”
“professional learning,” “student outcomes,” and “student achievement.” Although we endeavored
to undertake an exhaustive search of recent literature, it is possible that relevant studies have been
excluded because they were not catalogued under any of the key search terms used. Appendix B
details each of the 35 studies that surfaced using this method that met our methodological criteria,
eight from Darling-Hammond et al. (2009) and 27 from the broader scan of recent literature.
We then reviewed these studies and qualitatively coded them for program features and
characteristics. To begin this process, a researcher generated a list of deductive codes based on
previous literature, including Darling-Hammond et al. (2009) and Desimone (2009). Deductive
codes included, for example, collaboration and 50+ hour duration. After an initial reading of the
papers in the review, researchers rened and expanded coding to include features that emerged
from the studies, including sustained duration, opportunities for feedback, and reection on practice.
Researchers created decision rules for each of the rened codes and engaged in ongoing discussion
throughout the coding process to ensure inter-coder reliability.
At times, the dened elements of effective PD can overlap. For example, collaboration can be both
an active learning strategy and an element unto itself. However, it is possible to engage in active
learning without structured collaboration and it is possible to engage in forms of collaboration,
such as discussing a theory or idea, that do not involve active applications.
Appendix C provides an overview of the elements that were exhibited by the PD model(s) featured
in each study. Two studies that otherwise met the criteria for inclusion in the review were excluded
from Appendix C because they contain insufcient detail regarding the PD model to enable
qualitative coding of the program elements. These studies—Wenglinsky (2000) and Desimone et al.
(2013)—analyze large-scale data sets spanning a variety of contexts and, as a result, provide limited
descriptions of the PD provided to teachers. However, these studies provide important evidence
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 25
regarding the effectiveness of PD, so are retained in Appendix B and referred to where relevant in
the body of the paper. They have been omitted from Appendix C and the counts of the prevalence of
each element in the text due to limited details regarding the PD to which teachers were exposed.
We recognize that this methodology is not without limitations. Because studies of PD typically
examine comprehensive models that incorporate many elements, this paper does not seek to draw
conclusions about the efcacy of individual program components. We are also unable to comment
on the elements of PD models that did not yield positive results on student achievement. It is
conceivable that these ineffective models share one or more elements with those highlighted in this
study and yet fail to produce positive effects on student achievement, perhaps due to weaknesses
in content, design, or implementation. However, it is beyond the scope of this paper to detail why
specic programs are unsuccessful. Rather, the study seeks to describe the characteristics of PD that
research has been found to have positive relationships with student outcomes. Although the paper
dedicates a section to obstacles and challenges to implementation, this remains an area worth
further investigation.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 26
Appendix B: Summary of Studies Reviewed for This Report
Note: ES is used to denote effect sizes.
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Akiba, M. & Liang, G. (2016). Effects of teacher professional learning activities
on student achievement growth. The Journal of Educational Research, 109(1),
99–110.
Description:
Researchers analyzed three years of results from the Teachers’
Opportunity to Learn (TOTL) survey of middle school mathematics teachers
in Missouri. Analysis focuses on what types of professional development, as
defined by the survey (standard professional development, teacher collaboration,
university courses, professional conferences, informal communication, and
individual learning) are associated with student achievement growth.
Methodology: Three-year descriptive survey analysis
• n=467 middle school mathematics teachers in 91 Missouri schools
• Student achievement measured using the Missouri Assessment Program in
mathematics
Findings: Student achievement growth rates were positively associated with
school average amounts of participation in teacher collaboration, professional
conferences, and informal communication with colleagues. Controlling for student
characteristics and teacher qualifications, a one-hour increasein the school
average amountof teacher collaborationwas associated with a .01 increase in
the annual growth rate in student math scores over the three years. A one-hour
increase in the school average amount of teacher participation inprofessional
conferences and informal communication were associated with increases in the
annual growth rate of .15 and .23 respectively.
Allen, J. P., Pianta, R. C., Gregory, A., Mikami, A. Y., & Lun, J. (2011). An
interaction-based approach to enhancing secondary school instruction and
student achievement. Science, 333(6045), 1034–1037.
Description: Teachers enrolled in My Teaching Partner–Secondary, a web-mediated
coaching program designed to improve teacher-student interactions. Teachers
participated in an initial training workshop followed by twice-monthly coaching
from a remote mentor. For each coaching session, teachers were asked to submit
short videos of their practice, reflect on their teaching, and respond to questions
from their coach regarding the relationship between teacher practice and student
engagement. Each reflection was followed by a 20- to 30-minute phone conference
with the coach. Teachers also attended monthly “booster” workshops and were
given access to an annotated video library for the duration of the program. Overall,
the program offered 20 hours of in-service training over 13 months in addition to
the time teachers spent working on the program’s concepts in their classrooms.
Methodology: Two-year randomized controlled trial
• n=78 secondary school teachers and 2,237 secondary students in 12 Virginia
schools
• Student achievement measured by Virginia state standardized tests in relevant
subject
Findings: Students whose teachers participated in the program the previous
school year demonstrated gains in student achievement of .22 standard deviations
(equivalent to an average increase from the 50th to 59th percentile) relative to
students whose teachers had not participated.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 27
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Allen, J. P., Hafen, C. A., Gregory, A. C., Mikami, A. Y., & Pianta, R. (2015).
Enhancing secondary school instruction and student achievement: Replication and
extension of the My Teaching Partner–Secondary intervention. Journal of Research
on Educational Effectiveness 8(4): 475–489.
Description:
Teachers participated in My Teaching Partner–Secondary, a web-
mediated coaching program to improve teacher-student interactions in the classroom.
Teachers participated in an initial half-day training with master teachers from
the research team who would go on to provide remote coaching for the duration
of the program. This initial workshop focused on the dimensions of high-quality
student-teacher interactions, such as teacher sensitivity and regard for student
perspectives, and included videos of exemplary practice. Over the next two academic
years, teachers engaged in 12 remote coaching cycles focused on student-teacher
relationships, classroom organization, and instructional support. In each coaching
cycle, teachers shared a video of a typical lesson with their coach, who chose short
segments of the lesson to highlight for analysis and discussion. Coaches shared
these segments with teachers, who were asked to examine their own practice,
student responses to their practice, and the relationship between teacher practice
and student reactions. This reflection was followed by a 20- to 30-minute phone
conference focused on instructional strategies to strengthen interactions with
students. This coaching cycle occurred every 6 weeks. The 2-year program concluded
with a final booster workshop.
Methodology: Stratified randomized controlled trial
• n= 86 secondary school teachers and 1,194 secondary students in a diverse
urban school district.
• Student achievement measured by Virginia state standardized tests in the
subject areas taught by the participating teachers.
Findings: At the end of the two-year program, students whose teachers
participated demonstrated gains in achievement equivalent to an average
increase from the 50
th
to 59
th
percentile relative to students whose teachers
had not participated (ES = 0.48).
Antoniou, P. & Kyriakides, L. (2013). A dynamic integrated approach to teacher
professional development: Impact and sustainability of the effects on improving
teacher behavior and student outcomes. Teaching and Teacher Education, 29,
1–12.
Description:
Teachers participated in PD using either the Dynamic Integrated
Approach (DIA) or the Holistic Approach (HA). Using the DIA, teachers’ skills were
evaluated and assigned to one of five developmental stages, with each stage focusing
on increasingly complex teaching skills. The Holistic Approach examines attitudes,
beliefs, and practices not limited to stages and skills. Teachers attended nine
monthly sessions throughout the school year. The DIA group sessions consisted of
assigning teachers’ developmental stages and collaborating and creating individual
action plans. Between each PD session, teachers implemented their plans in their
classrooms, received feedback, and revised their plans. Teachers in the HA group
reflected and discussed a problem based on attitude, beliefs, and practice. The
remaining sessions were used to create, discuss implementation, and adjust an
action plan with colleagues. Each monthly session lasted 3-4 hours in duration
totaling 27-36 hours. Both groups completed a total of 88.5 hours of PD.
Methodology: Randomized controlled trial
• n=123 3rd- to 6th-grade teachers in Cyprus schools and 131 students
• Criterion-reference math tests
Findings: Overall, the achievement of students whose teachers employed DIA
was 0.34 standard deviations higher than those in the HA group.
Students of teachers at stages 1 and 2 scored lower (-0.52 and -0.24 standard
deviations respectively) than those of teachers at stage 3. Students of teachers
at stage 4 had the highest achievement gains. Students of teachers in stage
4 of the DIA group scored 0.32 standard deviations higher than students of
teachers at stage 3.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 28
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Buczynski, S. & Hansen, C. B. (2010). Impact of professional development on
teacher practice; uncovering connections. Teacher and Teacher Education, 26,
599–607.
Description:
Teacher PD focused on integrated, inquiry-based instruction in
elementary classrooms. An Inquiry Learning Partnership (ILP) was formed between
two urban school districts, a science museum, and a university to develop
the professional development program for 4th- to 6th-grade trade teachers.
The co-designed PD consisted of standards-based content and inquiry-based
strategies. PD consisted of lectures on subject matter by university professors
paired with constructivist, hands-on experiences for teachers with science kits
and demonstration of inquiry practices. Science content was taught by university
faculty, while pedagogy sessions were led by the ILP director and district resource
teachers. Pedagogy session topics were identified as formative assessment, use
of student science notebooks, unpacking standards, teaching English learners,
adapting curriculum, best practices, and addressing the achievement gap. PD was
administered during a 35-hour, weeklong summer institute. In addition, teachers
attended at least seven of 29 available seven-hour Saturday content sessions over
the course of an academic year.
Methodology: Quasi-experimental study within an exploratory case study
• n=118 veteran 4th- to 6th-grade teachers across two urban districts’
low-performing schools and 1,964 5th-grade students
• Student achievement measured by scores on 2005 and 2006 California
Standards Tests (CSTs) from grade 5 and from local assessments
Findings: In one district, among participating teachers’ students, 9% more
scored proficient or advanced on the CST in 2006 than in 2005, compared to
a 2% gain from teachers who did not participate in PD. In the second district,
the scores of participating teachers’ students were stable while those of
nonparticipating teachers declined, showing a 4% drop in the percent scoring
proficient or advanced. The greatest gains in student achievement occurred at
sites where multiple teachers were involved in the PD.
Buysse, V., Castro, C. C., & Peisner-Feinberg, E. (2010). Effects of a professional
development program on classroom practices and outcomes for Latino dual
language learners. Early Childhood Research Quarterly 25: 194–206.
Description: Nuestros Niños Early Language and Literacy Program is a research-based
PD program focused on effective instructional practices to promote language and
literacy skills for pre-k children in general, and Latinx dual language learners (DLLs)
in particular. The PD was designed for monolingual teachers who used English as
the language of instruction and was structured as a three-day institute conducted
over several weeks, with follow-up sessions throughout the course of the year. The
institute contained six modules focused on topics of literacy and DLLs.Teachers were
also provided with a range of instructional strategies and suggestions for specific
accommodations to facilitate the development of children’s primary language in
Spanish. Follow-up sessions with bilingual Latinx consultants supporting learning
communities of teachers took place over the school year. During the learning
communities, teachers worked collaboratively to create lesson plans and view
recordings of themselves and others teaching to refine and improve their own
instructional strategies for Latinx DLL children. Consultants also met with teachers
one-on-one.
Methodology: Randomized controlled trial
• n=55 teachers and 193 pre-k Latinx dual language learners in North
Carolina’s More at Four Pre-Kindergarten Program
• Student achievement measured in English and Spanish on the Woodcock
Language Proficiency Battery-Revised: English and Spanish Forms; the
Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test and corresponding Test de Vocabulario en
Emagenes Peabody; the Phonological Awareness Tasks; Naming Letters; and
Where’s My Teddy Story and Print Concepts
Findings: Teachers’ general language and literacy practices and those specific
to Latino ELLs measurably improved. For outcomes assessed in Spanish, there
were significantly greater gains for children in the intervention group than in the
control group on the Phonological Awareness (ES=.69) and Rhyme matching
(ES=.68) tasks.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 29
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Campbell, P. F. & Malkus, N. N. (2011). The impact of elementary mathematics
coaches on student achievement. The Elementary School Journal, 111(3),
430–454.
Description:
The study outlines the professional development mathematics coaches
received to deliver onsite, whole-school teacher professional development in
elementary schools. Coaches received specialized training in five courses focusing
on mathematics content, mathematics pedagogy, and educational leadership that
were designed for the program and provided through local universities. Courses
were co-taught by mathematicians, and mathematics educators and coaches were
provided access to course materials, video exemplars, and case studies. Coaches’
coursework was completed over two years. Data from the study indicate that coaches’
primary activities in their placement schools included coaching teachers and
supporting assessment.
Methodology: Three-year randomized controlled trial
• n=36 elementary schools in urban and urban-edge school districts
• Student achievement measured by Virginia’s statewide standardized
achievement test in mathematics
Findings: Assigning elementary mathematics coaches improved student
achievement in grades 3-5 by .14 to .19 standard deviations in each grade
level. Stronger effects on achievement were observed in grades 4 and 5 than
in grade 3. The presence of a mathematics coach did not have a significant
impact on student achievement during the first year of placement.
Carpenter, T. P., Fennema, E., Peterson, P. L., Chiang, C., & Loef, M. (1989).
Using knowledge of children’s mathematics thinking in classroom teaching: An
experimental study. American Educational Research Journal 26(4): 499–531.
Description:
Early elementary school teachers participated in a month long summer
workshop designed to enhance their understanding of children’s mathematical
thinking. University faculty led the workshop, which was focused on research about
children’s approaches to addition and subtraction and principles for its application
in the classroom. Participation in the workshop earned teachers three university
credits and entailed attendance at lectures and involvement in a variety of active-
learning opportunities such as group discussions and workshops, unit planning, and
shared analysis of curricular materials. Teachers also received free time to work on
projects of their choosing, individually or with colleagues and workshop leaders as
participants preferred. Following the workshop, teachers met with workshop leaders
one time; teachers also had continued access to a resource person affiliated with the
program throughout the year. Overall, the workshop provided 80 hours of professional
development.
Methodology: Randomized controlled trial
• n=40 1st-grade teachers in 24 Wisconsin schools and about 480 1st-grade
students
• At pre-test, student achievement was measured using the Iowa Test of Basic
Skills (ITBS). At post-test, researchers used ITBS and other standardized and
researcher-designed mathematics items.
Findings: Students of teachers who participated in the workshop outperformed
students of teachers who did not on three of six measures of mathematics
achievement, including one measure of computation and two measures of
problem solving. These students were also more inclined to be more cognitively
guided in their beliefs about mathematical learning and to report greater
understanding of mathematics.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 30
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Desimone, L., Smith, T., & Phillips, K. (2013). Linking student achievement
growth to professional development participation and changes in instruction: A
longitudinal study of elementary students and teachers in Title I schools. Teachers
College Record, 115(5), 1–46.
This article focused on two types of professional development: content-focused
and participation-focused (time spent on math instruction). Using data from the
Longitudinal Evaluation of School Change and Performance (LESCP), authors aimed to
answer: 1) to what extent do teachers’ self-reported topic coverage and emphasis on
memorization and solving novel problems, and time spent on mathematics instruction
predict student growth? Does a teacher’s time spent on mathematics instruction and
emphasis on memorization and solving novel problems predict student growth? and 2)
to what extent does teacher participation in content-focused professional development
predict the aspects of instruction in the first question to be related to increases in
students’ achievement gains in mathematics? To what extent does participation in
content-focused PD predict if a teacher will spend more time on memorization or novel
problem-solving and relate to student achievement in mathematics. Researchers
analyzed teachers’ instructional practice and participation in professional development
over three years and student academic growth over those three years.
Methodology: Three-year quasi-experimental study using hierarchical linear
modeling
• n=457 3rd- to 5th-grade teachers and 4,803 students in 71 high-poverty
schools
• Student outcomes measured by SAT-9 tests
Findings: Student growth was 15% of a standard deviation slower than
average for students whose teachers focused on basic topics and 15% of a
standard deviation faster than average for students whose teachers focused
on advanced topics. Growth was 7.5% of a standard deviation slower than
average for students whose teachers emphasized memorizing facts. Teachers
who participated in professional development that focused on math content or
instructional strategies in mathematics (in Year 1) were more likely to teach in
ways associated with student achievement growth; for example, they were 11%
of a standard deviation more likely to teach advanced topics.
Doppelt, Y., Schunn C. D., Silk, E. M., Mehalik, M. M., Reynolds, B., & Ward, E.
(2009). Evaluating the impact of facilitated learning community approach to
professional development on teacher practice and student achievement. Research
in Science and Technological Education, 27(3), 339–354.
Description: Teachers participated in content-based collaborative inquiry (CBCI)
sessions in order to receive support for a new 8th-grade science curriculum focused on
electronics. Two sessions occurred prior to implementation; two during; and the final
workshop occurred after the implementation as a final reflection on the unit. Teachers
were engaged in activity learning situated in the curriculum—they actually engaged
in the lessons just as their students would. In addition, they spent much time in the
workshops reflecting on instructional activities in their classrooms. They shared student
work and instructional materials, actively discussing and reflecting on instruction.
In year 1 of the study, curriculum designers led the PD. Year 2, teacher leaders from
the first cohort led the PD. Key elements of the PD were the opportunity for teachers
to discuss students’ understandings, collect and analyze data, share results with
colleagues, and problem-solve instructional solutions collaboratively. In total, teachers
participated in five four-hour workshop sessions.
Methodology: Two-year quasi-experimental study
• n=23 8th-grade science teachers in a mid-sized urban school district
• Student achievement was measured by a six-question knowledge test in year
1 and a 20-question knowledge test in year 2 of the study
Findings: Students whose teachers participated in the PD had an advantage
in achievement over those whose teachers did not. Students whose teachers
used the new curriculum and participated in PD had significantly greater
achievement than those students whose teachers used the new curriculum
with no PD (ES=1.17). This remained true for students whose teachers
continued to use the new curriculum.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 31
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Finkelstein, N., Hanson, T., Huang, C. W., Hirschman, B., & Huang, M. (2010).
Effects of problem based economics on high school economics instruction. Final
report. National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, NCEE
2010–4002.
Description:
PD focused on the Problem Based Economics curriculum developed by
the Buck Institute for Education on 12th-graders’ content knowledge measured by
the Test of Economic Literacy and a performance task as opposed to a traditional
lecture and textbook format. The problem-based approach allows students to
reason through and solve a real-world problem through inquiry-based pedagogy.
Control group and intervention teachers taught two consecutive semesters (fall and
spring) of economics. Intervention teachers taught the Problem Based Economics
curriculum, while the control group taught the typical course. Only student data for
the spring were included in the analysis. Intervention teachers taught five of the nine
modules in the problem-based curriculum. Intervention teachers participated in a
five-day professional development workshop to become familiar with the module and
pedagogical strategies. They were trained by current and former economics teachers.
On four occasions throughout the semester, once at the beginning and throughout
the module completion, teachers participated in a group conference call with
developers and the study team to discuss progress and challenges and get feedback.
Teachers also had the ability to call and email Buck Institute staff throughout the
implementation. The PD took place for one academic school year—a five-day training
and periodic check-ins throughout the school year.
Methodology: Within-school randomized controlled trial
• n=64 11th- and 12th-grade economics teachers and 4,350 students in
Arizona and California
• Student outcomes measured by Test of Economic Literacy (TEL) and a
performance task assessment
Findings: Teachers who participated in the PD and had support in Problem
Based Economics had students who scored 0.27 standard deviations higher
on the TEL (on average got 2.6 test items correct) than teachers who had not
participated in the PD.
Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National
Writing Project’s College-Ready Writers Program in high-need rural districts. Journal
of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 1-26.
Description:
The National Writing Project’s (NWP) College-Ready Writers Program
(CRWP) provided professional development to improve teaching about argument
writing at the secondary level. The program used a three-part approach that included
collaborative professional development, support for the implementation of new
curricular resources, and formative assessment. Teachers engaged in communities
of practice that included analysis of student work; participated in mini units that
positioned the teachers as learners; and co-planned and co-taught NWP’s argument
writing curriculum, observed demonstration lessons, and engaged in reflection on
their practice with teacher consultants. Formative assessments provided rapid
feedback and suggested next steps to improve teacher practice. The program
provided approximately 90 hours of professional development over two years. NWP
provided training and support for district leaders, including one-on-one phone calls
and site visits, throughout the program.
Methodology: Two-year district-randomized controlled trial analyzed using
multilevel models
• n=329 teachers in 44 rural, high-need districts across 10 states
• Student achievement measured using an on-demand argument writing
assessment
Findings: Teacher participation in the program was associated with positive
effects on the quality of student writing. Researchers documented positive,
statistically significant effects on three out of four student writing attributes
measured: content (ES=.20), structure (ES=.20), and stance (ES=.15). The
remaining attribute, writing conventions, was marginally significant (ES=.12).
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 32
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Gersten, R., Dimino, J., Jayanthi, M., Kim, J. S., & Santoro, L. E. (2010). Teacher
study group: Impact of the professional development model on reading instruction
and student outcomes in first grade classrooms. American Educational Research
Journal 47(no. 3): 694–739.
Description: The focus of this study was a Teacher Study Group (TSG) PD model with
a focus on 1st-grade teachers’ reading comprehension and vocabulary instruction.
Teachers in the TSGs met to discuss readings on research-based for teaching “at-risk”
students and how to implement the strategies into their own teaching. Teachers
collaboratively planned lessons using strategies they read and discussed. Teachers
actively engaged in facilitator-guided problem-solving discussions and applied learning
activities using a recursive process: (1) debrief previous application of the research,
walk through the research, (3) walk through the lesson, and (4) use collaborative (2)
planning. This PD took place over 16 sessions (twice a month) October to June. The
sessions lasted approximately 75 minutes each. In between sessions, teachers
practiced and reflected upon the strategies in their classrooms.
Methodology: Randomized controlled trial
• n=81 1st-grade teachers and 468 students from three large urban school
districts across three states
Student achievement in comprehension and vocabulary achievement were •
measured by three Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS)
tests, two subtests of the Woodcock Diagnostic Reading Battery (WDRB),
and for a subset of participants, the California Achievement Test.
Findings: Positive effects of the treatment were found on teachers’ knowledge
and practices in the TSG sample. Controlling for initial performance on letter
fluency measures, teacher knowledge and practice factors were significantly
and positively related to all of the student outcome measures. Despite small
sample sizes, significant differences between the treatment and control groups
on reading outcomes emerged on the California Achievement Test (ES=.20),
and marginally significant effects were found on students’ oral vocabulary
(ES=.44). Effects were noticeable (.21, .21, and .23), though non-significant,
for the Letter-Word Identification, Reading Vocabulary, and Oral Reading
Fluency subtests, respectively.
33
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Greenleaf, C. L., Hanson, T. L., Rosen, R., Boscardin, D. K., Herman, J., & Schneider,
A. (2011). Integrating literacy and science in biology: teaching and learning S.
impacts of reading apprenticeship professional development. American Educational
Research Journal, 48(3), 647–717.
Description: High school biology teachers participated in professional development
integrating academic literacy and biology instruction through Reading Apprenticeship.
The program was inquiry-based, subject-focused, collaborative, and designed to
address teachers’ conceptual understandings as well as pedagogical content
knowledge. The sessions were designed to immerse teachers in the types of learning
activities and environments they would then create for their students. They engaged
in activities to simulate their own discipline expertise in relation to literacy, and they
also engaged in analysis of texts to identify potential literacy challenges to learners.
In addition, teachers analyzed student work, videotaped classroom lessons, and
studied cases of student literacy learning designed to foster high expectations of
student learning. Metacognitive routines such as think-alouds and reading logs for
science investigations were also used in professional development sessions. In the
sessions, teachers practiced classroom routines to build student engagement), student
collaboration (e.g., think-pair-share, jigsaws, and text-based student discussion and
problem- solving (e.g., text annotation). Metacognitive reflection after each session
focused on the impact of these sessions on teachers’ learning and potential impact on
their students’ development.
The 10 professional development sessions took place over the course of a year. An
initial five-day institute took place the first summer of the study. This was followed by
two follow-up days of professional development during year 1, and a final three-day
follow-up occurred the summer following the academic year. During the study year,
participants engaged in collaboration on a listserv moderated by professional
development coaches, including the exchange of resources.
Methodology: Group-randomized experimental study utilizing hierarchical linear
modeling
• n=105 California high school biology teachers in underserved public high
schools
Student learning measured using California states tests of English language •
arts, reading comprehension, and biology
Findings: Students in treatment classrooms performed better than controls
on state standardized assessments in English language arts (ES=0.23),
reading comprehension (ES=0.24), and biology (ES=0.28). Treatment classes
performed about a year ahead of the control classes at the end of the study.
Effect sizes for white students in treatment classrooms ranged from 0.33 to
and for English learners from 0.18 to 0.23. Positive impacts were also 0.40
found on ELA and biology test scores of Latinx students, although these were
not statistically significant. No significant test score differences were found
for African American students across classroom types. Test scores for reading
comprehension and biology were higher in intervention schools than in control
schools for both males and female students.
34
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Heller, J. I., Daehler, K .R., Wong, N., Shinohara, M., & Miratrix, L. W. (2012).
Differential effects of three professional development models on teacher knowledge
and student achievement in elementary science. Journal of Research in Science
Teaching, Vol. 49, No. 3, pp. 333–362.
Description:
This PD focused on pedagogical science content knowledge for
elementary teachers, utilizing three different interventions. One group of teachers
analyzed prestructured written teaching cases. These cases were drawn from actual
classrooms and written by teachers. Thus, it was an analysis of practice approach,
which incorporated student work analysis, student teacher dialogue analysis, and
teacher thinking and behaviors. Teachers also engaged in the same scientific
investigations written about in the cases during their PD sessions. Embedded in this
PD was identifying the logic behind common scientific misunderstandings, analyzing
teachers’ instructional choices, and considering teaching implications for their own
students.
A second group analyzed their own student work in relation to their teaching. Teachers
in this intervention experienced carefully structured, collaborative analysis of their
own students’ work, which was derived from a common unit they taught. Discussion
protocols for the analysis of student work were employed, which focused teachers’
analysis on student understanding of content. In addition, these sessions also focused
on the analysis of tasks to identify characteristics that support formative assessments
to elicit information about student thinking and make instructional decisions based on
student thinking.
A third group utilized metacognitive analysis of their own learning experience. This took
the form of reflective discussions about their own learning processes as they engaged
in science content activities. The course was designed to help teachers identify
concepts they found challenging to learn, examine the logic behind their own common
misunderstandings of the content, and analyze the roles of hands-on investigations,
discourse, and inquiry in science learning. Expert staff developers delivered a series
of three courses (one PD was delivered in eight three-hour sessions, for a total of 24
contact hours with a facilitator).
Methodology: Randomized controlled trial
• n=256 4th-grade teachers and 7,000 students across six states
• Student outcomes measured by achievement tests developed in prior
analyses of the PD; includes selected-response items and written
justifications for answers
Findings: Students of teachers who participated in PD had significantly greater
learning gains on standardized tests than those who had teachers who did not
participate, with average gains of 19-22 percentage points on the assessments
compared to 13 points for control students. Effect sizes ranged from .4 to .8
over the two-year study.
Teachers who participated in the PD focused on student work analysis had
students who improved their scores significantly compared to controls. In the
follow-up year, students of both those teachers and teachers who focused on
cases had significantly higher test score gains. Those teachers who focused
on metacognitive analysis did not improve students’ written justifications as
compared to the controls in either year.
English language learner student scores were raised by approximately 18
percentage points in all three interventions—all three significantly higher than
the average 7.1 percentage points gained in the control group.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 35
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Johnson, C. C. & Fargo, J. D. (2014). A study of the impact of transformative
professional development on Hispanic student performance on state mandated
assessments of science in elementary school. Journal of Elementary Science
Teacher Education 25: 845–859.
Description: Elementary school science teachers participated in a professional
development program to improve science instruction and facilitate culturally relevant
pedagogy. The two-year program began with a two-week summer workshop that
included graduate-level coursework on teaching elementary science, as well as
orientation to a new science curriculum and culturally relevant pedagogy. During
the second summer, the workshop focused on teaching elementary science and
learning conversational Spanish. Professional development was reinforced through
occasional release days and monthly grade-level workshops with professional
learning communities. Over 2 years, the program provided 224 hours of professional
development.
Methodology: Three-year case study drawn from a cluster randomized,
controlled trial
• n=21 teachers in two elementary schools in a large urban school district in a
southwestern state
• Student science achievement was measured by performance on a state-
mandated science assessment.
Findings: Students attending the school whose teachers participated in
the PD program demonstrated significantly larger improvements in science
achievement over time relative to students who attended the school with
business-as-usual PD for their teachers.
Johnson, C. C. & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban school reform enabled by transformative
professional development: Impact on teacher change and student learning of
science. Urban Education, 45(1), 4–29.
Description: Middle school science teachers working in an urban school district
participated in a professional development program to strengthen standards-based
instruction and foster culturally responsive teaching. The hands-on, whole-school
program began with a two-week summer institute designed to foster relationship-
building among teachers and introduce a new science curriculum and culturally
responsive teacher strategies. Throughout the first year of the program, teachers
attended monthly workshop days to refine the curriculum to better meet the needs of
their students and undertook peer observations, providing positive and constructive
feedback to colleagues. In the second year of the program, teachers attended a
three-day summer session and additional monthly release days, and conducted home
visits to deepen relationships with students and families. In total, the program offered
nearly 200 hours of professional development, with 120 hours in the first year and 77
hours in the second.
Methodology: Two-year quasi-experimental study
• n=16 middle school science teachers from four schools in one urban district
• Student science achievement was measured using specially designed
assessments.
Findings: Students of teachers participating in the PD demonstrated
significantly larger growth in science achievement than students at control
schools in the second year of the program, with gains twice as large as those of
students in the control schools.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 36
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Kim, J. S., Olson, C. B., Scarcella, R., Kramer, J., Pearson, M., van Dyk, D., Collins, P.,
& Land, R. E. (2011) A randomized experiment of a cognitive strategies approach to
text-based analytical writing for mainstreamed Latino English language learners in
grades 6 to 12. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness 4(3): 231–263.
Description: Secondary English teachers participated in the Pathway Project to improve
their ability to employ cognitive strategies to support English language learners’
interpretive reading and analytical writing skills. Through the program, teachers learn to
structure analytical writing activities by engaging in revisions to an on-demand writing
assessment completed by students. The program began by introducing teachers to a
cognitive strategies tool kit for supporting students’ reading and writing in association
with literacy texts. Subsequent sessions focused on analyzing student performance,
strengths, and needs through writing assessments; collaboratively designing lessons
incorporating cognitive strategies for literature instruction; and setting goals for future
years. These sessions were complemented by monthly meetings at each school led by
literacy coaches and designed to support teachers in implementing Pathway strategies.
The program also provided curricular materials aligned with cognitive approaches to
literature instruction, accompanied by guidance for implementing them in teachers’
classrooms. Overall, teachers participated in six full-day professional development
sessions and five after-school sessions, for a total of 46 hours of professional
development throughout the school year.
Methodology: Cluster randomized controlled trial analyzed using hierarchical
linear modeling
• n=103 secondary English teachers and more than 2,000 students in a large,
urban school district
Student achievement measured using an on-demand writing assessment •
and the California Standards Tests for English language arts
Findings: Students of teachers who participated in the Pathway Project
performed significantly better (ES=.35) on an on-demand text-based analytical
writing assessment and on the overall state standardized test of English
language arts (ES=.07), after controlling for initial performance. On the
on-demand writing assessment, 22% of students of participating teachers
received at least two scores of 4 or above (out of 6), as compared to 14%
of students in the control group. On the state standardized test, students of
participating teachers scored on average 3 percentage points higher.
37
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Kleickmann, T., Trobst, S., Jonen, A., Vehmeyer, J., & Moller, K. (2016). The effects
of expert scaffolding in elementary science professional development on teachers’
beliefs and motivations, instructional practices, and student achievement. Journal
of Educational Psychology, 108(1) 21–42.
Description: PD focused on implementing a social constructivist approach to
elementary science teaching through educational curriculum materials (ECM). Three
groups of teachers participated in PD, each group with a different level of scaffolding
(support for their learning through ECM). One group used the ECM materials with
no expert scaffolding. Two other groups received 16 all-day workshops of PD to
supplement the use of ECM. The first six (38 hours) focused specifically on floating and
sinking. The 10 additional workshops (62 hours) focused on the other 10 topics. The
focus of the workshops was to develop content and pedagogy. The “high scaffolding”
group of teachers engaged in active learning activities such as scientific investigations,
providing counter examples, developing analogies, and engaging in discussions. In
general, the PD the teachers received mimicked the process by which they were to
guide their elementary students. Teachers were also prompted to reflect on their own
learning processes and to consider their own naïve science conceptions to help them
understand the need to construct learning to fit students’ existing schema. In addition,
expert helped teachers to understand sequencing of science concepts to facilitate
student learning.
In contrast, the “low scaffolding” group of teachers received little of this support.
Instead, the expert PD coach demonstrated a series of lessons on floating and sinking
in a 3rd-grade classroom without scaffolding teachers’ content and pedagogical
knowledge. Teachers observed these lessons and conducted pre- and post-interviews
with students. They were encouraged to discuss their observations in relation to the
student interviews.
The PD spanned approximately five months, with scaffolded groups receiving an
additional 100 hours of PD during this time.
Methodology: Two-year quasi-experimental study
• n=73 elementary science teachers and 1,039 3rd and 4th-grade students
Student achievement was measured through an assessment of students’ •
conceptual understanding of floating and sinking
Findings: Students taught by teachers who received “high scaffolding”
exhibited significantly higher achievement than did students taught
by “low scaffolding” teachers (ES=.45). Student achievement for both
“high scaffolding” and “low scaffolding” teachers significantly surpassed
achievement in classes taught by teachers with no scaffolding (ES=.55).
38
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Kutaka, T. S., Smith, W. M., Albano, A. D., Edwards, C. P., Ren, L., Beattie, H.
L.., Lewis, W. J., Heaton, R. M., & Stroup, W. W. (2017). Connecting teacher
professional development and student mathematics achievement: A four-year
study of an elementary mathematics specialist program.Journal of Teacher
Education,68(2), 140–154.
Description: Primarily Math, a mathematics professional development model for
kindergarten to 3rd-grade teachers, consisted of two weeklong summer institutes
involving university coursework and long-term projects assigned over the course of the
school year. The PD involved collaborative assignments, self- and group reflection of
video evidence, and unit planning for use in teachers’ classrooms. In total, teachers
participated in a minimum of 160 contact hours across two institutes in addition to
time implementing PD pedagogy and practice during the school year. The PD program
occurred across 13 months.
Methodology: Three-year quasi-experimental study using hierarchical linear
modeling
• n= 184 k-3rd-grade teachers from three large, urban school districts in
Nebraska
Student achievement was measured using the Test of Early Mathematics •
Ability-Edition 3 (TEMA-3).
Findings: Students of Primarily Math teachers had math change scores
significantly greater than students of comparison teachers.
Landry, S. H., Swank, P. R., Smith, K. E., Assel, M. A., & Gunnewig, S. B. (2006)
Enhancing early literacy skills for preschool children: Bringing a professional
development model to scale. Journal of Learning Disabilities 39(4): 306–324.
Description: Head Start educators took part in a professional development program
to enhance instruction in support of improved language and early literacy skills for
young children. The program began with a four-day, small-group workshop focused on
strategies for supporting language enrichment and early literacy growth. The workshop
relied on interactive strategies such as guided discussion, group problem-solving, and
role-playing. Following the workshop, specially trained mentors conducted ongoing
training sessions throughout the school year. Educators also received one hour of
coaching per week from the mentors in their first year of training. Teachers who
continued in the program for a second year participated in a two-day refresher course
and received one hour of coaching biweekly, as well as ongoing training.
Methodology: Two-year quasi-experimental study
• n=750 Head Start educators and 5,728 children in 20 urban and rural
centers across Texas
Child outcomes were measured using five instruments—four standard •
assessments of early literacy and a specially designed social-emotional
development scale
Findings: Researchers identified greater gains in language and literacy
skills for children whose teachers participated in professional development,
although results varied by program site. In year 1 of the study, researchers
observed moderate to large positive associations between teacher professional
development and children’s early literacy and language skills at 20% to 40%
of sites, depending on the measure. In year 2 of the study, moderate to large
effect sizes were observed in between 20% and 68% of sites.
39
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Landry, S. H., Anthony, J. L., Swank, P. R., & Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009)
Effectiveness of comprehensive professional development for teachers of at-risk
preschoolers. Journal of Educational Psychology 101(2), 448–465.
Description:
Early childhood educators participated in professional development to
enhance teachers’ ability to promote children’s language and literacy development.
Through the program, educators participated in a facilitated online course focused
on language and literacy instruction, eCIRCLE. The facilitated course included videos
of model lessons, interactive message boards, and opportunities to plan lessons and
practice skills in small groups. Participating educators also received a supplemental
curriculum on preschool language and literacy skills and were encouraged to use
ongoing monitoring of student progress. Teachers participated in four hours of
coursework per month throughout the school year. In addition, some teachers
received detailed feedback on children’s language and literacy progress that was
linked to curricular activities and/or two-hour, on-site mentoring sessions twice per
month.
Methodology: Randomized controlled trial
• n=262 early childhood educators and up to eight children per classroom in
158 schools in Florida, Maryland, Ohio, and Texas
• Student outcomes measured through a standardized vocabulary assessment
Findings: Collectively, students of educators in all four professional
development groups demonstrated greater gains in phonological awareness
than students of educators in the control group (ES=0.14).
Students of teachers who received both mentoring and detailed, instructionally
linked feedback on children’s language and literacy progress experienced the
greatest gains in a variety of language and literacy outcomes. This included
greater gains than students whose teachers received business-as-usual
professional development on expressive vocabulary (ES=0.19) and print and
letter knowledge (ES=0.26).
Lara-Alecio, R., Tong, F., Irby, B. J., Guerrero, C., Huerta, M., & Fan, Y. (2012). The
effect of an instructional intervention on middle school English learners’ science
and English reading achievement. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 49(8),
987–1011.
Description: Teachers engaged in on-site, small-group professional development
to promote inquiry-based, literacy-integrated instruction to improve English
learners’ science and reading achievement. Through the program, teachers and
paraprofessionals participated in workshops where they reviewed upcoming lessons,
discussed science concepts with peers, engaged in reflections on student learning,
participated in inquiry activities as learners, and received instruction in strategies for
teaching English learners. Researchers also provided teachers with lessons plans
that incorporated strategies for effective instruction of English learners. Teachers met
biweekly for three-hour sessions, receiving six hours of professional development per
month; paraprofessionals met monthly for three hours. The program also included a
focus on new and enhanced instructional activities for English learners.
Methodology: Quasi-experimental study
• n=246 5th-grade teachers and 166 students in four lower middle schools in
an urban district in southeast Texas
• Student achievement was measured by performance on science and reading
district and state tests and Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy
Skills(DIBELS)
Findings: Treatment group students scored significantly higher scores on the
DIBELS than control group students. In addition, students of teachers who
participated in PD earned passing and commended scores on district science
and reading benchmarks at higher rates than students of those who did not
participate (ES=0.127 - .238). A similar pattern was observed for reading
achievement on the state test, with an average passing rate of 69% in the
treatment group and 60% in the control group.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 40
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Marek, E. & Methven, S. B. (1991). Effects of the learning cycle upon student and
classroom teacher performance. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 28(1),
41–53.
Description: Elementary science teachers participated in a monthlong in-service
workshop designed to support the adoption of a new approach to science instruction.
The workshop aimed for participants to understand that science is a process, or
“search for knowledge,” rather than a body of knowledge, and that students who learn
science as a search for knowledge construct their own understandings about the
world. It was also designed to help teachers learn how to develop “learning cycles, ”
an approach to curriculum that is compatible with approaching science as a process
or method. During the workshop, teachers experienced several learning cycles as
learners; this involved gathering data, identifying key concepts from the data, and
expanding their understanding by applying the concept to other topics. Teachers then
taught each other using learning cycles from a provided curriculum before preparing
their own learning cycles for use in the classroom. All teachers agreed to use learning
cycles in their classrooms following the workshop. The workshop offered 100 hours of
in-service training over four weeks.
Methodology: Quasi-experimental matched pairs design
• n=27 elementary science teachers and 226 k- to 5th-grade students
• Student outcomes were measured using three Piagetian conservation tasks,
a measure of cognitive development, and an analysis of descriptive language
used by students during interviews.
Findings: Students of treatment group teachers demonstrated significantly
greater growth in their conservation reasoning abilities than control group
teachers. Treatment group students also demonstrated enhanced quality and
quantity of descriptive language relative to control group students.
May, H., Sirinides, P., Gray, A., & Goldsworthy, H. (2016). Reading Recovery: An
Evaluation of the Four-Year i3 Scale-Up. Philadelphia, PA: Consortium for Policy
Research in Education.
Description: Educators participated in an intensive yearlong graduate-level training
course in order to teach Reading Recovery, an intervention targeted at struggling
1st-grade readers. In support of teachers receiving the PD are literacy coaches who
conduct the training course and university faculty who support implementation.
Training is designed to enhance a teacher’s ability to identify students’ strengths
and needs, and to facilitate his or her learning by helping students develop a set of
self-regulated literacy strategies that govern the use of meaning, structure, letter-sound
relationships, and visual cues in reading and writing. Once trained, teachers provided
students with individual, daily 30-minute lessons over the course of a 12- to 20-week
period.
Methodology: Parallel randomized controlled trial and quasi-experimental
study
• n=1,122 schools across the country in a wide variety of locales (e.g., urban,
rural, suburban) and 6,888 students
• Student achievement was measured using Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS)
Reading Total assessment and the state 3rd-grade reading exam.
Findings: For each set of reading scores, the treatment group’s performance
was one-third to one-half standard deviation larger than that of the control
group.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 41
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
McGill-Franzen, A., Allington, R. L., Yokoi, L., & Brooks, G. (1999). Putting books
in the classroom seems necessary but not sufficient. The Journal of Education
Research 93(2):67–74.
Description: Kindergarten teachers participated in a training program to enhance
their use of books in classroom lessons. Training sessions spanned topics such as
classroom organization, read-aloud techniques, story-related lesson plans, and play-
based literacy activities. Participating teachers also received a large supply of books for
classroom libraries and students’ home libraries. Overall, teachers participated in 30
hours of training, including three daylong workshops and seven shorter meetings.
Methodology: Stratified randomized controlled trial
• n=18 kindergarten teachers and 377 children from six schools in a single
large eastern urban school district
• Student outcomes measured using two widely used early literacy instruments
Findings: Students of teachers receiving training and books demonstrated
higher scores and larger gains on all early literacy measures than did students
of teachers who did not receive training. In all but one case, these differences
were statistically significant.
Meissel, K., Parr, J. M., & Timperley, H. S. (2016). Can professional development of
teachers reduce disparity in student achievement? Teaching and Teacher Education
58, 163–173.
Description:
New Zealand schools participated in a flexible whole-school professional
development model designed to improve student literacy, particularly for low-
performing students. Participating schools each selected a focus on either reading or
writing for the duration of the two-year project and were assigned an expert literacy
facilitator to provide professional development for teachers and school leaders.
Facilitators visited each school biweekly to conduct classroom observations, model
literacy instruction, provide coaching and feedback, and engage in discussion and
other activities with school staff. Facilitators also trained a literacy leader at each
school who provided additional support for their colleagues. The project provided
resources such as classroom observation and facilitation tools, as well as training
and feedback for the expert facilitators throughout the two-year period.
Methodology: Quasi-experimental design utilizing hierarchical linear modeling
• n=22,506 middle school students in 195 New Zealand schools
• Student achievement was measured by a New Zealand standardized
assessment
Findings: Students attending schools participating in the project outperformed
a nationally normed sample, especially in writing. Students in schools with a
focus on improving writing improved at 2.9 to 3.5 times the expected rate (1.15
to 1.4 standard deviations). Students in schools with a focus on improving
reading improved at 1.4 to 1.6 times the expected rate (0.72 to 0.85 standard
deviations).
Learners from all groups (defined by gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic
status) outperformed expectations based on national norms.
Meyers, C. V., Molefe, A., Brandt, W. C., Zhu, B., & Dhillon, S. (2016). Impact results
of the eMINTS professional development validation study.Educational Evaluation
and Policy Analysis,38(3), 455–476.
Description:
Teachers participated in the Enhancing Missouri’s Instructional
Networked Teaching Strategies (eMINTS) professional development program. The
goal of eMINTS is to help teachers develop student-centered, purposeful instruction
fostered by technology utilization. While the comprehensive program involves
whole-school PD elements, the bulk of the program is focused on the development of
teachers. Specifically, teachers engaged in approximately 240 hours of PD over the
course of two academic years through formal training sessions, a model school site
visit, within-building communities of practice, and individualized coaching sessions.
Some study schools also received an additional year of Intel Teach courses and
online tools to support eMINTS learning.
Methodology: Three-year cluster randomized controlled trial
• n=60 high-poverty, rural Missouri middle schools
• Student achievement was measured using Missouri Assessment Program
(MAP) in communication arts and mathematics and the 21st-Century Skills
Assessment.
Findings: Student test scores on MAP mathematics tests increased
significantly more (0.128 to 0.178 standard deviations) than the control group.
Results on MAP communication arts and 21st Century Skills scale scores were
not statistically significant.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 42
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Newman, D., Finney, P. B., Bell, S., Turner, H., Jaciw, A., Zacamy, J. L., & Gould,
L. F. (2012). Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Alabama Math, Science, and
Technology Initiative (AMSTI). Washington, DC: Institute for Education Sciences.
Description: 4th- to 8th-grade teachers engaged in the Alabama Math, Science, and
Technology Initiative (AMSTI), a two-year schoolwide intervention intended to improve
student achievement by better aligning classroom practices with national and statewide
teaching standards by providing professional development, access to materials and
technology, and in-school support for teachers. The PD includes a 10-day summer
institute, follow-up training during the school year, access to program and curriculum
materials, and mentoring and coaching by lead teachers and site specialists.
Methodology: Two-year cluster randomized controlled trial
• n=82 Alabama middle schools
• Student achievement was measured using SAT-10 tests and the Alabama
Reading and Mathematics Test.
Findings: On the SAT-10 mathematics test, students in AMSTI schools scored
0.05 standard deviations higher than their counterparts in non-PD schools,
equivalent to about 28 additional days of student progress. In a separate
two-year exploratory analysis, AMSTI students increased their math scores by
0.10 SD and their science scores by 0.13 SD more than control groups.
Penuel, W. R., Gallagher, L. P., & Moorthy, S. (2011). Preparing teachers to
design sequences of instruction in earth systems science: A comparison of three
professional development programs. American Educational Research Journal,
48(4), 996–1025.
Description: Middle school science teachers in a large urban school district
participated in one of three professional development programs designed to improve
student science learning. The programs all used an approach to curriculum design
known as Understanding by Design that helps teachers plan by identifying learning
goals, designing or using assessments to gauge student performance relative to
those goals, and offering activities to further develop student understanding. Each of
the professional development models intentionally incorporated features that have
been suggested by research to be part of high-quality professional learning programs,
including the use of hands-on, collaborative learning strategies and opportunities to
deepen content knowledge and understandings of student science thinking. Each
program was also aligned with district standards and goals for science education.
The groups varied in the degree to which teachers received guidance in selecting
curricular materials and explicit instruction in the pedagogical models underlying
curriculum. Some teachers received explicit training in instruction and assessment
techniques that are associated with the use of an Understanding by Design
approach. Others were provided and asked to use an NSF-funded middle school
science curriculum. The final group received training in techniques associated with
Understanding by Design and were provided the new curricular materials, which they
were asked to use at least 50% of the time.
Teachers in each of the three programs attended a two-week summer workshop, plus 4
additional development days during the school year.
Methodology: Cluster randomized controlled trial
• n=53 middle school science teachers and 1,550 students in a single urban
district in the American southeast
• Student science learning was measured through specially designed unit tests
Findings: Students of teachers who received explicit instruction regarding
teaching models performed better than students whose teachers did not
receive such instruction (d=0.29-0.34). Students of teachers who only
received guidance in selecting curricular materials did not perform significantly
differently than students whose teachers received business-as-usual
professional development.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 43
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Polly, D., McGee, J., Wang, C., Martin, C., Lambert, R., & Pugalee, D. K. (2015)
Linking professional development, teacher outcomes, and student achievement:
The case of a learner-centered mathematics program for elementary school
teachers. International Journal of Education Research 72, 26–37.
Description: Elementary math teachers engaged in a PD program to bolster standards-
based elementary math instruction. The program was designed to be learner-centered,
offering active learning opportunities that are collaborative, owned by teachers,
supportive of changes in classroom practice, and that foster pedagogical and content
knowledge. Teachers participated in a number of activities, including a summer
workshop, follow-up workshops during the academic year, and classroom-embedded
professional development activities. All activities were coordinated by a project team
that included a mathematics professor, mathematics education professors, and school
leaders. The program provided approximately 80 hours of professional development
over 10 months.
Methodology: Three-year nonexperimental study
• n=291 elementary mathematics teachers from two school districts: one
large urban district and a nearby suburban district
Student outcomes were measured using curriculum-based assessments. •
Findings: Results from three years of program data indicate students
of teachers who participated in the program consistently experienced
significant gains in mathematics from pre- to post-test, mediated by teachers’
mathematical knowledge for teaching. The mean gain from pre to post test
in Year 1 was 29.74 (SD=35.05). The mean gain from pre to post test in
Year 2 was 37.40 (SD=35.35) and from pre to post test in year 3 was 41.35
(SD=35.70).
Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal, M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of
an early literacy professional development intervention on Head Start teachers and
children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(2), 299–312.
Description:
Early childhood educators received PD in early literacy teaching from
expert coaches. Educators attended a two-day workshop that was designed to foster
relationship-building between coaches and educators and featured demonstrations
and guided discussions of program content. Coaches then observed educators
biweekly and provided teachers feedback related to early literacy instruction.
Coaching was done either onsite or remotely. Onsite coaches observed educators
for approximately 90 minutes, then met for 30 minutes to debrief the observation
and provide oral and written feedback. For remote coaching, educators submitted
15-minute video clips and coaches provided detailed written feedback supported
by links to video exemplars and other materials available through the program. The
semester-long program included 16 hours of workshop and seven coaching sessions.
Methodology: Two-year randomized controlled trial
• n=88 educators in 24 Head Start centers serving urban and nonurban
counties in a midwestern state, with approximately eight students per
classroom
Student achievement was measured using seven instruments, including the •
Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-III and the Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of
Achievement
Findings: Teachers who participated in the coaching program demonstrated
target practices at significantly higher levels. Students of teachers who
participated in the coaching program showed significantly larger gains and
better performance on four out of seven outcomes measured by the study:
letter knowledge (ES=0.29), print concept (ES=.22), writing (ES=.17), and
blending skills (ES=0.18).
44
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Roth, K. J., Garnier, H. E., Chen, C., Lemmens, M., Schwille, K., & Wickler, N. I. Z.
(2011). Videobased lesson analysis: Effective science PD for teacher and student
learning. Journal on Research in Science Teaching, 48(2),117–148.
The Science Teachers Learning through Lesson Analysis (STeLLA) PD was a videobased
analysis of a practice program for upper elementary teachers designed to help them
analyze science teaching and learning to improve pedagogy. Two groups participated in
the study. Both groups received the same science content instruction from university
scientists during a three-week summer institute. STeLLA participants also engaged in
video analysis of teaching during the summer institute and in follow-up sessions across
the school year utilizing the Student Thinking and Science Content Storyline Lenses.
The Student Thinking portion of PD focused on understanding students’ ideas for use
in planning, teaching, and analysis of teaching, particularly in anticipating student
thinking to assist teachers in responding to students’ ideas and misunderstandings
in productive ways. The Science Content Storyline portion of the PD focused on the
sequencing of science ideas to help students construct a coherent “story” that makes
sense to them. STeLLA teachers met in small groups facilitated by STeLLA program
leaders and discussed video cases of teaching that could include video(s) of one
classroom, student and teacher interviews, teacher materials, and student work
samples. STeLLA teachers also taught a set of four to six model lessons themselves
and analyzed their teaching using a structured protocol. Purposes of these lessons
were identified as: 1) modeling and scaffolding of the two lenses; 2) clarify science
content understandings; and 3) provide common curriculum for lesson analysis
work. Half of a study group would teach the lessons and the entire group would
collaboratively analyze the teaching and student work, and then revise the lessons for
the other half to use. The roles would then switch and the second half of the group
would teach the lessons that would be used for analysis. The analysis was highly
scaffolded by the PD facilitators. STeLLA groups met for 58 hours of analysis across the
school year, in addition to 44 hours during the three-week summer session for a total
of 102 hours. Content-only teachers received just the 44 hours of PD.
Methodology: Quasi-experimental comparison group study design
• n=48 urban California upper elementary teachers of 1,490 students
Student achievement was measured by pre- and post-tests of student •
content knowledge.
Findings: STeLLA teachers’ students showed greater gains than non-STeLLA
teachers’ students. For a typical student taught by a STeLLA teacher, higher
average achievement was associated with:
Teachers’ science content knowledge •
(ES =.20)
Teachers’ ability to analyze science teaching about student thinking •
(ES =.18)
Teachers’ classroom use of Science Content Storyline strategy; selecting and •
using content representations matched to the main learning goal (ES=.32)
45
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Saxe, G. B,, Gearhart, M., & Nasir, N. S. (2001). Enhancing students’ understanding
of mathematics: A study of three contrasting approaches to professional support.
Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education 4: 55–79.
Description: Upper elementary school teachers participated in a reform-oriented
professional development program designed to enhance student understanding of
fractions. The program began with a five-day summer institute, followed by biweekly
meetings for the remainder of the school year. Program meetings targeted teachers’
own mathematical content knowledge, their understanding of students’ mathematical
thinking and motivation, and their competence in the use of integrated assessments.
The meetings utilized individual and collaborative work, and active-learning strategies
such as role-playing. Teachers participating in the program were also provided with two
lessons from a reform mathematics curriculum to implement in their classrooms.
Methodology: Quasi-experimental design utilizing ANCOVA analyses
• n=23 upper elementary school teachers
• Student knowledge of fractions was measured using a specially designed
test with both conceptual and computational items.
Findings: Teacher participation in the professional development program was
associated with higher student achievement on the conceptual portion of the
fractions test. There was no difference on the computational portion of the
fractions test.
Shaha, S. H. & Ellsworth, H. (2013). Predictors of success for professional
development: Linking student achievement to school and educator successes
through on-demand, online professional learning. Journal of Instructional
Psychology 40(1): 19–26.
Description: Educators participated in online, on-demand professional development
through a web-based commercial product featuring teacher resources such as videos
and online forums. In each participating school, teachers averagedat least90 minutes
of video viewing on the PD platform,though teachers in higher engagement schools
averaged six hours of viewing and teachers in lower engagement schools averaged
three hours.Through the platform, teachers had the opportunity to answer follow-up
and reflection questions about content, create focus objectives, and join interactive
user forums and communities.
Methodology: Two-year quasi-experimental design
• n=734 schools in 39 states
• Student achievement was measured by students achieving proficient or
advanced ratings on standardized math and reading tests.
Findings: Students at schools with higher average engagement with the PD
program improved reading achievement at four times the rate of students at
schools with lower average engagement and improved math achievement at 30
times the rate of students at low-engagement schools.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 46
Study and Professional Development Description Study Methodology and Findings Related to Student Outcomes
Taylor, J. A., Roth, K., Wilson, C., Stuhlsatz, M., & Tipton, E. (2017). The effect of an
analysis-of-practice, videocase-based, teacher professional development program
on elementary students’ science achievement. Journal of Research on Educational
Effectiveness, 10(2), 241–271.
Description:
4th- to 6th-grade science teachers used STeLLA—an analysis-of-
practice, videocase-based, professional development program to improve student
science learning. The treatment group consisted of teachers who participated in a
PD program that integrates science content deepening with analysis of practice. The
comparison group participated in a PD program of equal duration and intensity, but
only included content deepening. During a summer institute, teachers were given six
lessons and then asked to teach the lessons in the fall. At the institute, the treatment
group worked collaboratively to discuss video analysis of experienced science
teachers with university faculty guided their thinking on targeted science ideas.
During the fall, teachers taught the lessons from the institute. During their monthly
sessions, they analyzed each other’s teachings of those lessons and student work.
During the spring, the group sessions shifted to developing their own lesson plans
using STeLLA strategies and lenses. Teachers planned a sequence of connected
lessons. At the culminating session, teachers shared their analysis of teaching their
own lessons. During the summer institute, the comparison group participated in
hands-on investigations, creation and analysis of content representations, science
notebook writing, large and small group discussions, short lectures and readings, and
field trips. During the school year, teachers taught targeted content from the summer
institute. Both groups completed a total of 88.5 hours of PD.
Methodology: Cluster randomized controlled trial
• n=144 4th– to 6th-grade teachers in 77 Colorado Front Range elementary
schools and 2,823 students
• Students’ content knowledge, as measured by a project-specific test.
Findings: Students of teachers participating in STeLLA outperformed students
whose teachers did not participate (ES=0.52 standard deviations).
Wenglinsky, H. (2000). How teaching matters: Bringing the classroom back into
discussions of teacher quality. Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service.
Description: Researchers analyzed 1996 NAEP mathematics and science data
for 8th-graders to investigate, among other questions, what aspects of teacher
professional development result in increased student achievement.
Methodology: One-year descriptive survey analysis
• n=7,146 8th graders for mathematics and 7,776 8th graders for science.
• Student achievement measured using the 1996 National Assessment of
Educational Progress (NAEP)
Findings: In mathematics, students of teachers who participated in PD for
teaching diverse students were 107% of a grade level ahead of their peers in
math. Students whose teachers participated in PD in higher-order thinking skills
were 40% of a grade level ahead of their peers.
In Science, PD in laboratory skills was associated with students being 44% of
a grade level ahead, compared to students with teachers who did not have
this PD. However, PD in classroom management was associated with 37% of a
grade level behind their peers for science, raising questions about the nature of
the PD offered.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 47
Appendix C:
Elements of Effective Professional Development by Study
Note: “NS” indicates not specied in study.
Seven Elements of Effective Professional Development
1. They are content focused.
2. They incorporate active learning strategies.
3. They engage teachers in collaboration.
4. They use models and/or modeling.
5. They provide coaching and expert support.
6. They include opportunities for feedback and reection.
7. They are of sustained duration.
Study
g ninaree LvitcA
t Experg/hin
t
oacC
Suppor
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-Focused entontC
k Feedbac
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g
ls/
lin
Mode
Mode
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tained
ion
Sus
Dura
Allen, J. P., Pianta, R. C., Gregory, A., Mikami,
A. Y., & Lun, J. (2011). An interaction-based
approach to enhancing secondary school
instruction and student achievement.
X X X X X X X
Allen, J.P., Hafen, C.A., Gregory, A.C.,
Mikami, A.Y. & Pianta, R. (2015). Enhancing
secondary school instruction and student
achievement: Replication and extension
of the My Teaching Partner-Secondary
intervention.
X X X X X X X
Antoniou, P. and Kyriakides, L. (2013). A
Dynamic Integrated Approach to teacher
professional development: Impact and
sustainability of the effects on improving
teacher behavior and student outcomes.
X X X X X X X NS
Buczynski, S. & Hansen, C. B. (2010).
Impact of professional development on
teacher practice; Uncovering connections.
X X X X NS X X X
Buysse, V., Castro, C.C., & Peisner-
Feinberg (2010). Effects of a professional
development program on classroom
practices and outcomes for Latino dual
language learners.
X X X X X X X X
Campbell, P. F., & Malkus, N. N. (2011). The
impact of elementary mathematics coaches
on student achievement.
X X X X X X X NS
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 48
Study
g ninaree LvitcA
t Experg/hin
t
oacC
Suppor
e viollaboratC
-Focused entontC
k Feedbac
tion eflecR
g
ls/
lin
Mode
Mode
t
tained
ion
Sus
Dura
Carpenter, T.P., Fennema, E., Peterson,
P.L., Chiang, C., & Loef, M. (1989). Using
knowledge of children’s mathematics
thinking in classroom teaching: An
experimental study.
X X X X X X X X
Doppelt, Y., Schunn C.D., Silk, E.M., Mehalik,
M.M., Reynolds, B. & Ward, E. (2009).
Evaluating the impact of facilitated learning
community approach to professional
development on teacher practice and
student achievement.
X X X X X X X X
Finkelstein, N., Hanson, T., Huang, C. W.,
Hirschman, B., & Huang, M. (2010). Effects
of problem based economics on high school
economics instruction.
X X X X X X X X
Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan,
N. L. (2015). Impact of the National Writing
Project’s College-Ready Writers program in
high-need rural districts.
X X X X X X X X
Gersten, R. Dimino, J., Jayanthi, M., Kim,
J. S., & Santoro, L.E. (2010). Teacher
study group: Impact of the professional
development model on reading instruction
and student outcomes in first grade
classrooms.
X X X X X X X X
Greenleaf, C. L., Hanson, T. L., Rosen, R.,
Boscardin, D. K., Herman, J., Schneider, S.
A. (2011). Integrating literacy and science
in biology: Teaching and learning impacts
of reading apprenticeship professional
development.
X X X X NS X X X
Heller, J. I., Daehler, K. R., Wong, N.,
Shinohara, M., & Miratrix, L. W. (2012).
Differential effects of three professional
development models on teacher knowledge
and student achievement in elementary
science.
X X X X X X X X
Johnson, C. C. & Fargo, J. D. (2014). A
study of the impact of transformative
professional development on Hispanic
student performance on state mandated
assessments of science in elementary
school.
X X X X X X X X
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 49
Study
Active Learning
Coaching/Expert
Support
Collaborative
Content-Focused
Feedback
Reflection
Models/
Modeling
Sustained
Duration
Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban
school reform enabled by transformative
professional development: Impact on
teacher change and student learning of
science.
X NS X X X X X X
Kim, J. S., Olson, C. B., Scarcella, R., Kramer,
J., Pearson, M., van Dyk, D., Collins, P., &
Land, R. E. (2011) A randomized experiment
of a cognitive strategies approach to text-
based analytical writing for mainstreamed
Latino English language learners in grades
6 to 12.
X X X X NS X X X
Kleickmann, T., Trobst, S., Jonen, A.,
Vehmeyer, J., & Moller, K. (2016). The
effects of expert scaffolding in elementary
science professional development
on teachers’ beliefs and motivations,
instructional practices, and student
achievement.
X X X X X X X X
Kutaka, T. S., Smith, W. M., Albano, A.
D., Edwards, C. P., Ren, L., Beattie, H.
L., Lewis, W. J., Heaton, R, M., & Stroup,
W. W. (2017). Connecting teacher
professional development and student
mathematics achievement: A 4-year study
of an elementary mathematics specialist
program.
X NS X X X X X X
Landry, S. H., Swank, P. R., Smith, K.E.,
Assel, M. A., & Gunnewig, S. B. (2006).
Enhancing early literacy skills for
preschool children: Bringing a professional
development model to scale.
X X X X X X X X
Landry, S. H., Anthony, J. L., Swank, P. R., &
Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009). Effectiveness
of comprehensive professional development
for teachers of at-risk preschoolers.
X X X X X X X X
Lara-Alecio, R., Tong, F., Irby, B. J., Guerrero,
C., Huerta, M., & Fan, Y. (2012). The effect
of an instructional intervention on middle
school English learners’ science and English
reading achievement.
X X X X NS X X X
Marek, E. & Methven, S. B. (1991). Effects
of the learning cycle upon student and
classroom teacher performance.
X NS X X NS X X X
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 50
Study
g ninaree LvitcA
t Experg/hin
t
oacC
Suppor
e viollaboratC
-Focused entontC
k Feedbac
tion eflecR
g
ls/
lin
Mode
Mode
t
tained
ion
Sus
Dura
May, H.; Sirinides, P. M., Gray, A., and
Goldsworthy, H. (2016). Reading Recovery:
An evaluation of the four-Year i3 scale-up.
X X X X X X X X
McGill-Franzen, A., Allington, R. L., Yokoi,
L., & Brooks, G. (1999). Putting books in
the classroom seems necessary but not
sufficient.
NS NS NS X NS NS X X
Meissel, K., Parr, J. M., Timperley, H. S.
(2016). Can professional development
of teachers reduce disparity in student
achievement?
X X X X X X X NS
Meyers, C. V., Molefe, A., Brandt, W. C., Zhu,
B., & Dhillon, S. (2016). Impact Results
of the eMINTS Professional Development
Validation Study.
X X X X X X X
Newman, D., Finney, P. B., Bell, S., Turner,
H., Jaciw, A., Zacamy, J. L., & Gould, L. F.
(2012). Evaluation of the effectiveness of
the Alabama Math, Science, and Technology
Initiative (AMSTI).
X X X X X X X X
Penuel, W. R., Gallagher, L. P., & Moorthy,
S. (2011). Preparing teachers to design
sequences of instruction in earth systems
science: A comparison of three professional
development programs.
X X NS X NS X X X
Polly, D., McGee, J., Wang, C., Martin,
C., Lambert, R., & Pugalee, D.K. (2015).
Linking professional development, teacher
outcomes, and student achievement: The
case of a learner-centered mathematics
program for elementary school teachers.
X X X X NS X X X
Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal,
M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of
an early literacy professional development
intervention on Head Start teachers and
children.
X X X X X X X X
Roth, K. J., Garnier, H. E., Chen, C.,
Lemmens, M., Schwille, K., & Wickler, N.
I. Z. (2011). Video-based lesson analysis:
Effective science PD for teacher and student
learning.
X X X X X X X X
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 51
Study
g ninaree LvitcA
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-Focused entontC
k Feedbac
tion eflecR
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Mode
Mode
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tained
ion
Sus
Dura
Sample McMeeking, L. B., Orsi, R., &
Cobb, R. B. (2012). Effects of a teacher
professional development program on the X X NS X NS X X X
mathematics achievement of middle school
students.
Saxe, G. B., Gearhart, M., & Nasir, N. S.
(2001). Enhancing students’ understanding
of mathematics: A study of three contrasting
approaches to professional support.
X X X X NS X X X
Shaha, S. H. & Ellsworth, H. (2013).
Predictors of success for professional
development: Linking student achievement X X NS NS X X NS
to school and educator successes through
on-demand, online professional learning.
Taylor, J. A., Roth, K., Wilson, C., Stuhlsatz,
M, & Tipton, E. (2017). The Effect of an
Analysis-of-Practice, Videocase-Based,
Teacher Professional Development
X X X X X X X X
Program on Elementary Students’ Science
Achievement.
Total: 34 30 32 31 24 34 35 3
(1 NS) (4 NS) (3 NS) (1 NS) (11 (1 NS) (4 NS)
NS)
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 52
Endnotes
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at-risk preschoolers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(2), 448–465.
76. Heller, J. I., Daehler, K. R., Wong, N., Shinohara, M., & Miratrix, L. W. (2012). Differential effects of three
professional development models on teacher knowledge and student achievement in elementary science.
Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 49(3), 333–362; Kleickmann, T., Trobst, S., Jonen, A., Vehmeyer, J.,
& Moller, K. (2016). The effects of expert scaffolding in elementary science professional development on
teachers’ beliefs and motivations, instructional practices, and student achievement. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 108(1) 21–42; May, H., Sirinides, P., Gray, A., & Goldsworthy, H. (2016). Reading Recovery: An
Evaluation of the Four-Year i3 Scale-Up. Philadelphia, PA: Consortium for Policy Research in Education.
http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1089&context=cpre_researchreports (accessed
11/17/2016); Polly, D., McGee, J., Wang, C., Martin, C., Lambert, R., & Pugalee, D. K. (2015). Linking
professional development, teacher outcomes, and student achievement: The case of a learner-centered
mathematics program for elementary school teachers. International Journal of Education Research, 72, 26–37.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 58
77. Allen, J. P., Hafen, C. A., Gregory, A. C., Mikami, A. Y., & Pianta, R. (2015). Enhancing secondary school
instruction and student achievement: Replication and extension of the My Teaching Partner-Secondary
intervention. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 8(4), 475–489; Allen, J. P., Pianta, R. C.,
Gregory, A., Mikami, A. Y., & Lun, J. (2011). An interaction-based approach to enhancing secondary
school instruction and student achievement. Science, 333(6045), 1034–1037; Greenleaf, C.L., Hanson, T.
L., Rosen, R., Boscardin, D. K., Herman, J., Schneider, S. A., Madden, S., & Jones, B. (2011). Integrating
literacy and science in biology: Teaching and learning impacts of reading apprenticeship professional
development. American Educational Research Journal, 48(3), 647–717; Landry, S. H., Anthony, J. L., Swank,
P. R., & Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009). Effectiveness of comprehensive professional development for
teachers of at-risk preschoolers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(2), 448–465.
78. Doppelt, Y., Schunn C. D., Silk, E. M., Mehalik, M. M., Reynolds, B., & Ward, E. (2009). Evaluating the
impact of facilitated learning community approach to professional development on teacher practice
and student achievement. Research in Science and Technological Education, 27(3), 339–354; Heller, J. I.,
Daehler, K. R., Wong, N., Shinohara, M., & Miratrix, L. W. (2012). Differential effects of three professional
development models on teacher knowledge and student achievement in elementary science. Journal of
Research in Science Teaching, 49(3), 333–362
79. Campbell, P. F., & Malkus, N. N. (2011). The impact of elementary mathematics coaches on student
achievement. The Elementary School Journal 111(3), 430-454; Meissel, K., Parr, J. M., & Timperley, H. S.
(2016). Can professional development of teachers reduce disparity in student achievement? Teaching and
Teacher Education, 58, 163–173.
80. Buczynski, S. & Hansen, C. B. (2010). Impact of professional development on teacher practice: Uncovering
connections. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 599–607; Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal,
M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of an early literacy professional development intervention on Head
Start teachers and children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(2), 299–312; Sample McMeeking, L. S.,
Orsi, R., & Cobb, R. B. (2012). Effects of a teacher professional development program on the mathematics
achievement of middle school students. Journal for research in mathematics education, 43(2), 159–181.
81. Roth, K. J., Garnier, H. E., Chen, C., Lemmens, M., Schwille, K., & Wickler, N. I. Z. (2011). Videobased
lesson analysis: Effective science PD for teacher and student learning. Journal on Research in Science
Teaching, 48(2),117–148.
82. Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal, M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of an early literacy
professional development intervention on Head Start teachers and children. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 102(2), 299–312.
83. Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal, M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of an early literacy
professional development intervention on Head Start teachers and children. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 102(2), 299–312.
84. Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal, M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of an early literacy
professional development intervention on Head Start teachers and children. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 102(2), 299–312.
85. Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National Writing Project’s
College-Ready Writers Program in high-need rural districts. Journal of Research on Educational
Effectiveness, online; Penuel, W. R., Gallagher, L. P., & Moorthy, S. (2011). Preparing teachers to design
sequences of instruction in Earth systems science: A Comparison of three professional development
programs. American Educational Research Journal, 48(4), 996–1025; Roth, K. J., Garnier, H. E., Chen, C.,
Lemmens, M., Schwille, K., & Wickler, N. I. Z. (2011). Videobased lesson analysis: Effective science PD for
teacher and student learning. Journal on Research in Science Teaching, 48(2),117–148.
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LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 59
87. Greenleaf, C. L., Hanson, T. L., Rosen, R., Boscardin, D. K., Herman, J., Schneider, S. A., Madden, S., &
Jones, B. (2011). Integrating literacy and science in biology: Teaching and learning impacts of reading
apprenticeship professional development. American Educational Research Journal, 48(3), 647–717.
88. Landry, S.H., Anthony, J.L., Swank, P.R., & Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009). Effectiveness of comprehensive
professional development for teachers of at-risk preschoolers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(2),
448–465.
89. Landry, S.H., Anthony, J.L., Swank, P.R., & Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009). Effectiveness of comprehensive
professional development for teachers of at-risk preschoolers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(2),
448–465.
90. Landry, S. H., Anthony, J. L., Swank, P. R., & Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009). Effectiveness of comprehensive
professional development for teachers of at-risk preschoolers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(2),
448–465.
91. Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National Writing Project’s
College-Ready Writers Program in high-need rural districts. Journal of Research on Educational
Effectiveness, online; Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban school reform enabled by transformative
professional development: Impact on teacher change and student learning of science. Urban Education,
45(1), 4–29; Landry, S. H., Anthony, J. L., Swank, P. R., & Monseque-Bailey, P. (2009). Effectiveness of
comprehensive professional development for teachers of at-risk preschoolers. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 101(2), 448–465; Powell, D. R., Diamond, K. E., Burchinal, M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects
of an early literacy professional development intervention on Head Start teachers and children. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 102(2), 299–312.
92. Allen, J. P., Hafen, C. A., Gregory, A. C., Mikami, A. Y., & Pianta, R. (2015). Enhancing secondary school
instruction and student achievement: Replication and extension of the My Teaching Partner-Secondary
intervention. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 8(4), 475–489; Allen, J. P., Pianta, R. C.,
Gregory, A., Mikami, A. Y., & Lun, J. (2011). An interaction-based approach to enhancing secondary school
instruction and student achievement. Science, 333(6045), 1034–1037; Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K.
R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National Writing Project’s College-Ready Writers Program in
high-need rural districts. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, online; Powell, D. R., Diamond,
K. E., Burchinal, M. R., & Koehler, M. J. (2010). Effects of an early literacy professional development
intervention on Head Start teachers and children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(2), 299–312.
93. Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban school reform enabled by transformative professional
development: Impact on teacher change and student learning of science. Urban Education, 45(1),
4–29; Lara-Alecio, R., Tong, F., Irby, B. J., Guerrero, C., Huerta, M., & Fan, Y. (2012). The effect of an
instructional intervention on middle school English learners’ science and English reading achievement.
Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 49(8), 987–1011; Roth, K. J., Garnier, H. E., Chen, C., Lemmens, M.,
Schwille, K., & Wickler, N. I .Z. (2011). Videobased lesson analysis: Effective science PD for teacher and
student learning. Journal on Research in Science Teaching, 48(2),117–148; Taylor, J. A., Roth, K., Wilson, C.
D., Stuhlsatz, M. A., & Tipton, E. (2017). The effect of an analysis-of-practice, videocase-based, teacher
professional development program on elementary students’ science achievement. Journal of Research on
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94. Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National Writing Project’s
College-Ready Writers Program in high-need rural districts. Journal of Research on Educational
Effectiveness, online; Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban school reform enabled by transformative
professional development: Impact on teacher change and student learning of science. Urban Education,
45(1), 4–29.
95. Darling-Hammond, L., Wei, R. C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., & Orphanos, S. (2009). Professional learning
in the learning profession. Washington, DC: National Staff Development Council; Desimone, L. M. (2009).
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96. Knapp, M. S. (2003). Professional development as policy pathway. Review of Research in Education, 27(1),
109–157.
97. None of the reviewed studies explicitly utilized a one-off workshop as their preferred model. However,
four of the studies do not specify the duration or structure for professional development sessions. Based
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 60
on the authors’ descriptions of the professional development in these ve studies, we nd it unlikely that
the models relied on a single, isolated engagement with educators, but the description provided in the
studies is insufcient to conclude that with certainty.
98. Cohen, D. K., & Hill, H. C. (2001). Learning policy. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press; Darling-
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the learning profession. Washington, DC: National Staff Development Council; Desimone, L., Porter, A.,
Garet, M., Yoon, K., & Birman, B. (2002). Effects of professional development on teachers’ instruction:
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Desimone, L. M. (2009). Improving impact studies of teachers’ professional development: Toward better
conceptualizations and measures. Educational researcher, 38(3), 181–199; Garet, M., Porter, A., Desimone,
L., Birman, B., & Yoon, K.S. (2001). What makes professional development effective? Results from a
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Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for
Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest.
101. Allen, J. P., Hafen, C. A., Gregory, A. C., Mikami, A. Y., & Pianta, R. (2015). Enhancing secondary school
instruction and student achievement: Replication and extension of the My Teaching Partner-Secondary
intervention. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 8(4), 475–489; Finkelstein, N., Hanson,
T., Huang, C. W., Hirschman, B., & Huang, M. (2010). Effects of problem based economics on high school
economics instruction: nal report. NCEE 2010-4002. National Center for Education Evaluation and
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D.K., Herman, J., Schneider, S.A., Madden, S., & Jones, B. (2011). Integrating literacy and science in
biology: Teaching and learning impacts of reading apprenticeship professional development. American
Educational Research Journal, 48(3), 647–717; Polly, D., McGee, J., Wang, C., Martin, C., Lambert, R., &
Pugalee, D. K. (2015). Linking professional development, teacher outcomes, and student achievement: The
case of a learner-centered mathematics program for elementary school teachers. International Journal of
Education Research, 72, 26–37; Sample McMeeking, L. S., Orsi, R., & Cobb, R. B. (2012). Effects of a teacher
professional development program on the mathematics achievement of middle school students. Journal
for research in mathematics education, 43(2), 159-181.
102. Penuel, W. R., Gallagher, L. P., & Moorthy, S. (2011). Preparing teachers to design sequences of instruction
in Earth systems science: A Comparison of three professional development programs. American
Educational Research Journal, 48(4), 996–1025.
103. Campbell, P. F., & Malkus, N. N. (2011). The impact of elementary mathematics coaches on student
achievement. The Elementary School Journal 111(3), 430–454; May, H., Sirinides, P., Gray, A., &
Goldsworthy, H. (2016). Reading Recovery: An Evaluation of the Four-Year i3 Scale-Up. Philadelphia,
PA: Consortium for Policy Research in Education. http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.
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& Moller, K. (2016). The effects of expert scaffolding in elementary science professional development on
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 61
teachers’ beliefs and motivations, instructional practices, and student achievement. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 108(1) 21–42; Lara-Alecio, R., Tong, F., Irby, B. J., Guerrero, C., Huerta, M., & Fan, Y. (2012).
The effect of an instructional intervention on middle school English learners’ science and English reading
achievement. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 49(8), 987–1011.
105. Doppelt, Y., Schunn C.D., Silk, E. M., Mehalik, M. M., Reynolds, B., & Ward, E. (2009). Evaluating the
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student achievement. Research in Science and Technological Education, 27(3), 339–354.
106. Darling-Hammond, L., Wei, R. C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., & Orphanos, S. (2009). Professional learning
in the learning profession, 9. Washington, DC: National Staff Development Council.
107. Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2014). A study of the impact of transformative professional development on
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108. Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2014). A study of the impact of transformative professional development on
Hispanic student performance on state mandated assessments of science in elementary school. Journal of
Elementary Science Teacher Education, 25(7), 845–859.
109. Ball, D. L., & Cohen, D. K. (1999). Developing practice, developing practitioners: Toward a practice-based
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118. Lieberman, A., & Wood, D. (2002). From network learning to classroom teaching. Journal of Educational
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120. Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National Writing Project’s
College-Ready Writers Program in high-need rural districts. Journal of Research on Educational
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121. Gallagher, H. A., Woodworth, K. R., & Arshan, N. L. (2017). Impact of the National Writing Project’s
College-Ready Writers Program in high-need rural districts. Journal of Research on Educational
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connections. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 599-607; Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban
school reform enabled by transformative professional development: Impact on teacher change and
student learning of science. Urban Education, 45(1), 4–29.
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connections. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 599–607.
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development: Impact on teacher change and student learning of science. Urban Education, 45(1), 4–29.
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development: Impact on teacher change and student learning of science. Urban Education, 45(1), 22-23.
132. Johnson, C. C., & Fargo, J. D. (2010). Urban school reform enabled by transformative professional
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136. Learning Forward provides a set of standards for professional learning that overlap to some degree with
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standards-for-professional-learning.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 63
About the Authors
Linda Darling-Hammond is President of the Learning Policy Institute and Charles E. Ducommun
Professor of Education Emeritus at Stanford University. She has conducted extensive research on
issues of educator supply, demand, and quality. Among her award-winning publications in this area
are What Matters Most: Teaching for America’s Future; Teaching as the Learning Profession; Powerful
Teacher Education; and Preparing Teachers for a Changing World: What Teachers Should Learn and Be
Able to Do.
Maria E. Hyler is the Deputy Director of the the Learning Policy Institute’s Washington, DC, Ofce
and a Senior Researcher on LPI’s Educator Quality and Deeper Learning teams. She is a co-author
of The Teacher Residency: An Innovative Model for Preparing Teachers and is co-lead of a forthcoming
study on teacher preparation for deeper learning. Her work focuses on structures and systems
that support student success, best practices for preparing teachers to teach students of diverse
backgrounds, and preparing equity-centered educators.
Madelyn Gardner is a Research and Policy Associate. Sheis a member of LPI’sEarly Childhood
Education Team and is one of the co-authors of The Road to High-Quality Early Learning: Lessons
from the States. Previously she worked at the Next Generation think tank where she focused on early
childhood education and work-family policy in support of evidence-based policy development in
California.
Danny Espinoza is a Research Assistant on the Educator Quality and the Equitable Resources and
Access teams. He is a co-author of Supporting principals’ learning: Key features of effective programs.
As an undergraduate, he worked as a research assistant for the Institute for Latino Studies, assisting
in studies exploring political identity formation for multiethnic voters. He also conducted research
analyzing the impact and effectiveness of Chile’s national education voucher program, particularly
for students of low socioeconomic background.
LEARNING POLICY INSTITUTE | EFFECTIVE TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 64
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The Learning Policy Institute conducts and communicates independent, high-quality research to improve education
policy and practice. Working with policymakers, researchers, educators, community groups, and others, the Institute
seeks to advance evidence-based policies that support empowering and equitable learning for each and every child.
Nonprofit and nonpartisan, the Institute connects policymakers and stakeholders at the local, state, and federal
levels with the evidence, ideas, and actions needed to strengthen the education system from preschool through
college and career readiness.
