The Effects of a Protocol-Guided Professional Learning Community Model of Professional Development and Teachers' Knowledge and Use of Classroom Formative Assessment
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education (Ed.D)
Department
Curriculum and Instruction
Date of Award
Summer 2015
Abstract
The U. S. public education system came under intense scrutiny after the 1983 report, A Nation at Risk. The report claimed that the current school system was in decline. The 2002 Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Act of 1965, known as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) was to be the remedy; however, expected results were not achieved. This dissertation enters the debate from the viewpoint of the school and examines the role of professional development in teacher learning and its effect on student achievement. Findings contribute to the body of research on understanding teacher learning about formative assessment practices when supported by a protocol-guided professional learning community (PLC) model of professional development. The purpose of this mixed method study was two-fold: (a) to examine the relationship between a protocol-guided PLC model of professional development and teachers??? use of formative assessment and (b) to determine the effect of a protocol-guided PLC model of professional development on the level of implementation of a PLC. The researcher used a mixed methods concurrent triangulation strategy to corroborate findings. The quantitative and qualitative data were equally weighted and the final analysis resulted in a convergence of findings from each method. Although the quantitative analysis produced no significant findings, teachers??? voices expressed through the qualitative data suggest that the use of the protocol to guide PLC discussions enhanced their use of formative assessment and moved teams forward as measured by the six dimensions of a PLC.
Advisor
Martha M. Foote
Subject Categories
Curriculum and Instruction | Education
Recommended Citation
Johnson, Ruth, "The Effects of a Protocol-Guided Professional Learning Community Model of Professional Development and Teachers' Knowledge and Use of Classroom Formative Assessment" (2015). Electronic Theses & Dissertations. 704.
https://digitalcommons.tamuc.edu/etd/704
