Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

High School Professional Communities: Implications for

Educational Practice

Joan Talbert

Stanford University

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

CRC’s research on high schools and reform initiatives: 1987-2003

• Sixteen school study (OERI)

• Math department research (NSF)

• Students at the Center evaluation (Wallace-RD)

• Bay Area School Reform Collaborative (Hewlett)

• Bay Area High School Study (Johnson)

• The Learning Partnership (MacArthur)

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

Themes for discussion

• How high school departments (and, for us middle school departments & elementary grade levels) differ.

• The ways in which those differences matter for students.

Types of Professional Communities

1. Strength and Character of the Teacher Community

a. Weak

b. Strong

2. Culture of Practice

a. Traditional

b. Innovative

School

Weak Teacher Communities

Strong Teacher Communities

Individual values & beliefs Culture of practice

Enact Traditions

Innovate Alone

Traditional Practices

Learning Community

Types of Professional Communities STRENGTH & CHARACTER of

TEACHER COMMUNITY

Weak Community Strong Community

CULTURE OF PRACICE

Traditional Rancho Onyx Ridge Valley Rancho Math Dept Washington Academy

Monroe Highlander Dover La Salle Esperanza

Scholastic

Innovative Ibsen Greenfield Prospect Esperanz Math Dept. Oak Valley Eng. Dept.

The Strength of Department Communities Differs Widely within Comprehensive High Schools: A Case Illustration

The Strength of Department Communities Differs Widely within Comprehensive High Schools: A Case Illustration

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

Department Community Cultures Differ in Ways Fundamental to Teaching

• Technical culture – conceptions of students, content,

pedagogy and assessment

• Professional norms – collegial relationships and views

on teaching expertise

• Organizational policies – norms for course assignment

and resource allocation

Department Communities Differ in Technical Culture 

Professional Community Type

  Weak Traditional Community

Strong Traditional Community

Learning Community

Technical Culture

Students Students differ in ability to succeed academically All students can achieve at high academic standards

Student role as learner

Passive role in content learning

Passive role in content learning; Active role in advanced classes

Active role in content learning for all students

Content Text-based subject content Sequential, hierarchical subject topics and skills

Core discipline-based concepts and skills spiraled through curricula

Pedagogy Knowledge transmission;Emphasis on text coverage

Knowledge transmission;Emphasis on teacher lecture

Bridging subject and student knowledge;

Assessment practices

Text-based homework and tests;Curve grading

Special tests for screening and sorting students;Curve grading

Performance assessments using standards-based rubrics;Feedback for improvement

Department Communities Differ in Professional Norms

 Professional Community Type

  Typical (Weak) Community

Strong Traditional Community

Learning Community

Professional Norms

Collegial relations

Isolation enforced by norm of privacy

Coordination around course tracking and student testing

Collaboration around teaching and learning;

Mentoring/Coaching

Views on teaching expertise

Expertise as developed through private practice and experience

Expertise as based in discipline knowledge and professional status

Expertise as collective, based in knowledge shared and developed through collaboration

Department Communities Differ in Organizational Policies

 Professional Community Type

  Typical (Weak) Community

Strong Traditional Community

Learning Community

Organization Policies

Teacher course assignment

Prerogative of seniority Teacher tracking by expertise

Course rotation and sharing for equity and teacher learning opportunities

Resource allocation

Tenure-based access to resources

Resource access according to teacher expertise and “track”

Collective definition of resource needs and sources;

Resource creation and sharing

 

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

Teacher Learning Community Matters for High School Students’…

• Effort in particular classes/ subjects

• Experience of teacher-student respect

• Role in the classroom

• Class self-efficacy

Students’ School Experiences Reflect their Teachers’ Professional Community

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

InquiryPractices

TeacherLearning

Community

Teacher-Student Respect

Active Student Role in Class

Class Self-Efficacy

Teacher Survey Scale

Student Survey Scale

Corre lation Be tween Student and Teacher Survey Scores

High Schools with Strong Teacher Learning Communities Show Greater Gains on SAT-9

30

40

50

60

70

80

1998 1999 2000 2001

Sch

ool O

vera

ll S

AT

-9 N

PR

Sco

re

School A

School B

School E

School F

School G

Bay AreaSchools

Educational Outcomes

Traditional Communities:

Success with traditional students; limited success with all

students.

Learning Communities:

Success with traditional students; increased

success with nontraditional

students

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

Through Inquiry and Collaboration, Teacher Learning Communities Develop

Local Knowledge About:

1. Ways in which particular students’ prior knowledge, skills, and culture frame their learning and teaching opportunities

2. How to address diversity in a particular school/ classroom

3. What instructional strategies and materials actively engage students in constructing new knowledge and skills

4. Ways of organizing teachers’ work for professional learning and improvement

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

Leadership for Learning Community…

• Enforces beliefs that all students and all teachers can learn

• Creates place and times for gathering

• Models and nurtures an “inquiry stance” for teaching

• Develops structures for collaborative work around teaching and student learning

Center for Research on the Context of Teaching

Next Steps…..