Faculty Learning Communities Research

Status of Professional Learning

Download the reports Phase IV report Building a Learning Community: A Tale of Two Schools (PDF) Phase III reports Teacher Professional Learning in the United States: Case Studies of State Policies and Strategies, Summary Report (PDF) Teacher Professional Learning in the United States: Case Studies of State Policies and Strategies, Technical Report (PDF) Phase II reports Professional Development in the United States: Trends and Challenges, Executive Summary (PDF) Professional Development in the United States: Trends and Challenges, Technical Report (PDF) Phase I reports Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad, Executive Summary (PDF) Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad, Technical Report (PDF)

Launched in 2008 by NSDC and a team of researchers from the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE), the three-part Status of Professional Learning research study aims to measure the effectiveness of professional learning in the United States. Funding for the multiyear research effort comes from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Just released: Building a Learning Community: A Tale of Two Schools

In an effort to understand and document the elements that make professional learning communities effective, a new report presents case studies of two schools drawn from survey data of 33 New Jersey public schools involved in a state-sponsored professional learning community training program. The report, Building a Learning Community: A Tale of Two Schools, is authored by Dan Mindich and Ann Lieberman and produced through Learning Forward and the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE). Among the key findings: sustaining focus is vital, collegiality is not enough, and leadership is key. This is the final report from the multiphase research initiative, Status of Professional Learning.

Read the report.