dc.contributor.author	Ratts, Rebecca F.
dc.coverage.spatial	Central and North America -- United States	en_US
dc.coverage.temporal	1983-2015	en_US
dc.date.accessioned	2015-08-03T13:17:03Z
dc.date.available	2015-08-03T13:17:03Z
dc.date.issued	2015-07-31
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10428/2014
dc.description.abstract	The Professional Learning Community (PLC) process has been cited by researchers and professional organizations as having potential to impact student achievement in a positive manner. As the current era of high-stakes accountability has left teachers struggling to improve the quality of teaching and learning, PLCs have been recommended to foster collaboration and make teacher practices public. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine elementary teachers’ descriptions of their PLCs to determine if practice of the principles had an effect on student academic performance. A quantitative research design was implemented to explore the extent to which teacher training in PLC principles, the actual practice of PLC principles, and student achievement were related. A survey was utilized to collect data regarding 194 teachers’ perceptions of the existence of four dimensions of PLCs within their schools, 4 years of CRCT data was examined to measure student achievement, and descriptive and inferential statistics were used to look for possible relationships between the factors. Statistical examination indicated PLC members who observed peers, provided feedback on instructional practices, worked with colleagues to judge student work quality, and collaboratively reviewed student work to improve instructional analysis were more likely to improve their quality of teaching. Further results indicated positive correlations between teacher level of education and observing peers, and between level of education and providing feedback on instructional practices. Positive correlations were also identified between student achievement on standardized assessments and teacher practice of collaboratively reviewing student work, working with colleagues to judge the quality of student work, and discussing student-centered educational issues.	en_US
dc.description.tableofcontents	Chapter I: INTRODUCTION 1 \| Statement of the Problem 6 \| Conceptual Framework 7 \| Purpose of the Study 9 \| Research Questions 10 \| Definition of Terms 10 \| Methodology 12 \| Significance of the Study 14 \| Assumptions of the Study 15 \| Limitations of the Study 15 \| Organization of the Study 16 \| Chapter II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 17 \| History of the Professional Learning Community 18 \| Dimensions of Professional Learning Communities 22 \| Student Achievement and the Professional Learning Community 25 \| Creating Professional Learning Communities 33 \| Benefits and Challenges of Professional Learning Communities 37 \| Learning Community Models 40 \| Role of Professional Learning Communities in Georgia Schools 42 \| Summary 44 \| Chapter III: METHODOLOGY 47 \| Introduction 47 \| Research Questions 48 \| Research Design 48 \| Operational Definition of Variables49 \| Population and Sample 52 \| Respondent Demographics 55 \| Instrumentation 55 \| Survey Development 56 \| Survey Instrument Validity and Reliability 57 \| CRCT Validity and Reliability 58 \| Data Collection 58 \| Data Analysis 61 \| Null Hypotheses 68 \| Summary 68 \| Chapter IV: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS 70 \| Introduction 70 \| Research Questions 71 \| Data Analysis and Findings 71 \| Research Question 1: PLC Implementation 74 \| Research Question 2: Teacher Education and PLC Practice 84 \| Research Question 3: Teacher Practice and Student Performance 88 \| Summary 93 \| Chapter V: SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION 97 \| Purpose of the Study 97 \| Related Literature 98 \| Methods 102 \| Limitations 105 \| Results 105 \| Discussion 112 \| Recommendations for Action 116 \| Recommendations for Future Research 117 \| Conclusion 118 \| REFERENCE LIST 119 \| APPENDICES \| Appendix A: Institutional Review Board Protocol Exemption Report 129 \| Appendix B: Sample Correspondence to Superintendent 131 \| Appendix C: Sample Correspondence to Principal 133 \| Appendix D: Description of Study for Administrators 135 \| Appendix E: Sample Letter of Cooperation 137 \| Appendix F: Consent Statement for Anonymous Survey Research 139 \| Appendix G: Permission to Conduct Similar Study 141 \| Appendix H: Professional Learning Communities Assessment Survey 143 \| LIST OF TABLES \| Table 1: Independent, Moderating, and Dependent Variables 50 \| Table 2: 2013-2014 Student Enrollment and Teacher Count by School 53 \| Table 3: Survey Development Timeline 56 \| Table 4: 2011-2014 Average Mastery Rates on CRCT Assessments 60 \| Table 5: Distribution of Respondents by Gender 72 \| Table 6: Distribution of Respondents by Higher Level of Education 73 \| Table 7: Distribution of Respondents by School Achievement Level 73 \| Table 8: Descriptive Statistics for PLC Implementation 77 \| Table 9: Population Variances for PLC Practices 79 \| Table 10: Results of Welch ANOVA for PLC Practices 80 \| Table 11: Games-Howell Post Hoc Results for PLC Practices by Performance Group81 \| Table 12: Results of One-way ANOVA for PLC Practices 83 \| Table 13: Tukey’s Post Hoc Results for PLC Practices by Performance Groups 84 \| Table 14: Pearson’s Correlations for Education Levels and PLC Practices 87 \| Table 15: Pearson’s Correlations for PLC Practices and Student Performance 90 \| Table 16: Pearson’s Correlations for PLC Practices and Student Performance, Moderated by Teacher Training 92 \| Table 17: Mean Score Ranges for Implementation of PLC Dimensions 113 \| Table 18: Conclusions Drawn from this Study 115 \|	en_US
dc.language.iso	en_US	en_US
dc.subject	Dissertations	en_US
dc.subject	Educational Leadership	en_US
dc.subject	Professional Learning Communities	en_US
dc.subject	PLCs	en_US
dc.subject	Teacher Collaboration	en_US
dc.subject	Collaborative Practices in Education	en_US
dc.subject	School Reform	en_US
dc.title	The Influence of Professional Learning Communities in Elementary Schools as Measured by Student Achievement on the Georgia Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests	en_US
dc.type	Dissertation	en_US
dc.contributor.department	Education	en_US
dc.description.advisor	Pate, James L.
dc.description.committee	Andrews, Shirley P.
dc.description.committee	Archibald, James G.
dc.description.committee	Ballard, Chester C.
dc.description.degree	Ed.D.	en_US
dc.description.major	Leadership	en_US