Teacher professional learning structured as an ongoing community of practice with trust, collaboration, and inquiry¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The report describes Bronxdale's professional learning as a community of practice in which faculty "come together regularly in different configurations to learn—much in the way that students learn, through inquiry, collaboration, and self-reflection—with students at the center of their inquiry." It rests on beliefs that teachers are "invested with a powerful level of trust to take charge of their own learning," that learning is enriched by a collaborative community including the external partner Institute for Student Achievement, and that inquiry is ongoing so practices continually evolve. The report states the result is strategies "continually devised and revised, with continuously improving outcomes as a result."

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Principal autonomy in hiring and budgeting; external partners such as the Institute for Student Achievement; regular team structures and annual vision-setting institutes.

Constraints¶

• The report frames this as one school's evolving practice over 7 years, with staff noting there is still work to do under continuous improvement.

Target Learners¶

• High school teachers and school leaders as adult learners

Target Learning Goals¶

• Instructional improvement aligned to student needs, self-examination of practice, collaborative knowledge building

Related Strategies¶

• Three-part instructional strategy: build community, scaffold inquiry-based instruction while reducing cognitive load, and explicitly develop skills, habits, and mindsets

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Ancess, J., Rogers, B., Duncan Grand, D., & Darling-Hammond, L. (2019). Teaching the way students learn best: Lessons from Bronxdale High School. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/social-and-emotional-learning-case-study-bronxdale