UCLA

To overcome barriers to success in mathematics education, we need to engage teachers in learning together in ways that are ongoing and generative. While there is a large body of evidence regarding district and school-level math reform efforts, few studies examine these efforts from a teacher learning perspective. This qualitative study takes a learning theory approach to investigate how the Professional Learning Community (PLC) structure supported or constrained grade level teacher teams as they made sense of and took up district math policies. It also examines how the school’s culture and practices and the collective identities of the grade level teams supported or constrained the PLC’s efforts in relation to the district’s math vision and policies. Findings from this study demonstrate that even under the best conditions, in a district working hard to make their goals for math instruction explicit with aligned structures for teacher learning and support, challenges existed for using the PLC structure as a space for teacher learning. The cultural practices of math teaching and learning, existing school culture and practices, and the grade level teams’ collective identities influenced teacher learning in ways that did not always align with the district’s vision and policies. Implications from this study include building the capacity of principals and site coaches to support the PLCs in deepening their focus on student thinking, developing a school-wide focus on mathematics teaching and learning, and leveraging student work to support teacher learning in PLCs.