Classroom Teaching and Learning as the Focus for Improvement Research
Item
Title
Classroom Teaching and Learning as the Focus for Improvement Research
Alternate name
Chapter 7
Abstract/Description
In chapter 7, Paul Cobb and Anne Garrison Wilhelm (2022) focus on classrooms as contexts for improvement research. This chapter underscores the importance of grounding improvement research deeply in the day-to-day work of teachers and students in classrooms. This chapter points to the centrality of an instructional focus, as well as exploring what that implies for the work of improvement research. In doing so, the authors focus on what supports are needed for teachers to improve the quality of their instruction.
Cobb and Wilhelm (2022) argue that that ambitious and equitable instruction that will allow students to meet rigorous standards necessitates that teachers receive content-specific professional learning opportunities, which tend to be in short supply. Thus, they focus their attention on how to build school and district capacity for improving instruction using five cases that exemplify different kinds of support for teacher learning. While the cases range from large-scale examples such as the National Writing Project to a small-scale project involving a single school, they share important commonalities. The cases all involve researchers and practitioners partnering in some way to address a problem of practice, careful attention to broad applicability in their work, and an interest in addressing issues of equity in the classroom. A key lesson across the cases is that participatory support from accomplished colleagues is integral to substantially developing teachers’ instructional expertise.
Cobb and Wilhelm (2022) argue that that ambitious and equitable instruction that will allow students to meet rigorous standards necessitates that teachers receive content-specific professional learning opportunities, which tend to be in short supply. Thus, they focus their attention on how to build school and district capacity for improving instruction using five cases that exemplify different kinds of support for teacher learning. While the cases range from large-scale examples such as the National Writing Project to a small-scale project involving a single school, they share important commonalities. The cases all involve researchers and practitioners partnering in some way to address a problem of practice, careful attention to broad applicability in their work, and an interest in addressing issues of equity in the classroom. A key lesson across the cases is that participatory support from accomplished colleagues is integral to substantially developing teachers’ instructional expertise.
[Quoted from Handbook p. 134]
Author/creator
Date
In publication
Pages
139-164
Publisher
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Resource type
Research/Scholarly Media
Resource status/form
Published Text
Scholarship genre
Synthesis/Overview
IRE Approach/Concept
Featured case/project
Primary national context
Open access/full-text available
No
ISBN
978-1-5381-5234-8
Citation
Cobb, P., & Wilhelm, A. G. (2022). Classroom Teaching and Learning as the Focus for Improvement Research. In D. J. Peurach, J. L. Russell, L. Cohen-Vogel, & W. R. Penuel (Eds.), The Foundational Handbook on Improvement Research in Education. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781538152348/The-Foundational-Handbook-on-Improvement-Research-in-Education
Item sets
Linked resources
Filter by property
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
 Section II: Contexts of Improvement Research in Education [Foundational Handbook] |
Book Section |
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