The Importance of Social Support for Teachers Implementing Evidence-Based Programs

• In Event: 16.057 - Roundtable Session 5
  In Roundtable Session: 16.057-21 - Organizational Culture, Teacher Collaboration, and Student Learning

Abstract

The social support that teachers receive during implementation of an evidence-based program has been found to predict implementation quality and fidelity. The present paper sought to increase understanding of this phenomenon by investigating factors which contribute to teachers’ perceptions that social support during implementation will be low, and to understand how some teachers are able to overcome initially low perceptions of available social support and report very positive implementation experiences. Analysis of qualitative interviews indicated that a pervasive sense of overwhelm is a primary theme contributing to teachers’ perceptions of lower social support, and that smaller pockets of organically-formed supportive groups within a larger school system may help to counter initial perceptions of low social support among school staff.

Authors

• Cara Marcinek Bliss, University of Pittsburgh

• Shannon Beth Wanless, University of Pittsburgh