Impact of Professional Learning Communities on Elementary Teacher Intent to Stay or Leave

• In Event: Saturday Roundtable Session 3:05 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Understanding Why Teachers Stay or Leave: An Opportunity for Leaders to Improve Teachers' Working Conditions (Table 30)

Abstract

Building on a model and empirical tool developed by Voelkel and Chrispeels (2017), this paper explores the relationships between characteristics of PLCs and their relationship to work outcomes, in particular teachers’ intention to stay or leave their school. Survey data from 505 elementary teachers are analyzed from one large Western US school system. We find that collective actions, focus on results, and PLC team culture have statistically significant, direct effects on elementary teacher intent to leave their schools, working through team collective efficacy and teachers’ commitment and job satisfaction.

Authors

• Scott C. Bauer, University of Colorado - Denver

• Robert D. Thelen, Douglas County Public Schools