Empowering Teacher Learning Through Lesson Study: Insights from a Research-Practice Partnership

• In Event: Centering Teachers’ Equitable Participation in Professional Development: Partnership Approaches in Chile and the U.S.

Abstract

This study occurred in a US research-practice partnership between a university and large urban school district, focused on Lesson Study (LS), during the 24-25 school year. It’s part of a larger project that involves 17 participants, including teachers, a principal, math coaches, and math and literacy interventionists from three schools. This paper centers on a single LS team composed of kindergarten and first grade teachers, their principal, and math interventionist, during one LS cycle.
LS, a form of professional learning (PL) originating in Japan, promotes collaboration and continuous improvement among educators (Lewis et al., 2006). Studies of LS show that teachers learn from participating on planning teams and observing research lessons (Murata et al., 2012; Takahashi, 2011) and report that LS enhances their teaching (Murata & Takahashi, 2002). Less is known about how they apply these insights in their classrooms. Understanding the impact on instruction and the enabling conditions that support LS’s effectiveness are essential for continuing LS and designing effective PL experiences.
In collaboration with the district, we co-developed questions focused on enabling conditions for LS, classroom practices implemented, and its impact on teachers and their instructional practices. In keeping with the framing of the symposium, this study focuses on the findings related to the impact of LS on teacher agency and instructional practices. Data sources included qualitative interviews with the LS team members before their research lesson and after math lessons they video-recorded following the research lesson. Pre-interviews focused on understanding their experiences with LS and views on collective efficacy and enabling conditions. Post-interviews examined participants' experiences with LS and explored their perceptions of LS's impact on their teaching. They also included analysis of their classroom math lesson via video-stimulated recall (Sherin et al., 2011; Peterson & Clark, 1978),
Participants described LS as a PL structure that enabled instructional change, grounded in collaboration, trust, and autonomy. The collaborative structures foster agency among teachers, essential for building trust and encouraging vulnerability. As one teacher noted, “I think the amount of collaboration that we have has been phenomenal…we have a lot more agency. We also are coming at it from more of a research perspective when we’re thinking about data.” Participants described feeling empowered to make instructional decisions, engage with content that resonated with them, and connect their curiosities to school-wide goals. Instructional shifts resulting from LS included the use of student notebooks, revised grouping, and anchor charts to support math reasoning.
Our findings highlight the need for environments valuing autonomy, enabling teachers to focus on professional growth while aligning with school goals. Participants described LS as a meaningful space to align their instructional practices with teaching aspirations. Teachers reflected how the process affirmed their professional identity and commitment to growth. One shared, “I’ve always wanted to teach this way… you've really got to retrain your brain and learn how to say less,” while another emphasized lifelong learning: “It’s not just something we say in our pledge, you’re constantly bettering yourself and your peers have information that you should want to have.”

Authors

• Marley Angelita Murrell, Stanford University

• Meghan Smith Durkin, Stanford University

• Hilda Borko, Stanford University