Principal Investigator
David Blazar – University of Maryland College of Education
Project Description
This study evaluates the impact of Teaching Lab’s professional learning (PL) series on math instruction in New Mexico, focusing on how it affects teacher practices and student experiences. Using a randomized controlled trial involving 38 secondary math teachers and over 500 students across two academic years, the study measures changes in culturally responsive pedagogy, instructional discourse, and student engagement through surveys, classroom observations, and qualitative lesson analysis.
Research Questions
- What is the impact of Teaching Lab’s Professional Learning series on mathematics teachers’ mindsets, beliefs, pedagogical knowledge, and instructional practices?
- What is the impact of Teaching Lab’s Professional Learning series on students’ classroom experiences, including culturally responsive instruction, engagement, happiness, academic challenge, and math self-efficacy?
Key Findings
Findings revealed that math teachers who participated in the Teaching Lab professional learning series demonstrated substantial improvements in instructional practice, particularly in facilitating classroom discourse, with large effects on prompting student thinking (~0.8 SD) and students’ ability to justify and critique reasoning (~0.9 SD). These changes translated into improved student experiences, including more culturally responsive instruction (~0.7 SD) and higher student engagement and happiness (~0.5 SD). There was little to no measurable change in teacher or student mindsets or self-efficacy.
Study Citation
Blazar, D., McNamara, D., & Zhao, J. (2024). Effects of Teaching Lab Professional Learning Series: Experimental Evidence from New Mexico. https://rpplpartnership.org/our-work/teaching-lab-nm/
The Key Findings above were reproduced from the published report and do not necessarily reflect interpretation of Overdeck Family Foundation staff.
