THESIS

Thesis



Introduction:

Background to the Problem

Each year, National Assessment reports are delivered to school districts throughout the United States indicating that California's public educational system is not faring its students well. According to the 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) California ranks 48th among the states in the percentage of its senior classes that matriculates into four-year colleges the following year. Among these students, African American male students fare the worst of all cultural groups (Education Trust-West, 2006). This persistent problem is not necessarily noted by the lack of education that these students receive, but more is noted about the system within which these students exist. Learning Organizations, as noted by Peter Senge are essential to the overall successes of any organization. (Senge, 2006).

Robert Dufour, along with Peter Senge, suggest the existing problem with most current public school systems is that they typically operate in the same way as they have for decades. “Within the walls of most public institutions the educational focus is typically representative of teacher practices rather than student learning, teachers working in isolation with very little room devoted towards collaboration, and infrequent use of data findings to drive instructional practices” (DuFour, Eaker, & Karhanek, 2004).

When one reflects upon recent reform efforts meant to increase academic achievement, The No Child Left behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 often comes to mind. One aspect of the No Child Left behind Act or 2001 presents itself as a superb feature in monitoring academic practices leading to high achievement for all students. The consistent use of data to guide instructional practices is noted for much of the successes that High Performing Schools attain (Blankstein, 2006). Further components of this Act were instituted to produce accountability measures ensuring that all students would be taught by highly trained teachers who would meet the needs of all students using a standardized educational program. These and other components were instituted to ensure that all students would yield substantial academic gains; and yet, students are still failing under this act.

Today, if students were asked about their experiences in school, one might hear an all familiar dialogue such as this:

“It's drudgery. We sit alone at our desks and silently answer lots of questions that our teachers tell us look like the ones we will see on the state tests. We're not interested in what we're doing. We hurry up to finish first, and if we're done before the rest of our classmates, we get to site quietly and take out a book or do other work.” (Sternberg, Education Week 2009).

Researchers such as DuFour, Eaker, and Senge have suggested the development of Learning Organizations and/or Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) as an integral component in contemporary school reform. “Learning Organizations are places where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire” (Kelly, 2009). Over time, empirical research has revealed evidence that high-performing Professional Learning Communities can positively influence student achievement (Leon & Davis, 2009). “Its conceptual underpinnings are framed around theories about ...