An exploration of professional learning community implementation and sustainability challenges in elementary school settings: A single district case study

This study addressed the need for a focused investigation of Professional Learning Community (PLC) implementation factors and sustainability challenges experienced school leaders in elementary school settings. A single West Texas school district was targeted for participation in this study based on the district’s long-term commitment to PLC practices and noted differential PLC implementation success within their elementary campuses.
The researcher employed a qualitatively driven mixed methods design to examine factors inhibiting implementation and to identify creative strategies and best practices that foster PLC implementation and sustainability success. A survey of the district's 37 elementary campus administrators in conjunction with an analysis of campus-level 3rd – 5th grade STAAR scores and TEA Accountability Index Measures was utilized by the researcher to first identity “comparison pair” and “outlier” campuses within the total elementary school sample exhibiting interesting and/or unusual school-level “PLC culture – school effectiveness” variable relationships. These identified comparison pair and outlier schools became the focus of the phenomenological, single district case study. In-depth, semi-structured interviews involving administrators and teachers from comparison pair and outlier campuses were conducted to gain additional information and insights regarding educators’ context-specific PLC implementation and sustainability challenges and strategies. Through utilizing this two-phase data collection and analysis approach, the researcher gleaned new insights into PLC initiatives which informed the study’s overall objective of identifying PLC implementation “inhibiting factors” and sustainability “creative strategies and best practices” for school leaders’ consideration.