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Teacher collaboration and social-emotional learning (SEL) are extant school improvement strategies intended to have a positive effect on student learning outcomes. The purpose of this quantitative, ex post facto study was to examine possible correlations between degree of teacher collaboration and use of instructional practices that support student SEL among lower secondary teachers (grades 7-9) in the United States (Leonard, 2021). Correlational analyses were conducted using a secondary dataset of the 2018 Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) sponsored by the Office of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, 2018). Results showed strong, statistically significant relationships between frequency of teacher engagement in higher-intensity “student-facing” collaborative actions such as peer observation, and the enactment of instructional approaches that contribute to student SEL, such as helping students believe they can do well in school and having them work in groups to come up with a joint solution to a problem. Implications for research and for the advancement of teacher collaboration and SEL in P12 schools are discussed.

Dialogue, listening, and compromise are essential elements of living in a democracy. In a highly partisan time, is it possible to reestablish common ground when it comes to how best to educate our children in and for democracy? Authors Brendan Sheran, Ashley Carey, Jack Schneider, Rebecca Woodland, and Kathryn McDermott, who are affiliated with Center for Education Policy (CEP) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, outline a process called deliberative polling. They used this process of bringing citizens together in a structured way to deliver information and allow for questions and discussion in their Civic Summit. The event, in which Massachusetts citizens discussed the pros and cons of an upcoming state ballot measure on high school graduation exams, was an example of how a summit can bring people together to discuss, safety ask questions, and debate education issues.

Professional learning communities (PLCs) are a powerful school improvement strategy designed to advance teacher professional development. Protocols are tools for structuring teacher conversations in PLCs. In this article the authors present the results of a qualitative study of teacher perspectives about the value and effects of systematic protocol use. This investigation took place within the context of a Researcher-Practitioner Partnership situated in an urban school district that aims to bring culturally responsive computer science education to all K-5 students. Findings revealed that teachers believe use of protocols supplanted 'chaotic' conversation with critical dialogue and improved their instructional practices. Protocols appear to ameliorate common hindering factors to the realization of effective PLCs, including conflict avoidance, participation inequities, and lack of group purpose. An annotated list of protocols of especially high value, and that teachers used most frequently to advance their collaborative learning and professional development, is presented.