Research Brief
How Can Teachers Make the Most of Professional Learning in the Summer?
Jan 12, 2021
Findings from a National Survey and Implications from the BellXcel Program
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PDF file | 0.3 MB | Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 10 or higher for the best experience. |
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PDF file | 0.5 MB | Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 10 or higher for the best experience. |
Helping teachers improve their instructional practice through high-quality professional learning opportunities is a key strategy for improving student academic, social, and emotional outcomes. Little is known about the professional learning activities teachers participate in over the summer. This report begins to fill that gap by presenting data from the first nationally representative survey of teachers about their summer professional learning opportunities. It also presents data from a descriptive study of BellXcel Summer (BXS), an academic-focused summer program model for students that provides teachers with numerous professional learning opportunities, and compares BXS teachers' perceptions of their summer professional learning experiences with those of teachers nationally. Exploring the possibilities of utilizing summer as a time for teacher professional learning is imperative in the wake of the coronavirus disease 2019 crisis, which has disrupted opportunities for school-year professional learning.
This study was sponsored by BellXcel and undertaken by RAND Education and Labor.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation research report series. RAND reports present research findings and objective analysis that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND reports undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.