Teacher Collaboration Experiences

This report explores the prevalence of teacher collaboration in schools across the United States and assesses the extent to which teacher collaboration varies in schools with different levels of students in poverty. The researchers’ analysis focuses on teachers’ reports of three particular aspects of teacher collaboration: the prevalence of opportunities, the frequency of collaboration activities, and the usefulness of collaboration experiences.   

Key Findings:

·       Only a third of teachers reported that they have sufficient time to collaborate with other teachers.

·       Teachers who reported having greater opportunities and time for collaboration consistently reported higher levels of collaboration activity, regardless of the type of collaboration in question.

·       Peer observation was the least common form of peer collaboration, with nearly half of teachers reporting that they never observed another teacher's classroom to get ideas for instruction or to offer feedback in a typical month.

·       School poverty did not have a statistically significant relationship with teachers' reports of collaboration opportunities or the frequency of activities.

The findings show that the association between frequency of collaborative feedback and its perceived helpfulness is most salient for teachers in low-poverty schools; there is no apparent link between frequency and perceived helpfulness among teachers in high-poverty schools.

Tsai, T. & Johnston, W. R. (2018). The prevalence of collaboration among American teachers: National findings from the American Teacher Panel. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation. https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RR2200/RR2217/RAND_RR2217.pdf