Exploring Teachers’ Experiences Navigating the Inclusion of Women in World History Situated through a Professional Learning Community

While the importance of including women’s history in the social studies curriculum has been examined, several scholars have identified potential reasons for the continued underrepresentation of women’s history. Few studies have explored the ways in which the reasons identified by scholars have manifested in teacher decision-making and classroom practice. This study sought to examine factors that influenced teacher curricular-instructional choices with regard to historical female perspectives paying particular attention to the qualities of a professional learning community and the role of personal teacher efficacy. This embedded case study investigated the experiences of four sixth grade world history teachers who participated in this study and the factors that influenced their curricular-instructional choices with regard to historical female perspectives. Over a five-month period, participants engaged in a PLC designed with the shared goal of supplementing historical female perspectives. Before and after the PLC sessions, participants took a survey modeled after Riggs and Enochs (1990) science teacher efficacy belief instrument (STEBI) entitled the social studies teacher efficacy belief instrument (SSTEBI). In addition to the survey, participants engaged in two semi-structured interviews. Both the qualitative and quantitative findings of this study were analyzed using the theoretical frameworks of situated learning theory and communities of practice. Findings of the study identified eight factors that had either an obstructive or a constructive influence on teacher curricular-instructional practices with regard to historical female perspectives including: time, standards, content knowledge, resources, evaluations, levels of personal teacher efficacy, student interests and needs, and professional learning communities. As PLCs have been identified as a context in which teacher change can occur, additional attention was paid to the qualities of the PLC that emerged throughout the course of this study that elicited teacher change. Those qualities of the PLC included: autonomy, collaborative activity, strong participant relationships, relevance, and participant dialogue as a source of efficacy information. Both the factors and qualities identified were inclusive of the impactful role teacher efficacy came to play in influencing teacher curricular-instructional choices with regard to historical female perspectives. While the importance of including women’s history in the social studies curriculum has been examined, several scholars have identified potential reasons for the continued underrepresentation of women’s history. Few studies have explored the ways in which the reasons identified by scholars have manifested in teacher decision-making and classroom practice. This study sought to examine factors that influenced teacher curricular-instructional choices with regard to historical female perspectives paying particular attention to the qualities of a professional learning community and the role of personal teacher efficacy. This embedded case study investigated the experiences of four sixth grade world history teachers who participated in this study and the factors that influenced their curricular-instructional choices with regard to historical female perspectives. Over a five-month period, participants engaged in a PLC designed with the shared goal of supplementing historical female perspectives. Before and after the PLC sessions, participants took a survey modeled after Riggs and Enochs (1990) science teacher efficacy belief instrument (STEBI) entitled the social studies teacher efficacy belief instrument (SSTEBI). In addition to the survey, participants engaged in two semi-structured interviews. Both the qualitative and quantitative findings of this study were analyzed using the theoretical frameworks of situated learning theory and communities of practice. Findings of the study identified eight factors that had either an obstructive or a constructive influence on teacher curricular-instructional practices with regard to historical female perspectives including: time, standards, content knowledge, resources, evaluations, levels of personal teacher efficacy, student interests and needs, and professional learning communities. As PLCs have been identified as a context in which teacher change can occur, additional attention was paid to the qualities of the PLC that emerged throughout the course of this study that elicited teacher change. Those qualities of the PLC included: autonomy, collaborative activity, strong participant relationships, relevance, and participant dialogue as a source of efficacy information. Both the factors and qualities identified were inclusive of the impactful role teacher efficacy came to play in influencing teacher curricular-instructional choices with regard to historical female perspectives.