Dissertation writing help - Causal Mediation Mechanisms in Inquiry-based Science Professional Development

Custom Dissertation Writing Service - well-designed professional development

Evidence indicates that even well-designed professional development often fails to enhance teaching practices and student outcomes. When implementing reform initiatives such as professional development yield unintended results, it is important to appreciate why the reform initiatives often fail. This study thus seeks new evidence for the effects of inquiry-based science professional development and extends existing works on causal relations in causal mediation effect models. The focus of this proposed study is twofold: first, this study evaluates the causal mediation effect of teacher practices between professional development and students' science outcomes; second, in order to better explain teachers' learning through professional development, this study shows variability in effects of professional development according to the level of professional learning community. This study uses data from a school based large-scale randomized field trial of the science immersion professional development funded by the National Science Foundation. Methodologically, this study adds to the body of literature by examining a causal mediation effect of teachers' inquiry-based practices and how it can vary by professional learning community's usingthe causal mediation effect model recently developed by Imai, Keele, and Tingley (2010).