A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement

Despite evidence that teacher professional development interventions in mathematics and science can increase student achievement, our understanding of the mechanisms by which this occurs—particularly how these interventions affect teachers themselves and the extent to which teacher-level changes pre...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kathleen Lynch, Kathryn Gonzalez, Heather Hill, Ramsey Merritt
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publishing 2025-05-01
Series:AERA Open
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584251335302
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850263863674535936
author Kathleen Lynch
Kathryn Gonzalez
Heather Hill
Ramsey Merritt
author_facet Kathleen Lynch
Kathryn Gonzalez
Heather Hill
Ramsey Merritt
author_sort Kathleen Lynch
collection DOAJ
description Despite evidence that teacher professional development interventions in mathematics and science can increase student achievement, our understanding of the mechanisms by which this occurs—particularly how these interventions affect teachers themselves and the extent to which teacher-level changes predict student learning—remains limited. The current meta-analysis synthesizes 46 experimental studies of PK–12 mathematics and science professional development interventions to investigate how these interventions affect teacher-level outcomes, including knowledge and classroom instruction, and how these impacts relate to intervention effects on student achievement. Compared with controls, treatment group teachers in PK–12 mathematics and science PD intervention studies demonstrated stronger performance on teacher-level outcomes (pooled average impact estimate: +0.52 SD). Programs with larger impacts on teacher-level outcomes also tended to have significantly larger mean impacts on student achievement. We discuss implications for future research and practice.
format Article
id doaj-art-3caeab495ae645b3b160438f58257364
institution OA Journals
issn 2332-8584
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher SAGE Publishing
record_format Article
series AERA Open
spelling doaj-art-3caeab495ae645b3b160438f582573642025-08-20T01:54:51ZengSAGE PublishingAERA Open2332-85842025-05-011110.1177/23328584251335302A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student AchievementKathleen LynchKathryn GonzalezHeather HillRamsey MerrittDespite evidence that teacher professional development interventions in mathematics and science can increase student achievement, our understanding of the mechanisms by which this occurs—particularly how these interventions affect teachers themselves and the extent to which teacher-level changes predict student learning—remains limited. The current meta-analysis synthesizes 46 experimental studies of PK–12 mathematics and science professional development interventions to investigate how these interventions affect teacher-level outcomes, including knowledge and classroom instruction, and how these impacts relate to intervention effects on student achievement. Compared with controls, treatment group teachers in PK–12 mathematics and science PD intervention studies demonstrated stronger performance on teacher-level outcomes (pooled average impact estimate: +0.52 SD). Programs with larger impacts on teacher-level outcomes also tended to have significantly larger mean impacts on student achievement. We discuss implications for future research and practice.https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584251335302
spellingShingle Kathleen Lynch
Kathryn Gonzalez
Heather Hill
Ramsey Merritt
A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement
AERA Open
title A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement
title_full A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement
title_fullStr A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement
title_full_unstemmed A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement
title_short A Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence Linking Mathematics and Science Professional Development Interventions to Teacher Knowledge, Classroom Instruction, and Student Achievement
title_sort meta analysis of the experimental evidence linking mathematics and science professional development interventions to teacher knowledge classroom instruction and student achievement
url https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584251335302
work_keys_str_mv AT kathleenlynch ametaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT kathryngonzalez ametaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT heatherhill ametaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT ramseymerritt ametaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT kathleenlynch metaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT kathryngonzalez metaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT heatherhill metaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement
AT ramseymerritt metaanalysisoftheexperimentalevidencelinkingmathematicsandscienceprofessionaldevelopmentinterventionstoteacherknowledgeclassroominstructionandstudentachievement