Professional Development and Student Achievement: International Evidence from the TIMSS Data

Abstract

This comparative study used the latest Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) data sets and examined the relationship between professional development and student achievement. It found that although the national levels of access for students at the fourth and eighth grade levels to teachers who participated in professional learning in the United States were higher than the other countries, one third to one half of the fourth grades were taught by teachers who had no professional learning focusing on math instruction or curriculum. In addition, teachers' participation in professional development was positively associated with higher student math achievement. This cross-national study provided empirical evidence highlighting the importance of investing in teacher learning for improving national educational quality.

Teachers, Teaching and Student Achievement

“…We can postulate that a desire for support to help them develop skills in innovative teaching methods is seen as a way to improve teaching efficiency and enhance students' results. Analysis of the TIMSS data across many education systems supports the conclusion that students of teachers at grade four who improved their professional knowledge of mathematics content through undertaking PD activities tend to have higher achievement scores than other students (Liang et al, 2015).…”

Role of Teacher Quality and Working Conditions in TIMSS 2019 Mathematics Achievement

“…According to the results, participation in professional development activities in the last two years about addressing individual students' needs predicted only 4 th -grade mathematics achievement. Similarly, Liang (2015) indicated that TIMSS 2003 or 2017 mathematics assessment in the USA had a significant relationship with other professional development topics such as mathematics content, pedagogy/instruction, and mathematics assessment. However, in the current study, it was observed that other subjects, such as mathematics assessment mathematics curriculum, were not related to achievement.…”

“…The number of studies investigating the relationship between teacher characteristics and student achievement is quite high. Several variables such as experience, education level, certification status, participation in professional development activities, general skills, pedagogical content knowledge, and practices have been addressed within the scope of teacher quality (Goe, 2007;Harris & Sass, 2011;Lee & Lee, 2020;Liang et al, 2015).…”

“…However, few studies examine the teacher questionnaire, which includes variables related to teachers that play a critical role in mathematics achievement in the TIMSS. Some studies discussed TIMSS items to evaluate the instructional quality (Eriksson et al, 2019) and participation in professional development activities (Liang et al, 2015).…”

Mathematics Teachers and Digital Technology: A Quest for Teachers’ Professional Development in Indonesia

“…One of the factors that determine the quality of teachers is their continuous professional development (Mullis, Martin, Foy, & Arora, 2012). Prior researches (e.g., Liang, Zhang, Huang, Shi, & Qiao, 2015;Unal, Demir, & Kilic, 2011) have proved that teachers professional development relate to increased students" achievement and performances. However, Merliza and Retnawati (2018) found that the majority of in-service mathematics teachers were less involved in continuous professional development (CPD) activities either in person or learning community.…”