Term
Summer 2019
Capstone
Dissertation
Degree Name
EdD
Primary Advisor/Dissertation Chair
Charlayne Myers
Secondary Advisor/Reader One
Rebecca Koelln
Peer-Reviewer/Reader Two
Fred Nolan
Abstract
This qualitative case study used mixed methods data collection to research the prevalence of Senge’s (2006) five disciplines of a learning organization in a rural high school’s professional development. It also examined how the presence or absence of the five disciplines impacted teachers’ perceptions of professional development. The study included participants at a Midwestern rural high school and focused on elite interviews with the principal and professional development coordinators, a focus group with eight teachers, and survey results from fifty percent (50%) of the high school teaching staff. Findings indicated that the discipline of team learning is most prevalent in professional development at the high school, with shared vision being the least prevalent discipline. Though team learning also had an impact on teachers’ positive perception of professional development, no clear relationship existed between the presence or absence of the remaining four disciplines (shared vision, mental models, personal mastery, and systems thinking) and teachers’ perceptions. Despite the strong evidence of team learning overall across the three data collection methods, teachers in single-member departments experienced a much lower prevalence of the discipline which is consistent with other studies of rural education. In addition, the data indicated that different demographic subgroups of teachers experience the five disciplines uniquely. The study concluded that Senge’s (2006) learning organization is a worthy framework around which rural schools can focus their professional development.
Research Methodology
Case Study, Focus Group, Interview, Survey (attitude scale, opinion, questionnaire)
Keywords
Leadership, Staff Development, Teachers/ Teaching
Recommended Citation
Stevens, Jacquelyn, "The Prevalence of Peter Senge's Five Disciplines of a Learning Organization in a Rural High School's Professional Development" (2019). School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations. 4464.
https://digitalcommons.hamline.edu/hse_all/4464
dc_type
text
dc_publisher
DigitalCommons@Hamline
dc_format
application/pdf
dc_source
School of Education Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations