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There were six teachers in the pilot whose research explored a variety of ideas and topics. One teacher examined the impact of a free-choice inquiry project on student skill-building, agency, and motivation; the research was published in a peer-reviewed journal. Two other action researchers were published in the trade journal The Language Educator. Other topics included how technology can be used to motivate young Spanish language learners, the value of providing video feedback on student work, an investigation into how boys could develop communicative capacity at school and beyond, how assessment of boys’ math skills informs teacher planning, and insights from Saint David’ s master relational teachers. The participants received grant stipends for their action research work.
As the pilot action research program unfolded, work continued on the research wiki, which now curates more than 200 open-source articles. The wiki, along with our research coordinator Tori Gilbert, now supports faculty inquiry and innovation as they move between theory and practice.
YEAR ONE: THE RELATIONAL DOMAIN It has often been said that boys don’ t learn subjects, they learn teachers. Intuitively, we knew that boys were relational learners and now we had research data to prove it. With the framework adopted, the wiki created, and the action research pilot successful, in 2022 – 2023, we decided to focus on the relational domain of the framework and how it intersects with our professional development programming. To zoom in on this domain, we launched a visiting scholar program to tap into the wisdom of experts in the field of educating boys.
Saint David’ s first TBI visiting scholar, Michael Reichert, a leading researcher in boys’ education who has spearheaded significant projects in research and scholarship, offered practical recommendations for program design and pedagogy. Reichert shared some of his key research findings with our faculty, current parents, and prospective families in a series of campus visits. He presented the findings of two global studies commissioned by the International Boys’ Schools Coalition:“ Teaching Boys: A Global Study of Effective Practices” and“ For Whom the Boy Toils: The Primacy of Relationship in Boys’ Learning.”
We also instituted Walkthrough Wednesdays, when teachers can visit the classrooms of their peers to observe teaching and learning strategies in action. Walkthrough Wednesdays provide teachers with opportunities to collaborate as co-learners through consistent informal peer observation throughout the school, accompanied by pre- and post-walkthrough conversations. Initial feedback suggested this low-stakes approach benefited both teachers and observers.
By the end of the first year, our existing PD programs and newer professional opportunities were now aligned with our framework and allowed teachers at every stage of their careers to engage in meaningful professional development. We awarded 28 grants to 24 faculty members for their various research work.
YEAR TWO: REFLECTIVE PRACTICE AND CURRICULUM
In fall 2023, with Reichert’ s guidance, MacNeille, Gilbert, and a group of nine teachers spanning several grade levels and disciplines launched the Reflective Practice Program, integrating work that our second visiting scholar, Ric Campbell, had initiated with five faculty the previous spring. This new program creates a model of collegial exchanges, grounding teacher inquiry in shared theoretical frameworks, promoting reflective writing, and providing ongoing support for research data collection and analysis. Teachers involved in the program, like our action researchers, were all compensated for their participation and work.
Campbell was invited to join the TBI team to create a curriculum for teaching boys. He is the founder and former dean of the teacher-education program at Bard College and a graduate of the Harvard University Graduate School of Education. We wanted to tap into his depth of experience as a curriculum developer, master teacher program consultant, and educational director.
In addition to creating a curriculum, the main goal of our collaboration was to develop a course of study in partnership with a university that will focus on boys’ education, leading to graduate credit and a postgraduate advanced certificate. It will also provide an opportunity for Saint David’ s teachers to teach colleagues at the graduate level. To attract and retain the best teachers, we knew we’ d need to offer teachers opportunities to lead inside and outside of the institution, and this course would present another pathway for growth.
When it’ s complete, the Teaching Boys Curriculum will form the basis of our onboarding program for new teachers; develop teachers at different points on their professional journey as researchers; generate theory and practices that increase efficacy; contribute to the knowledge base in education, with a particular focus on boys; and build both school and interschool professional communities of practice that will expand and deepen over time. The curriculum is being designed to emphasize teacher inquiry as the driver of learning; most important, theory and practice will be simultaneously advanced by classroom practitioners.
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