Effects of the Global Pandemic on Professional Learning Communities Schools: An Exploratory, Multi-Case Study of Texas Elementary Model PLC Schools

The COVID-19 pandemic, which began in 2020, significantly disrupted teaching and learning, including professional learning communities (PLCs), which are known to improve education. This dissertation defines PLCs and examines how selected elementary schools with established PLC structures adapted before, during, and after the pandemic. It explores how leadership responses and social distancing mandates influenced these adaptations and whether changes were maintained post-pandemic. A review of empirical literature revealed gaps in understanding how PLC processes evolved in response to pandemic-specific instructional challenges, which this study addresses. DuFour’s PLC model, Canning’s distance learning theory, and Fullan’s transformational leadership theory informed the study’s conceptual framework and analysis. Using a multi-case study approach, data from historical documents, surveys, and interviews were collected and triangulated to answer each research question. Findings indicate that although all three schools had strong PLC systems before the pandemic, each adapted differently, shifting to virtual platforms, incorporating emotional support into definitions of mastery, and adjusting data reviews amid limited assessments. In the post-pandemic period, schools maintained some adaptations, such as digital collaboration, while reinstating structured in-person collaboration that characterized their pre-pandemic PLC practices. Throughout all phases, principals played a crucial, adaptive role in maintaining PLCs, supporting instructional recovery, fostering collaboration, and nurturing collaborative cultures. The study further proposes progression from survival to stabilization in PLC development, expanding Canning’s model and refining leadership and collaboration frameworks, by positioning emotional stabilization as a prerequisite for sustained collective inquiry.