Texas Study Links PLC at Work Model to Sustained Academic Gains

Researchers from Texas Tech University analyzed roughly 1.4 million student-year observations using data from the University of Houston Education Research Center. By tracking STAAR scores for students in grades 4 through 7, the study utilized a staggered difference-in-differences design to compare designated Model PLC at Work campuses against non-designated schools between 2015 and 2023. The findings indicate that while achievement effects were negligible before the adoption of the model, they turned positive immediately following implementation and continued to climb annually.

By the third year, the data showed math gains equivalent to 3.1 months of additional learning and reading gains of 1.8 months compared to peers at similar schools. Notably, the researchers observed that economically disadvantaged students benefited most in math, while English learners experienced the largest gains in reading. Authors Kristin E. Mansell and J. Jacob Kirksey concluded that the process functions as a long-term improvement system rather than a brief intervention, a sentiment echoed by Cameron Rains, CEO of Solution Tree, who noted that the peer-reviewed evidence validates three decades of observed growth in schools worldwide.