Survey: Educators Rank Positive School Culture as Top Professional Learning Priority

A new national survey of educators found building a positive school culture was the top-rated professional learning priority, ranking above more than 90 other topics such as instructional practices, student mental health, school safety, and emerging technologies.

The Pulse of Professional Learning Survey, sponsored by Corwin, gathered responses from 711 educators across 48 states and 18 countries, including teachers, instructional coaches, school administrators, and district leaders. Building a positive school culture received an average rating of 4.49 out of 5, the highest of any individual topic included in the survey.

Other highly rated topics included growth mindset and fostering resilience, building strong school-home partnerships, and student mental health and crisis response.

For school safety leaders, the emphasis on culture is particularly relevant. Positive school culture is an important part of school safety, including creating environments where students feel supported and have trusted adults they can turn to when they need help or have concerns about themselves or others.

The survey measured educators' professional learning priorities rather than asking respondents to rate the overall importance of each issue.

School Culture, Mental Health, and School-Home Partnerships Rank High

Family and community engagement also ranked highly as a professional learning domain, with an overall mean of 4.01. That was slightly higher than leadership and school improvement at 4.00 and assessment and evidence-informed instruction at 3.99.

Building strong school-home partnerships, in particular, received an average rating of 4.13.

Safety and Crisis Preparedness Among Professional Learning Priorities

School systems, safety, and policy was one of eight professional learning domains examined in the survey. Topics included school safety plans and crisis preparedness, student mental health and crisis response, bullying prevention and conflict resolution, cybersecurity, and other policy and safety issues.

Student mental health and crisis response received an average rating of 4.12, compared with 3.68 for school safety plans and crisis preparedness and 3.40 for cybersecurity.

Educators Seek More AI Training Despite Lower Technology Rankings

Digital innovation was the lowest-rated of the eight professional learning domains.

The four lowest-rated individual topics in the survey were augmented and virtual reality, virtual and remote learning, international education, and gamification.

However, responses to an open-ended question revealed demand for professional learning around artificial intelligence.

When asked what additional professional learning support they needed, educators frequently identified AI literacy, including how to use AI responsibly, understand its risks and benefits, and use it to support rather than replace professional judgment.

The researchers concluded that respondents placed greater priority on human and instructional factors than technological or structural innovations, including strong teaching, leadership, collaborative cultures, and student well-being.

"Educators appear less interested in additional tools than in guidance for effective implementation, specifically when and how to use them," reads the report. "The highest-rated topics tend to foster that kind of thinking, while the lowest-rated ones offer strategies with little evaluative purpose."

Priorities Consistent Across Political and Demographic Groups

The researchers also examined whether professional learning priorities differed based on political affiliation, geographic region, Title I status, district type, and enrollment size. No statistically significant differences emerged across those groups, according to the report.

The researchers noted that the sample was not nationally representative. Experienced educators, coaches and administrators, and respondents from small and rural districts were overrepresented, while teachers and respondents from large and suburban districts were underrepresented.

What the Findings Mean for School Safety

Although the survey examined professional learning broadly rather than school safety specifically, several of its highest-rated priorities overlap with areas important to creating safe and supportive school environments.

For school safety leaders, culture and relationships are not separate from safety. Ensuring students have adults they trust and feel comfortable approaching when they need support or have concerns is an important part of building a positive school culture.