Examining the Influence of Professional Learning Community Participation on Mathematics Facilitators’ Teaching Efficacy: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach Based on Hord’s Model

This study examines how Mathematics facilitators’ participation in Professional Learning Communities predicts their teaching efficacy within the Ghanaian context where Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) are a newly institutionalized national policy for teacher professional development. A quantitative survey design was adopted to test the hypothesised effects of the five PLCs dimensions on teaching efficacy. Analysing data from 243 Mathematics facilitators using structural equation modelling to test the hypothesised paths after performing exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses to validate the measurement model, the results showed that three PLCs dimensions, namely collective learning and application, supportive conditions, and shared personal practice, significantly predicted teaching efficacy, with shared personal practice being the strongest predictor. In contrast, shared and supportive leadership as well as shared values and vision were non-significant. This result indicates that when Mathematics facilitators share their class practices with peers during Professional Learning Communities sessions, they learn from one another, which enhances their teaching efficacy. For policy and practice, this means that for PLCs to succeed in Ghana and similar contexts, implementation must move beyond structural adoption to foster authentic collaborative practice and create supportive conditions for classroom-focused dialogue. This result provides empirical evidence on PLCs in sub-Saharan Africa, demonstrating that practice-based collaboration matters more than formal leadership or vision statements in the early stages of PLC policy implementation in the Ghanaian context.