Research on professional learning communities (PLCs) in English language education: A systematic review

Anis Handayani, Dyah Setyowati Ciptaningrum and Anita Triastuti
Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Professional learning communities (PLCs) have been commonly implemented in educational context, specifically in English language education. While prior studies have continuously reported PLCs' contribution and impacts on teacher professional development (TPD), some also reported several challenges in implementing PLCs. In this regard, a comprehensive review on the studies on PLCs in recent years may provide a comprehensive depiction of PLCs in supporting TPD. Employing the PRISMA framework, our systematic review explores the studies on PLCs in the context of English language education in the last six years, the actual implementation, and the impacts on teaching practices and students' learning. Drawing from several databases, 18 articles were selected in accord with the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Our review mainly uncovers that PLCs were mostly conducted in Asian contexts compared to Western and have been changed in their implementation over the last six years with online, offline, and mixed-mode coming into use. Furthermore, positive impacts on teaching practices were also reported, but the impacts on students' learning were rarely explored. This review identifies potential for future research on PLCs and effective forms of PLCs implementation.
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Authors: Ms Anis Handayani (corresponding author) is a lecturer and a PhD candidate in the Department of English Language Education, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Her current research interests include academic writing, teacher professional development, and educational technology. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-8430-3645 Email: anishandayani@uny.ac.id Dr Dyah Setyowati Ciptaningrum is a senior lecturer in the Department of English Language Education, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Her research interests focus on ICT in education, teacher professional learning, and English language teaching. She has authored several books and published research articles in reputable academic journals. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2715-1170 Email: dyah_ciptaningrum@uny.ac.id Dr Anita Triastuti is a professor in the Department of English Language Education at Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia. She has extensive experience in authoring books and publishing research articles in several reputable academic journals. Her scholarly work focuses primarily on teacher education, instructional curriculum development, and genre-based pedagogy. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5485-1842 Email: anitatria@uny.ac.id Please cite as: Handayani, A., Ciptaningrum, D. S. & Triastuti, A. (2025). Research on professional learning communities (PLCs) in English language education: A systematic review. Issues in Educational Research, 35(3), 970-986. http://www.iier.org.au/iier35/handayani.pdf