An alarming trend of student non-compliance with reading assignments in secondary and post-secondary environments is causing concern in many areas, including college readiness. Public school teachers and university faculty alike are responsible for the literacy levels of graduating students; however, many educators are not implementing the adequate literacy supports within their content area courses. This project used current research on best practice in literacy instruction, as well as the Characteristics of Highly Effective Teaching and Learning to create the Readers Matter™ evaluative process in which faculty members self-select to be assessed regarding the current levels of student literacy support. After scoring the assessment, evaluators are then able to provide individualized professional development targeting areas of weakness made evident by the Readers Matter™ rubric. The current study evaluated five university instructors at a midsized university in the south-central United States. The results of this preliminary development research identified the data collection procedures that were beneficial and ultimately informative in the evaluation process and enabled developers to make informed decisions regarding individualized professional development.

The aim of this study was to investigate science teachers&rsquo / perceptions about the online teacher professional development (oTPD) program. The research study included two consecutive steps. The first step was related to the design of the oTPD program. With the help of related literature, examples of oTPD programs and expert opinions, an oTPD program was designed. In the second step, ten of the alumni of Bilkent University Graduate School of Education Biology Teacher Education Program participated in a ten week oTPD program. The program consisted of instructional activities such as reading case studies, self reflection, forum discussions, watching videos of a sample lesson, hands-on activity and WebQuest. The study was mainly a qualitative study. The case was a professional development program for in-service science teachers that was offered online via learning management systems (LMS). The data were collected through pre- and post- interviews, online questionnaire, observations and documentation that include weekly assignments, forum discussions, e-mail correspondence, weekly e-journals, detailed notes of phone calls and the researcher&rsquo / s journal. The data were analyzed according to qualitative data analysis techniques with the assistance of Weft QDA software. Data gathered from the participants demonstrated that they were not satisfied with professional development programs that they got before this oTPD program because of the problems about content, process and organization connected with them. They preferred oTPD program, because of its flexibility and versatility, sharing information among colleagues from different parts of the country, and self-paced learning. Some obstacles were also identified, such as technical problems, not having face-to-face sessions and the timing of the program.

The aims of this study were to understand current status of professional development schools in the state of Maryland, USA. The definition, theoretical framework and theories of PDS were discussed firstly. Then, the researcher went on analyzing the PDSs of Towson university and collaborative elementary schools in Maryland, in order to find out the collaborative model and their implementation. There were five purposes in this study. The first purpose was to understand the definition of PDS. Secondly, the theoretical framework was discussed. Thirdly, the theories of PDS were explained and explored. The forth purpose was to analyze the implementation in the PDSs of Towson University and the collaborative elementary schools in Maryland. Finally, to synthesize the results of this study, the researcher suggests some strategies in the establishment of partnership between teacher education universities and elementary schools. For these purposes, the author made use of methods of document analysis and case study to discuss teacher education endeavors in Towson University, teacher¡¦s professional development and organizational change in schools withibn collaborative elementary schools, in order to understand the current status of the PDSs in Towson University and the collaborative elementary schools. According to the results, the following conclusions have been concluded: 1. Action research and inquiry into practicum should be highlighted in the PDSs, in order to improve the achievement of students from both sides. 2. Due to different context in the PDSs, diversified measures sould be provided. 3. Integration of teacher education, teacher¡¦s professional development, research and inquiry did improve the learning achievement of students. 4. Teachers in PDSs can promote themselves in professional development. 5. Teachers in PDSs need to be evaluated regularly in order to maintain their professional quality. 6. Whole member of university, school, family or community are supposed to participate in the improvement of students¡¦ achievement. Based upon the above conclusions, several suggestions have been raised by the researcher to play a solid basis for the country¡¦s teacher education and to upgrade the quality of future teachers.

Lesson study professional development, LSPD, is a technique during which teachers work collaboratively to create, implement, revise, and reflect on a specific lesson (Fernandez, 2002). This research proposed that using LSPD on integrating technology into teaching would provide teachers a collaborative and safe way to explore technology use in their classrooms. Technology adoption is not a single occurrence, but a process that takes time (Fullan, 2007; Roger, 2003). Unlike traditional forms of training, LSPD provides sustained support and a way to test technologies in low stakes situations through collaboration and observation. Both of these aspects, experimentation and observation, are important in the adoption of technology (Rogers, 2003). This study was aimed at understanding how teachers in a technology-infused LSPD change their beliefs and practices over time. Research questions included the following: a) how would teachers in a technology-infused LSPD develop their attitudes toward technology and in their technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK)?, b) how would teachers in a technology-infused LSPD change their lesson planning and teaching behaviors?, and c) would certain features of the group play a role in the teachers’ development? To address these questions, the study took qualitative approach to understanding teachers’ experiences during the lesson study process. Using interview transcripts, lesson plans, group meeting transcripts, and field notes, group cases were compiled to examine the experiences of the groups. Although three groups of teachers were followed during the semester, only one team was able to plan, teach, and re-teach a lesson. The LSPD process was disrupted by several factors independent of the lesson study model and more related to mandated testing and its results at the individual school level. The focus of the study shifted to describing the factors that contributed to and interfered with the carefully planned professional development model. The findings in this study can help us better understand the impact and intricacies of LSPD. / text

Professional development for educators has been defined as the process or processes by which teachers achieve higher levels of professional competence and expand their understanding of self, role, context and career (Duke and Stiggins, 1990). Currently, there is limited research literature that examines the effect a professional development course, which uses David Kolb’s experiential learning model, has on the professional growth and teaching practice of middle school science teachers. The purpose of this interpretive case study is to investigate how three science teachers who participated in the Rivers to Reef professional development course interpreted the learning experience and integrated the experience into their teaching practice. The questions guiding this research are 1. What is the relationship between a professional development course that uses an experiential learning model and science teaching practice? 2. How do the Rivers to Reef participants reflect on and describe the course as a professional growth experience? The creation of the professional development course and the framework for the study were established using David Kolb’s (1975) experiential learning theory and the reflection process model designed by David Boud (1985). The participants in the study are three middle school science teachers from schools representing varied settings and socioeconomic levels in the southeastern United States. Data collected used the three-interview series interview format designed by Dolbere and Schuman (Seidman, 1998). Data was analyzed for the identification of common categories related to impact on science teaching practice and professional growth. The major finding of this study indicates the years of teaching experience of middle school science teachers significantly influences how they approach professional development, what and how they learn from the experience, and the ways in which the experience influences their teaching practices.

The importance of teacher leadership has received intense interest as an area of educational research over the past three decades (Crowther, Kaagan, Ferguson & Hann, 2002; Harris, 2003; Lambert, 2002; Marks & Printy, 2003). Most of this research has focused on the qualifications, impacts, and development of teacher leadership (Smylie & Mayrowetz, 2009). This study aimed to broaden the scope of research to include science teachers’ interaction with leadership practices in the course of a leadership development program that includes both their own professional development (PD) and leadership of teacher-driven professional development (TDPD). The study considered professional vision and identity rather than focusing only on formal or informal leadership roles. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine experienced physics and chemistry high school teachers’ perceptions of their leadership roles and characteristics and their professional vision and identity as they participated in a leadership development training program and a math and science partnership program as facilitators of the science activities for K-12 teachers. The study was situated within the leadership training program (I-LEAD) five-year project, which was designed to recruit experienced secondary physics and chemistry teachers, called Master Teaching Fellows (MTFs), to understand the dynamics that support or limit the development of teacher leaders. The participants in this study consisted of up to three of these MTFs, who organized and implemented TDPD activities for K-12 teachers to improve these teachers’ science knowledge and teaching practices. The data was analyzed using multiple coding methods that generated themes from interviews with the MTFs and archival data from the I-LEAD leadership program. The results of the study claim that professional vision, professional identity, and teacher leadership roles and skills are inextricably interrelated. These dynamic components are refined, reshaped, and reformed by self-reflection, discussion, and feedback as provided through PD activities. This study further suggests that teacher leadership mechanism evolves over time through practicing different teacher leadership roles in the professional journey. Implications and practical suggestions for school administrators, PD developers, and policy makers as well as teacher leaders are discussed.

The current study was based in one higher education institution and examined pre-service teachers’ use of social media to support their own professional development whilst on school placement, through a community of practice lens. The trainees were registered on a one year secondary course designed to lead to a Post Graduate Certificate in Education with 60 credits at Masters Level combined with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) for England and Wales during which the researcher repeatedly interviewed a focus group sample from each subject cohort and analysed transcripts of these interviews through the lens of Wenger’s (1998) concept of a community of practice. The research took place in a national context of review and reform of teacher education in England. Some trainees, for example those studying at the higher education establishment at question, might experience considerable challenge in the school placement. Authentic self-reflection requires a safe place in which pre-service teachers can openly articulate with others what they might see as their own failures as well as successes in the classroom in order to develop a greater sense of self-efficacy and new ideas about teaching. In some instances, such as in the area of behaviour management, the national focus on maintaining good order means that it may become even more challenging and ultimately riskier to share the experience of failure because acknowledgement of this risks the possibility of failing to achieve the requisite standard for qualified teacher status. Besides, to gain qualified teacher status a trainee must attain the Teachers’ Standards (DfE, 2013) which include a requirement that a professional teacher upholds the ethos of the school to which the trainee might not be sympathetic. Findings from this research cannot be generalised. However, in this small-scale study it was found that pre-service teachers used private social media to support each other on the course in a number of ways: to establish a group that might be viewed as a community of practice and then, as part of the core enterprise of becoming a qualified teacher, to offer or to receive shared practice or support from another pre-service teacher in the role of more knowledgeable other and to broker new ideas about teaching to each other and to schools themselves from the other communities to which they belonged. Those who networked socially as part of the community of practice were more organised around deadlines. They also more likely to manage risky and stressful situations collaboratively and present an enhanced image of “…a body of common knowledge, practices and approaches” (Wenger, McDermott and Snyder, 2007, pp. 4-5) during their school placement which was unavailable to the trainee who did not participate within the online community. The scope for openly sharing practice and the development of learning communities among pre-service teachers is potentially restricted by the current national and local context of teacher education. However, one conclusion from this study might be that social media can potentially enable pre-service teachers to communicate privately in important ways that support their professional development whilst undertaking their training.

No description available.

The study investigated how principals discharge their responsibilities with regard to educator professional development and what factors, if any, assist or hinder principals in the execution of their responsibilities for educator professional development. The following research question informs this study: "What role do principals play in educator professional development in secondary schools in Gauteng Province?" The theoretical framework used in this study is that of human capital theory. In the words of Van Loo and Rocco (2004:99), human capital theory is "an economic approach to the evaluation of the costs and benefits of the investment in skills and knowledge", and in this regard, it implies investment in people themselves in education and training with a view to enhance economic productivity and competence, in this case, educational output. The study followed a qualitative research design wherein data were collected through semi-structured interviews with principals and two educators in four secondary schools, two fee-paying and two no-fee paying schools, in Gauteng Province. The sampling method used was convenience sampling because of practical constraints, namely, time and costs, involved. This study found that principals do play a role, though not appropriately, in educator professional development in secondary schools. In some schools, it was found that proper management of professional development programmes was non-existent, and this led to educators being not clearly sure of what role their principals play exactly in their professional development. Principals indicated that most professional development activities were carried out by the district offices. Some principals were not certain of what the scope of professional development entails and in this way, they were not quite sure where exactly development was required. It became evident that the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS), as a developmental tool, was reported not to be efficiently implemented in most schools in this study, and challenges faced were also attributed to poor management of the process by the Staff Development Team (SDT), including the principals. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Education Management and Policy Studies / MEd / Unrestricted

University writing programs increasingly serve student populations of growing diversity: more international students, first-generation students, disabled students, racial and ethnic minority students, and LGBTQ+ students, for example. Instructors thus teach in classrooms with many cultures and subcultures represented. Amid increasing demographic diversity, many writing programs seek to internationalize. In this dissertation, I investigate the current state of Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) in a university writing program as a potential avenue for internationalization. Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) is a social-justice-oriented, transformative approach to education that views cultural diversity as a resource, restructuring education settings to affirm students’ identities and home cultures. I evaluate CRT among a sample of 10 instructor participants and their students, propose a CRT assessment method, and suggest implementation of CRT as a sustainable, just, and resource-efficient method for writing program internationalization. I implement a mixed-methods research design that draws on both observational and self-report measures of CRT. Results indicate that instructor capabilities for CRT fall along a developmental spectrum. This developmental spectrum provides a useful model for assessment of CRT in a writing program context, as well as a basis for developing the CRT capabilities of instructors at both individual and programmatic levels. <br>