Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Educational Leadership / Royce Ann Collins / In an era of increasing demand for a limited budget, more universities are turning to adjunct faculty to fill the need and to address the student load. Adjunct faculty members are hired for their content knowledge and close association to the business world and industry. This study was conducted to investigate whether a relationship exists between (a) technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK); (b) pedagogical training; and (c) personal technology; and to determine which variables have the greatest influence in the willingness of adjunct faculty at a Midwestern higher education institution to choose and integrate digital technology into curriculum and expand to the discussion of TPACK into graduate level education. TPACK is both a framework and an instrument to measure the level of integration of the primary components of the TPACK framework. TPACK is a term that describes what a teacher must know to integrate technology effectively into curriculum or teacher practices and represents the combination of teacher content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge and technology knowledge as interrelated. TPACK allows educators to consider what knowledge is required to integrate technology into teaching and how they might develop that knowledge within themselves. The study was conducted with a sample (n=30) of adjunct faculty members from two extension campuses from a Midwestern, Tier 1 university. The data revealed significant relationships between pedagogical training and selection of appropriate technology, and between personal technology use and selection of appropriate technology. The data also revealed that TPACK was a significant predictor; however, the subdomains of TPACK masked the true impact because of the high presence of covariance.

This study aimed to realize the relationship between the teacher educators¡¦ educational technology role modeling impact and the development of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) of preschool teachers in Taiwan. Quantitative Data was collected from a sample of 335 in-service preschool teachers who teach in either public schools or private schools in southern Taiwan. Follow-up interviews were also conducted with five survey respondents. The instrument was translated and adapted from Schmidt et al. (2009) TPCK survey instrument. The five modeling technology uses by teacher educators were identified from the related literature. Data analysis methods included descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and MANOVA. In addition, a multiple regression was conducted with the preschool teachers¡¦ self-assessed TPCK as the dependent variable, and the five modeling technology uses by the teacher educators the potential predictors. Findings from the study summarized as follows: (a)The development of preschool teachers¡¦ pedagogical knowledge(PK), content knowledge(CK) and pedagogical content knowledge(PCK) are the best among the seven knowledge sub domains in TPCK.(b)The number of years of teaching experience is significantly positively correlated with preschool teachers¡¦ pedagogical knowledge (PK), content knowledge ( CK)and pedagogical content knowledge(PCK). Besides, preschool teachers with over ten years of teaching experience have better self-assessed pedagogical knowledge(PK), content knowledge(CK)and pedagogical content knowledge(PCK) are better than those teachers with less than ten years of teaching experience.(c)A significant positive correlation was found between pedagogical knowledge(PK),and pedagogical content knowledge(PCK) and age; however, a significant negative correlation existed with technology knowledge(TK) and age. Older preschool teachers¡¦ self-assessed pedagogical knowledge(PK) is better than younger teachers while the young preschool teachers have a better self-assessed technology knowledge(TK).(d)The frequency of using information technology is significantly positively correlated with pedagogical knowledge(PK), technology knowledge(TK), content knowledge(CK), technological content knowledge(TCK) and technological pedagogical knowledge(TPK).Preschool teachers with a frequency of using information technology above 20 hours a week have better self-assessed technology knowledge(TK) and technological content knowledge(TCK) than those with a frequency under 5 hours a week.(e)There are no significant differences between responding preschool teachers¡¦ different college teacher education program types and the development of their self-assessed TPCK. (f) A significant positive correlation was found between teacher educators¡¦ educational technology role modeling and the respondents¡¦ self-assessed TPCK. (g) Digital teaching strategy is the most significant predictor to development of core element- technological pedagogical content knowledge(TPCK). Recommendations were also provided based on the findings from this study. It¡¦s recommended that the teacher education programs should incorporate technology components in their teacher preparation programs for preschool teachers and integrate technology across the curriculum instead of a stand-alone technology course. Besides, the design of mentoring program into the professional development should be incorporated to include both the older and younger generations for reciprocal mentoring to promote preschool teachers¡¦ development of technological pedagogical content knowledge.

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

En stor del av unga barn spelar digitala spel på sin fritid och flera studier har visat på positiva effekter på ungas engelskaförmåga genom detta. Med tanke på dess potential för lärande vore det intressant att undersöka lärares uppfattningar om dem och hur de använder dem. Syftet med detta arbete var att undersöka på vilka sätt som lärare i engelska för lågstadiet använde digitala spel i sin engelskundervisning samt vilka utmaningar och möjligheter de ansåg fanns i detta användande. Inom ramen för studien genomfördes fem intervjuer med lärare från olika kommuner och skolor i Sverige. Intervjuernas innehåll kategoriserades genom den fenomenografiska ansatsen. Resultatet diskuterades även utifrån ramverken LTC och TPACK. Resultatet visade att alla utom en lärare använde digitala spel i engelskundervisningen i syfte att variera undervisningen eller att motivera eleverna. Bingel och elevspel.se användes mest. Utmaningar som lärarna såg med spelen var tidsåtgången, teknik som strular, en svårighet att anpassa spelen ur ett didaktiskt perspektiv samt att det skulle öka elevernas skärmtid ytterligare. Möjligheterna de såg var motivation, variation, nivåanpassning, mer självgående elever samt att spelen gjorde lärandet lustfyllt. Inställningen till digitala spel verkar bero på ålder, intresse och yrkesverksamma år, samt deras uppfattning om teknologisk och ämnesspecifik kunskap.

Information and communication technology (ICT) has infiltrated society to the point of becoming essential to much of its everyday functioning. People rely on ICT to communicate, access information, and stay connected in an increasing globalised community. In many developed countries, ICT is now strongly featured in education for teaching and learning. In South Africa, as in other developing or partly developed countries, ICT use in education remains limited. This research was conducted to explore and understand how those South African science teachers who have access to ICT use it when they teach science. It was done to explain some of the reasons those teachers use ICT in the ways that they do, and to gain a better insight into the value that using ICT adds to both teaching and learning science. The research was designed as a mixed methods study, using both quantitative data collected from 267 Grade 8 science teachers in South Africa through the SITES 2006 teacher questionnaire, and qualitative data collected from three science teachers, all of whom taught science in a context of limited resources typical of a developing country. The data collected and analysed in this study showed that when science teachers have access to ICT for teaching and learning in classrooms typical of developing country contexts, they are able to use that ICT effectively to add value to teaching and learning. The greatest value is added when the teacher has a high technological pedagogical content knowledge. Secondly, at the level of the teacher, personal entrepreneurship is a key factor in a teacher’s ability to use ICT to add value to teaching and learning and to support the educational objectives based on 21st century learning objectives. Thirdly, teachers use the available ICT resources in a variety of ways but it seems that access to a personal computer, either laptop or desktop, in the classroom is a minimum requirement for ICT use in subject teaching. And lastly, the gap between ICT policy intentions as outlined in the South African e-Education White Paper (DoE, 2004b) and ICT practice remains large. There was no evidence from this study to suggest that the ICT policy intentions influenced practice at classroom level. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

Förekomsten av sociala medier och den stora mängden digital information som människor kommer i kontakt med kräver digital källkritisk kompetens så att informationen kan granskas och värderas. Bristfällig digital källkritisk kompetens bland människor kan få negativa konsekvenser både för individer och för samhället som helhet eftersom det riskerar leda till att människor fattar beslut på bristfälliga grunder. Skolan är en arena där elever kan utveckla digital källkritisk kompetens och därför är det viktigt att lärare som ansvarar för utbildningen själva behärskar digital källkritik.Examensarbetets syfte är därför dels att undersöka verksamma samhällskunskapslärares (i årskurserna 1–3) digitala källkritiska kompetens, dels att undersöka samt kartlägga lärares undervisning inom digital källkritik, samt ämnesinnehållets relation till kursplanen i samhällskunskap.Undersökningen baseras på intervjuer med sex verksamma samhällskunskapslärares muntliga beskrivningar gällande deras digitala källkritiska kompetens och gällande hur de arbetar med digital källkritik i undervisning. Lärarnas utsagor har analyserats utifrån begreppet pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), samt utifrån vidareutvecklingen till begreppet technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK), som inkluderar ämneskunskaper, pedagogiska kunskaper och tekniska kunskaper.Resultatet visar att lärarna i studien generellt sett verkar ha bristfällig digital källkritisk kompetens och upplever att de är i behov av kompetensutveckling. En slutsats är att detta kan få negativa konsekvenser för undervisningens innehåll och metodval, vilket i sin tur kan ha negativ inverkan på elevernas kunskapsinhämtning och framtida kunskaper. Ytterligare en slutsats är att bristfällig digital källkritisk kompetens kan få allvarliga följder för demokratin eftersom det riskerar leda till att människor fattar beslut på bristfällig information.

This dissertation reports the results of a conceptual analysis of the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) framework, particularly its component constructs of technological content knowledge (TCK), technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK), and TPACK (the central component of the framework listed earlier). First, a technical use analysis reveals how existing research has defined and exemplified the constructs. Next, interviews with leading TPACK researchers further refine the constructs. The dissertation then reports cases that illustrate each of the constructs and the boundaries between them. The conceptual analysis results in an elaborated model of the TPACK framework, focusing on the essential features of each construct to facilitate classification of future examples. The analysis also reveals that TCK, TPK, and TPACK do appear to be distinct constructs. The boundaries among constructs are elaborated through a discussion of the sliding nature of the framework and the nature of the instructional strategies that are enacted.

There are big differences when it comes to access to digital teaching resources between Swedish school units. Previous research indicates that the digital resources that are available in schools are not always integrated into the teaching practice. A lack of resources will affect the teachers’ ability to, as stipulated in the curriculum, integrate digital resources into their teaching. It is therefore of interest to examine teaching practice in a school with good access to digital resources. The aim of this study is to develop an understanding of a few teachers’ attitudes and opinions of digital resources within the context of reading and writing acquisition in primary school. Additionally, the teachers’ knowledgebase in relation to digital resources will be examined. Lastly the study aims to provide ample examples of how digital resources can be integrated into teaching practice. The study used a combination of data collection methods namely observation and semi-structured interviews and the teacher knowledgebase was analysed using the TPACK-model. The results show that all teachers in the study have strong positive attitudes towards the use of digital resources in their teaching practice and that their TPACK knowledge is at a high level when it comes to teaching practices concerning reading and writing acquisition at a primary school level. Courage to implement digital resources into teaching practice and the teacher’s personal interest in technology are identified as key components for effective development of digital competence in the context of teaching. Hands on examples of how digital resources are used in teachers everyday work life are also presented. / Det finns stora klyftor när det gäller tillgång till digitala resurser i undervisningen mellan svenska skolor. Tidigare forskning indikerar att de digitala resurser som finns inte alltid integreras i undervisningen. Brist på digitala resurser påverkar lärares möjligheter att integrera dem så som styrdokumenten stipulerar. Det är således intressant att undersöka lärarverksamhet i en skola med god tillgång till digitala resurser. Syftet med undersökningen är att skapa en bild av några lärares upplevelser av digitala resurser i läs- och skrivundervisningen i årskurs F-3 och undersöka lärarnas kunskapsbas i förhållande till digitala resurser, samt att ge en bild av konkreta praktiknära exempel på hur denna integrering kan göras. Studien kombinerar observation och semi-strukturerad intervju som datainsamling och lärarnas kunskapsbas analyseras enligt TPACK-modellen. Resultaten visar att lärarna är odelat positiva till digitala resurser i undervisningen och att deras kunskapsbas utifrån TPACK-modellen när det gäller läs- och skrivundervisning i årskurserna F-3 är på en hög nivå. Modet att våga prova samt ett eget intresse av att utveckla digital kompetens identifieras av lärarna som centrala egenskaper för professionell kompetensutveckling. Konkreta exempel på hur digitala resurser används i lärarnas vardag framkommer också.

The purpose of this study was to examine how government teachers make decisions regarding the type of technological tools they incorporate in their instruction. As a case study of two teachers, this work was oriented by the question: How are U.S. Government teachers' beliefs and perspectives about learning and teaching reflected in their pedagogical practice and use of technological tools. There is little work about how teachers prepare students for the 21st century. Teaching U.S. Government or about the U.S. government has been ignored in much of the research of social studies classes. Additionally, most studies that examine the use of technological tools in the social studies classroom have either investigated the use of non-digital tools specifically or the use of digital tools specifically. Few studies combine how social studies teachers use both non-digital and digital tools in their instruction. My goal was to shift the gaze and include the swirl of influences shaping U.S. Government teachers' decision-making process as when both types of technological tools are used with their classes. This study has its antecedents in my desire to examine Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge, TPCK. TPCK is a theoretical framework that posits that technological knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and content knowledge are the key elements to understand teachers' instructional choices. The findings in this study indicate that while TPCK can offer teachers a framework to help begin to understand knowledge bases one could consider when planning class instruction, it falls short of providing the complete picture necessary to describe teacher decisions. / Ph. D.

Flera lärosäten erbjuder distansutbildningar, det betyder att någon typ av webbaserat verktyg används. Verktyget, en så kallad lärplattform, fungerar som ett stöd för lärande, undervisning, administration samt kommunikation genom olika funktioner. En lärplattform är kopplingen mellan lärare och studenten i en distanskurs.  Tidigare forskning visar på att det finns bristande kunskaper i att planera och genomföra en distanskurs med stöd av en lärplattform bland lärare. Forskning kring lärares teknikkunskaper, färdigheter samt användandet av en lärplattform bland högre utbildning är låg och behöver forskas vidare på. Studien undersöker vilka befintliga funktioner i en lärplattform lärarna väljer att använda för att planera och genomföra en distanskurs. Där syftet med studien är att få en förståelse för vilka strategier lärare använder för att planera och genomföra en distanskurs med stöd av en lärplattforms befintliga funktioner. Studien utgick från en kvalitativ interpretativ ansats där datainsamlingsmetoden semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes. Sju lärare på Högskolan i Halmstad intervjuades individuellt. För att analysera empirin skapades en kodbok med litteraturdrivna kodord ur ett teknopedagogiskt perspektiv. Svaret på studiens frågeställning är att lärare använder huvudsakligen tre olika strategier för att planera och genomföra en distanskurs med stöd av en lärplattform. / Several universities offer distance education, which means that they use some type of web-based tool. The tool, known as a Learning Management System (LMS), acts as a support for learning, teaching, administrating and communicating through different features. The LMS is the connection between teacher and student, a platform used to distribute course material and to communicate. Previous research shows that there is a lack of knowledge among teachers on how to plan and implement a distance education with the support of a LMS. The knowledge about LMS usage in practice at higher education are low and needs to be researched further. The study examines the existing features of a LMS that teachers choose to use, to plan and implement a distance education course. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of which strategies teachers use when planning and implementing a distance learning course with the support of a LMS existing features. The study used a qualitative interpretive approach in which the data collection method, semi-structured interviews were conducted. Seven teachers at Halmstad interviewed individually. To analyze the empirical data a codebook was created with literature oriented code word from a technological pedagogical perspective. The answer to the study's question is that teachers mainly use three different strategies to plan and implement a distance learning course with the support of a LMS.