Education Commons^™

Professional Capital Across The Careers Of Four Veteran Teachers, Stephanie Brown Tarnowski

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This qualitative study investigated veteran teachers’ professional experiences over 3 decades of their teaching careers. Drawing from professional capital theory (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012), I present 4 veteran elementary public-school teachers’ experiences and development of their professional capital over nearly 3 decades of their careers. I examined 3 dimensions of the professional lives of teachers: (1) the ways in which they developed their teaching expertise; (2) the kinds of decision-making possibilities they experienced; and (3) the kinds of interactions and relationships that were fostered in their professional communities. The research question that shaped my study was: In what ways do …

Hidden In Plain Sight : Knowledge Broker Teachers And Professional Development, Margaret M. Jusinski

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This qualitative study was prompted by initiatives that addressed the need for teachers to engage in professional development that enables them to be 21st century ready. Recommendations put forth by government and business have stressed that professional development foster connected teaching and create networked educators by emphasizing peer-topeer collaboration and sharing. Despite this focus, little attention has been paid to the role that regular teachers play in becoming professional developers for their colleagues. My study investigated how four K-12 teachers, that I termed “knowledge broker teachers,” created new pathways for informal, teacher professional development in their schools.

Extending on the …

Exploring Differences In Practicing Teachers’ Valuing Of Pedagogical Knowledge Based On Teaching Ability Beliefs, Helenrose Fives, Michelle M. Buehl

Department of Educational Foundations Scholarship and Creative Works

In this investigation, we assessed 443 teachers’ beliefs with the Teaching Ability Belief Scale (TABS) and the Importance of Teaching Knowledge Scale (ITKS). Using cluster analysis, we identified four groups of teachers based on their responses to the TABS reflecting Innate, Learned, Hybrid, and Requires Polish perspectives on the ability to teach. A comparative analysis, using the identified clusters, indicated differences in teachers’ valuing of teaching knowledge across the clusters. Teachers in the Learned cluster valued knowledge of theory significantly more so than other groups.