Other Teacher Education and Professional Development Commons^™

Clearing The Pathway To Chemotherapy Certification For Inpatient Nurses, Shari Lee Kellen Rn, Ocn, Onn

Master's Projects and Capstones

Abstract

A clinical nurse leader (CNL) project was conducted, in a medical-surgical oncology unit in a community-based hospital, to evaluate and improve upon the decreasing number of chemotherapy certified nurses. A Likert survey of the nurses provided a self-assessment of competency in handling chemotherapy patients, and perceived barriers to achieving chemotherapy certification. The surveys revealed that nurses felt fearful of exposure to hazardous medications, that chemotherapy assignments were too stressful, and that there was minimal chemotherapy competency amongst leadership. An education program was implemented, covering proper use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and safe handling, practicing resilience to mitigate stress, …

Professional Development And Educational Policy: A Comparison Of Two Fields In Education, Linda E. Martin, Sherry Kragler, Denise Frazier

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The purpose of this paper is to compare two fields of research related to school reform: professional development and educational policy. A content analysis of the literature in both fields revealed two areas where they align (i.e., a focus on teachers’ professional development and the idea that change takes time) as well as two areas where there are differences (i.e., theoretical grounding of each field and planning for teachers’ learning). Considerations for successful school reform are suggested.

Escribiendo Para Desahogarme: Release And Resistance In A Middle School Bilingual Writing Workshop, Carla Espana

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation examines a teacher’s language ideologies, their impact on curriculum modifications and bilingual Latinx middle schoolers’ storytelling, to understand how a bilingual pedagogy builds on their cultural and linguistic resources. This qualitative study was conducted in a sixth grade writing workshop class in New York City as the focus teacher taught the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project Personal Narrative Unit of Study. The first two findings center on the factors that influence a teacher’s stance on language practices and bilingual pedagogy, and how these contributed to curriculum modifications that included using students’ full linguistic and cultural repertoires, integrating …

Teacher Emotion And Learning As Praxis: Professional Development That Matters, Joanne Yoo, Don Carter

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This ethnographic study analyses the diverse emotions emerging within one teacher professional development workshop that engaged teachers as creative writers. Participating teachers revealed a vibrant range of positive and negative emotions as they worked within institutional discourses that conflicted with their intrinsic beliefs about effective teaching. They revealed their emotional investment in their roles and their desires for meaningful practice in spite of pressures to abide by managerial practices. Researchers documented high levels of vulnerability, engagement and hope as participants engaged in writing as ‘praxis’ to experience their beliefs about effective pedagogy firsthand. These findings suggest that since teaching and …

Exploring Effective Professional Development Strategies For In-Service Teachers On Guiding Beginning Readers To Become More Metacognitive In Their Oral Reading, Sharon M. Pratt, Anita M. Martin

Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts

This case study explored professional development centered on explicit teaching strategies with in-service first-grade teachers as they engaged beginning readers to consider stronger self-awareness of their thinking processes as they read. In this paper, we report on how teacher beliefs shifted regarding the impact of explicit versus implicit instructional practices that increased their students’ metacognitive awareness and regulation. Teachers adopted specific instructional strategies over the course of the professional development that positively impacted their students’ achievement, including one teacher’s use of peer coaching. As teachers observed their students doing more than they thought they were capable of, their beliefs about …

A Content Analysis Of Images Of Novice Teacher Induction: First-Semester Themes, Jennifer R. Curry, Angela W. Webb, Samantha J. Latham

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The powerful nature of novice teachers’ experiences in their first years of teaching has been well documented. However, the variance in novices’ initial immersion in the school environment is largely dependent on perceived personal and professional support as well as the environmental inducements that lend to novice teachers’ success in the classroom. For the purposes of this study, 72 participating novices, who were participants in an alternative certification program, drew representations of their current teaching environments. Of the 72 initial participants’ pictures, 58 were used in this content analysis. The interrater analysis involving multiple documentation of codes between and among …

The Relationship Of Formative Assessment To The Professional Development And Perspective Transformation Of Teachers, Kimberly K. Snyder

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Theses and Other Student Research

This study uses practitioner research to explore teacher perspectives about formative assessment. The researcher engaged in a four-month-long series of professional development sessions with one middle school and two high school English-Language Arts teachers from the Capital View School District. Understanding formative assessment as a process to monitor student learning and then customizing instruction based on the data gathered from the formative assessment is a complex skill in which teachers need practice and even coaching to become adroit. The sessions were intended to help early-career teachers better understand formative assessment and incorporate it as a strategy in their teaching praxis. …

Adapted Physical Education: Where Does It Stand?, Danielle M. Wilkins

All Capstone Projects

Sixty-six teachers were surveyed regarding adapted physical education. The three types of teachers surveyed were physical education, special education, and general education. The teachers' perceptions to the importance and necessity of adapted physical education were analyzed. The findings showed most physical education teachers felt training was inadequate in their preservice program, as well as in professional development to teach students with disabilities. Discussion of the results and implications for further research are provided.

Professional Competence To Promote Resilience For Children Living In Poverty, Jenna M. Voss, Susan Lenihan

Journal of Early Hearing Detection and Intervention

Poverty has a tremendous impact on the educational results of all children, including those who are deaf or hard of hearing. With targeted, evidence-based interventions during the first three years of life, Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) professionals can protect children from the numerous risk factors which impede development. While EHDI professionals often serve children and families living in poverty, it remains the case that the professional preparation programs offer limited instruction and experience in how to best serve children and families living in poverty. The purpose of this study was to explore professional preparedness to serve children who …

Building Professional Development Opportunities In Data Services For Academic Librarians, Suzanna Conrad, Yasmeen Shorish, Amanda L. Whitmire, Patricia Hswe

Libraries

Research data management represents a significant professional development area for academic librarians –significant for its growing importance to the profession, since researchers are increasingly expected to comply with research data management requirements, and for the extent of competence needed by librarians to support researchers in research data management practices and plans. This article recounts how the Association of College and Research Libraries is fostering professional development opportunities in research data management. The authors describe two key endeavors: (1) the development and deployment of a needs assessment survey, which allowed insight into the types of librarians expressing the most need; and …

Professional Development Needs Of Turkish Teachers In An Era Of National Reforms, Tuba Gokmenoglu, Christopher M. Clark, Ercan Kiraz

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

An emerging consensus in the teacher education literature confirms that supporting educational reforms and improving designs for national programs can be accomplished simply by maximizing the match between teachers’ expressed needs and the content by which those professional development needs are met. This paper presents an interpretation of findings on Turkish teachers’ in-service training needs during an era of massive reform. The findings indicate that teachers do not report a strong need for any professional development program content. Analyses are based on survey data from 1,730 Turkish teachers from 352 primary schools. The results raise the discussion of whether teachers …

Improving Motivation, Engagement And Differentiation In Lesson Development Using An Interactive White Board: 10-Hour Workshop Cycle Toward Professional Development Certificate, Leslie Lieman, Jenelle Fiori, Naliza Sadik

Publications and Research

The School of Education prepares aspiring teachers for teaching in 21st century classrooms by offering intensive interactive white board training cycles. In designing interactive lessons, the workshop cycle focuses on the pedagogical decision making that can improve classroom teaching and student engagement and understanding.

An Introduction To The Standards For Preparation And Professional Development For Teachers Of Engineering, Jackson E. Reimers, Cheryl L. Farmer, Stacy S. Klein-Gardner

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

The past 30 years have yielded a mature body of research regarding effective professional development for teachers of science and mathematics, leading to a robust selection of professional development programs for these teachers. The current emphasis on connections among science, technology, engineering, and mathematics underscores the need for similar research into the nature of effective professional development for teachers of engineering. With this in mind, this paper completes a review of the literature concerning effective professional development for teachers of engineering, both as a unique discipline and as a context for teaching and learning in other subjects. The results of …

Are You Ready To Be A Mentor? Preparing Teachers For Mentoring Pre-Service Teachers, Angelina Ambrosetti

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The use of mentoring has nowadays become a predominant practice for the professional placement component of pre-service teacher education programs. Research however has identified that being an effective teacher doe not make you an effective mentor. The present research investigated the role of professional development in the preparation of mentor teachers for their mentoring roles. Specifically, this paper presents the findings of a pilot mentoring preparation course that engaged mentor teachers in developing their knowledge about the nature and process of mentoring, and the roles of mentors and mentees. Data about changed understandings of mentoring and changed mentoring practices of …

Naspa’S New Professionals Institute: Exploring The Personal And Professional Impact Of A Two-Day, Intensive Professional Development Experience, Ashley Stone

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Professional development experiences, like professional development literature, are vast. While existing professional development literature discussed the needs for and barriers toward professional development as well as the benefits and types of professional development experiences, no research existed about NASPA Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education’s (NASPA) New Professionals Institute (NPI), an intensive, two-day leading professional development experience for student affairs professionals who have been in the field for less than five years. Therefore, I conducted a phenomenological qualitative study, which explored the meanings NASPA’s Region IV-West NPI participants made of their two-day professional development experience as well as the personal …

Reflective Blogging As Part Of Ict Professional Development To Support Pedagogical Change, Sarah J. Prestridge

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Reflection is considered an inherent part of teacher practice. However, when used within professional development activity, it is fraught with issues associated with teacher confidence and skill in reflective action. Coupled with anxiety generally associated with technological competency and understanding the nature of blogging, constructive reflection is difficult for teachers. This paper focuses on the reflective quality of teachers’ blogs. It describes teachers’ perceptions and engagement in reflective activity as part of an ICT professional development program. Reflective entries are drawn from a series of blogs that are analysed qualitatively using Hatton’s and Smith’s (1995) three levels of reflection-on-action. The …

The Long Journey: Developing A Model Of Pld For The Future, Hazel Owen, Merryn Dunmill

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper presents the longitudinal learning journey of two educators who participated in the Virtual Professional Learning and Development programme (VPLD) between 2010 and 2013. Each participant’s story of change describes the process and outcomes of their involvement in a future-focused environment of virtual mentorship supported by a tailored online community of practice.

The paper discusses and conceptualises (via an inclusive framework for professional development) key findings. Evidence is shown of shifts in the educators’ beliefs about learning and teaching, corresponding changes in professional practice, and the impact on student learning experiences.

The three interconnecting dimensions of the Inclusive Framework …

A Study Of A Professional Development Initiative To Increase Cultural Competency, Jennifer C. Coleman

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

A STUDY OF A PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE TO INCREASE

CULTURAL COMPETENCY

By Jennifer Crowe Coleman, Ph.D.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2014

Major Director: Charol Shakeshaft, Ph.D.

Professor, Department of Educational Leadership

School of Education

While there are broad, societal forces that contribute to achievement gaps, the professional development of teachers is one way educational leaders have sought to improve schools, improve teacher performance, and increase teacher knowledge and skills. Given the achievement and cultural gaps that exist between teachers and …

A Primer For Mathematical Modeling, Marla A. Sole

Publications and Research

With the implementation of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics recommendations and the adoption of the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics, modeling has moved to the forefront of K-12 education. Modeling activities not only reinforce purposeful problem-solving skills, they also connect the mathematics students learn in school with the mathematics they will use outside of school. Instructors have found mathematical modeling difficult to teach. To successfully incorporate modeling activities I believe that curricular changes should be accompanied by professional development for curriculum developers, classroom teachers, and higher education professionals. This article serves as an introduction to modeling by …

Emerging Critical Literacy In Teachers As Novice Researchers, Jennifer Mitton Kukner

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper explores the experiences of three teachers as novice researchers as they taught full-time in a university English language school in Turkey. Viewing the participants’ experiences as researchers through a narrative understanding of teacher knowledge and a critical literacy lens enhanced their critical cognisance of their positioning as women instructors in a higher education setting. Their research experiences were shaped not only by their classroom concerns but also by expectations and larger social narratives that lived beyond their classroom doors. This study focuses specifically upon English language teachers and acknowledges the intersection of gender roles and contextual constraints as …

An Exploratory Study Of Teacher Empowerment And Technical Education In Kentucky, Lee Ann Wall

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teachers’ perceptions of empowerment and principal use of power within career and technical education in Kentucky. The researcher posits that, with the continual process of educational reform, principals need to understand what empowers teachers to perform as additional expectations and responsibilities are being mandated.

The researcher used a mixed methods design to examine power bases that career and technical education teachers perceived were used by their principals to identify teachers’ perceived empowerment, as well as influencers and barriers. Data were collected with a survey and two open-ended questions from …

The Value Based Professional Development For Teachers’ Attitude, Behavior And Enhanced Professionalism : A School Based Intervention Through A Whole School Improvement Program (Wsip), Khush Funer Murtaza, Abida Begum, Sharifullah Baig

Professional Development Centre, Gilgit

This paper highlights the strategies and approaches employed to bring about positive changes in the attitude and behavior of the teachers and enhance their sense of professionalism in a girl’s high school of Gilgit Baltistan Pakistan. In addition to that, it illuminates the successes, challenges and the influence of these strategies and approaches on the overall school environment. These interventions were part of the one year long whole school improvement program(WSIP) exercised by PDCN in the academic year 2009-10 of the particular school. The strategies started with vision building, team building and task delegation, distributing the leadership and teacher empowerment, …

“I’M Teaching What?!”: Preparing University Faculty For Online Instruction, Susan Ohara, Robert Pritchard

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The percentage of higher education students enrolled in online courses has increased from 9.6 percent in fall 2002 to 33 percent in fall 2010. Due to the increased importance of online courses and programs on university campuses there is a need to better prepare novice technology faculty for the delivery of these courses. This article provides a description of the process through which a group of faculty with low to high technology skills prepared to deliver an online masters program. Minutes of meetings, documents produced, online discussion transcripts, and informal conversations were all used as data to analyze outcomes of …

Education Preparation To Respond To The Needs Of Homeless Children & Youth: Perceptions Of School Personnel, Sarah Elizabeth Harris

Honors Scholar Theses

Each year, 1.5 million children spend at least one night in a homeless situation (Public Broadcast Station, 2009). These students struggle to achieve academically with schooling that is inconsistent in both location and curriculum and living conditions that are not conducive to homework and study. This study examined educators’ perceptions of homelessness and the academic and social needs of homeless students, as well as the preparation that teachers and other school personnel report that they have received in pre-service preparation programs and through professional development opportunities to address the unique needs of homeless children and youth. The project explored educator …

Learning From Mentoring Relationships Within And Between Higher Education Institute Staff, Sinead Mccann

Staff Articles and Research Papers

As part of the PERARES project, staff on the Programme for Students Learning with Communities (SLWC) in DIT have been formally mentored by staff at Queen’s University Belfast, with over 20 years experience fostering community-based research (CBR) projects. This paper shares both experiences of the invaluable support, insight and practical guidance emerging from this mentoring relationship, and considers early outcomes from a pilot of informal mentoring relationships in DIT between academic staff experienced in CBR and staff starting CBR projects with students for the first time.

Assessing Content Knowledge And Changes In Confidence And Anxiety Related To Economic Literacy In A Professional Development Program For History Teachers, Julia M. Rollison, Larry H. Ludlow, Todd Wallingford

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of a Teaching American History professional development program on content knowledge, and confidence and anxiety associated with teaching economic literacy. Two content assessments and a confidence and anxiety instrument were administered to teachers prior to and immediately following a two-week Summer Institute. Statistically significant findings included an increase in economics content knowledge and an increase in confidence combined with a decrease in anxiety. The scale and measurement model employed to examine status and subsequent change should be useful for similar professional development initiatives and evaluations.

Exploring The Effectiveness Of The Learning Community As A Form Of Professional Development And A Catalyst For Changing The Beliefs And Practices Of Family Child Care Providers, Jennifer Gerdes

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study explored the influence of a 12-hour professional learning community for family child care providers in an urban Midwest city on the participants’ beliefs and practices. A secondary purpose was to explore the potential of the professional learning community as a format for professional development of family child care providers. Data for this study were collected in multiple ways including participant journals, field notes, recordings of learning community sessions, and collected artifacts from learning community provocations. For this group of family child care providers, the learning community was a useful format for professional development. The learning community influenced growth …

Building Leadership: The Knowledge Of Principals In Creating Collaborative Communities Of Professional Learning, Chad M. Dumas

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Research literature is replete with the importance of collaboration in schools, the lack of its implementation, the centrality of the role of the principal, and the existence of a gap between knowledge and practice--or a "Knowing-Doing Gap." In other words, there is a set of knowledge that principals must know in order to create a collaborative workplace environment for teachers. This study sought to describe what high school principals know about creating such a culture of collaboration.

The researcher combed journal articles, studies and professional literature in order to identify what principals must know in order to create a culture …

Searching For Patterns Of Discourse In A Sea Of Professional Development: Professional Learning And Teacher Discourse, Brian T. Whitney

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Professional development, like a sea of changing tides, ebbs and flows through a myriad of professional trends. Some of these trends have disenfranchised teachers from the core of professional learning while others have empowered teachers to confront change with passion and courage. As collaboration continues to gain popularity as an empowering and effective route to professional learning, scrutinizing the effects of professional development on teacher discourse will ensure desired outcomes are achieved.

While collaboration holds the power to break down some of the isolation that exists in the teaching profession, talk alone, void of inquiry and reflection, will not necessarily …

Enhancing Science Teachers' Understanding Of Ecosystem Interactions With Qualitative Conceptual Models, Marion Dresner, Monica Elser

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The project described in this article explores how a series of conceptual ecological models can be used to portray the improvement in ecological understanding over the span of a short course. The course involved high school teachers working collaboratively on ecological research projects. Teachers were asked to construct qualitative conceptual models (a diagram of important ecosystem components and the linkages between these components) and write explanatory essays at three points during their research experience. The progression in development of teachers’ models spanned initial intuitive explanation, with misconceptions, to the post-test elaboration of a more complex and accurate understanding of ecological …