A Mixed Methods Study : Assessing and Understanding Technology Pedagogy and Content Knowledge Among College Level Teaching Faculty

Abstract

Online higher education has grown rapidly over the last decade. While online higher education has improved access for many students, it suffers from the problem of higher learner attrition. Student persistence engagement in online learning may be enhanced through improvements in instructor technology and pedagogy knowledge. This mixed-methods study on online learning is an exploration into the online instructional faculty's knowledge of integrated Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge (TPACK). TPACK has been used to assess teaching in the K-12 classroom setting and is currently being utilized as an assessment in the U.S. Department of Education's Race to the Top grant selection process. This study applied the TPACK framework to college level teaching faculty to assess their technology and pedagogy knowledge, their TPK, and TPACK. The primary research questions of this study were, What is the level of TPACK among college level teaching faculty within a diverse college at a large, private four year university?, What processes do online higher education instructors use in developing their technological pedagogical knowledge of new technologies? and What techniques do instructors with high TPACK utilize to engage online students?The study began as a quantitative study and measured the level of TPACK among college level teaching faculty. A qualitative method followed with one-on-one interviews of nine selected instructors demonstrating high TPACK components. Quantitative findings of the study indicate that there is high technology, content, pedagogy, and technological pedagogical knowledge amongst the college level teaching faculty within the college studied. The level of full, integrated TPACK amongst the faculty has not fully been explored due to limited data on content knowledge. Qualitative findings of the study indicate that the college level teaching faculty instructors are engaged in high impact practices with their online students that demonstrate their TPACK skills and that the college level teaching faculty use their TPK to assess inclusion of new technologies tools in the online classroom.Keywords: TPACK, Technology, Pedagogy, Online Learning, Student Persistence, Learner Engagement%%%%Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management – Drexel University, 2014