Allein in einem Feld aus Kacheln: Herausforderungen für Lehrkräftefortbildner*innen bei der Konzeption und Durchführung von Online-Fortbildungen

Despite the ever-increasing number of online professional development (OPD) courses, few studies have examined online education for mathematics teachers. This article reports on a case study of discourses in an OPD course for mathematics teachers concerning the convergence and influence of discourses in course seminar discussions and in mathematics teaching in school when course participants are given the task of translating their insights into actual teaching, with a focus on the participants’ discussions of their own and one another’s video-recorded lessons. The analy- sis shows that there is a convergence of discourses in the seminars and in the school context related to a focus on concepts and everyday life connections. However, the study also suggests that there is a risk of students remaining outside in an ”everyday discourse”, in which knowledge of mathematics might be useful, but mathematics is discussed in imprecise and simplified terms.

Engaging K-12 Teachers in Technology Tools to Support Electronic and Mobile Learning Through an Online Professional Development Course With the rapid expansion of access to collaborative technology tools and mobile devices, mobilelearning (“m-learning”), has quickly spread into the k-12 environment. While electronic learning(“e-learning”) is viewed as electronically supported learning and teaching where a stationarycomputer and access to the internet are involved, m-learning can occur anywhere at any time andsupports a society that is constantly becoming more mobile. Today, teachers can use resourcessuch as podcasts to enhance their lesson plans, provide support outside of the classroom tostudents and parents, participate in professional development, as well as engage students in thedesign and production of projects that can be shared through portable technologies such as mp3players and mobile phones. Podcasts can deliver content in audio and/or video formats atanytime and anyplace without requiring the user to be connected to a computer.In 2009, NASA awarded Georgia Tech a contract to develop online professional development(PD) courses for STEM teachers. The Technology Integration Certificate consists of four coursesdesigned to help teachers become more comfortable with technology tools and integrate them intheir classrooms. Among the courses within the Technology Integration Certificate, the Engageand Educate – Podcasts In The Classroom course provides participants with examples of howpodcasts can be integrated in classroom lessons to engage students in STEM disciplines. Duringthe course, the pros and cons of podcasts are examined and participants are introduced to thetools and techniques for creating podcasts. Through an on-line blog, participants review podcastscurrently available through iTunes and other interfaces and share their views on each podcast’spotential usefulness in a classroom setting. For a final project, participants create their ownpodcasts, first designing them using storyboards and then creating an mp3 file that is sharedthrough an RSS feed.The Engage and Educate – Podcasts In The Classroom course was piloted in the spring andoffered in the summer of 2010. A formative evaluation was conducted where qualitative datawas collected from the following sources: online evaluations by course participants, threadeddiscussions, and focus groups consisting of course participants. These data revealed not onlyhigh satisfaction with the course but also showed that teacher participants understood thebenefits of using podcasts in the classroom. Further, they agreed that the use of podcasts in theclassroom will engage students in learning through the opportunity to express their opinions,argue points of view, and share ideas.In this study, we will describe our online courses and their impact on teachers’ professionaldevelopment. In addition, upon completion of the podcast course, we will investigate thelongitudinal effects of the course by exploring how podcasts were used in the classroom setting.The principle research method employed in this study is to develop aggregate narratives. Thenarratives describe the effectiveness of the podcast course from the perspective of each courseparticipant.

This article investigates teachers' lived experiences of an online professional development (OPD) course in Denmark – that is, Teknosofikum – through a hermeneutic phenomenological perspective, and it relies on the interpretive analysis of 15 semi‐structured interviews. The article's contribution focuses on the theme of ‘time’ and highlights it as a multifaceted construct that plays a relevant role in learning. By relying on the ideas of temporal structuring and multiple temporalities, the article shows that OPD courses and HE teachers' engagement nest themselves into pre‐existing and complex nexus of commitments and duties, each of which has its own temporality and rhythm, along with longer‐term aspirations for pedagogical development. As time emerged as a relevant aspect characterizing OPD course design and HE teachers' experiences, the article provides simple recommendations for ‘time‐aware’ OPD courses.

Music teachers in urban, suburban, and rural communities face a multitude of challenges and opportunities. To identify and examine specific experiences that may be unique to rural general music teachers, we recruited six teacher-participants to complete a 5-week online professional development (PD) course for this exploratory study. We created a teacher-led approach for this PD, implementing topics and solutions generated by the participants. Using qualitative content analysis, we found two categories of themes in the online discussion posts that either connected or disconnected our participants with other music teachers on their general music context or their geographic setting. Although participants clearly articulated the influences of setting and place-based pedagogy, we found shared issues related to general music that transcended location. Implications for future PD include the importance of online delivery methods and developing PD differentiated by teaching contexts and geographic settings.

While design principles for effective teacher professional development (PD) courses have been empirically identified in comprehensive studies, they have not yet been well disentangled with respect to the contribution of specific design elements. This particularly applies for digital online PD courses and for teachers with different prior knowledge. In this paper, we investigate two design elements for the systematizing phase (videos vs. discussions) of a synchronous online PD session with regard to their differential effectiveness for teachers’ professional growth in pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and their emotional and motivational reactions to the PD. In our focused randomized controlled trial, 102 mathematics teachers (with heterogeneous PCK) participated in 2‑hour online PD sessions on specifying, noticing, and enhancing students’ understanding of multiplication with various PD inquiry activities. In the systematization phase, teachers were randomly assigned to two treatment conditions: the video group watched a systematizing video (i.e., a video that summarizes the PCK elaborated during the session) and the discussion group had small-group discussions about individual summaries. In both groups, teachers’ reports about emotional and motivational reactions to the PD revealed similarly high values, and their PCK improved significantly from pre-test to post-test. Analyses of variance with repeated measures revealed significant differences between the treatment conditions for teachers with low prior PCK: Teachers with low prior PCK who watched the systematizing video developed their PCK significantly more than those who discussed in small groups. In this way, the study contributes to disentangling the differential effects of design elements in online PD courses for teachers with heterogeneous prior knowledge.

Background: This paper presents the pilot testing of an online professional development (PD) course for New Zealand (NZ) speech-language therapists (SLTs) working with Māori with stroke-related communication disorders (predominantly aphasia). Taking a public health approach and focusing on the context of Māori as Indigenous peoples in a colonised society, the course lays the foundation for aphasia management for Māori. It consists of two modules. Module One addresses health inequities, social determinants of health, racism, the Treaty of Waitangi, cultural safety and power inherent in the role of the SLT. Module Two includes specific information about providing therapy for Māori stroke patients (particularly those with aphasia) and family members and working with Māori health colleagues. Aim: The primary aim was to ascertain the impact of the course on participants’ clinical practice with Māori with aphasia. A secondary aim was to examine participants’ assessment of the content and delivery of the course. Methods & Procedures: This was a qualitative longitudinal pilot study. Eleven SLTs completed the online course, immediately followed by a survey in which they gave feedback on the course and named three activities they would do to apply their learning in the following six months. Eight participants were available for interview six months later. Interviews aimed to ascertain what participants learned from the course, how they applied their learning and how the course could be improved. Interview data were analysed using a “general inductive approach”, in conjunction with responses to the survey. Outcomes & Results: Interview findings were divided into two main themes – “putting it into practice” which revealed what participants learned and how they applied their learning and “keeping it at the forefront” which focused on maintaining that learning and practice, including reflection on the course content and delivery. All participants were positive about the course and all would recommend it to colleagues. Conclusions: The pilot testing revealed that participants made positive changes to their practice as a result of their learning. Challenges inherent in completing the course and applying learning and suggestions for improvement were also identified. Although the course content is NZ-specific, many of the ideas in the course are relevant to numerous multiethnic contexts across the world in which the speech-language therapy culture in service delivery could be impacted by issues such as power, racism, and inequity.

s qualitative study aims to explore teachers’ opinions on traditional professional development (PD) courses and their experiences from an online course. 10 teachers from a private school participated in an online professional development (PD) course. After completing the course, they evaluated their PD experience. A focus group discussion and individual interviews were performed to collect data. The teachers determined the problems in traditional PD courses and online PD courses. They generally emphasized the lack of practice in both traditional and online PD courses. Further, abundance of theoretical concepts and context independent examples are determined as other problems. They proposed that PD programs should be developed together by both academician and expert teacher.

Computational Thinking (CT), one of the necessary and fundamental skills for students in the 21st century, is gaining more attention in K-12. The premise of integrating CT with other subjects is to promote school teachers with high self-efficacy in CT. Towards this, we developed a three-week Scratch online professional development(PD) course based on MIT CT framework, then implemented an online training among 84 primary and secondary school teachers from different subjects including Chinese, Mathematics, English, and Computer Science. To examine the effect of its impact on teachers' self-efficacy in CT, a quasi-experiment method of a single group pretest-posttest was conducted, and quantitative and qualitative data were collected from scales, artifacts, and interviews. The results revealed that the online PD course significantly improved teaching self-efficacy in CT of these teachers. The findings indicated that online PD integrated with MIT CT framework through block-based programming was a potential approach to effectively promote teaching self-efficacy in CT for primary and secondary school teachers.

Physical Educators face significant challenges in including students with disabilities. To address this issue, appropriate professional development must be provided. Traditional professional development is limited by barriers such as cost, time, location and availability. The purpose of this randomised experimental design study was to determine the effectiveness of an Online Professional Development (OPD) course, built upon Adult Learning Theory and Mayer’s principles, to provide physical educators with increased knowledge about, and motivation to implement, a peer tutoring programme. Results revealed that (a) participation in an OPD course resulted in a significant increase in knowledge related to peer tutoring for physical educators who participated in the OPD course, and (b) participation in the OPD course resulted in over 70% (n = 15) of teachers applying lessons learned from the course to their PE classes. Discussion involves an interpretation of findings and an analysis of issues relating to OPD including application of OPD lessons to the class, dropout, and future considerations for OPD and inclusive physical education.

Online educational opportunities provide improved access to high quality professional development for the early education and care workforce. Online and technology mediated learning can create sustainable education and development opportunities for states when face-to-face training is financially prohibitive. This study examined one state’s efforts to design and deliver a set of online professional development courses. Through survey research methods, the study examined the experiences of both the trainers and the early educators in these online and technology-mediated professional development courses. In this study, findings indicated that early educators used technology for personal use, but they may be less familiar with learning technologies. Our findings indicate that some early educators do have the technology skills and comfort with technology needed to use the online modules for professional development and to benefit from this format, but most early educators still preferred using both technology and feedback from an instructor or supervisor when engaging in professional development. More research is needed on how to make technology literacy and technology access available to all early childhood educators.

Online professional development is multidimensional. It encompasses: a) an online, web‐based format; b) professional development; and most likely c) specific objectives tailored to and created for the respective online professional development course. Evaluating online professional development is therefore also multidimensional and as such both important and difficult. The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the structure of an evaluation model developed and used to evaluate a custom‐built online professional development course, emphasizing how the evaluation model fits within and contributes to better understanding of online professional development evaluation. A hybrid model is conceptualized as one solution to this problem. The conceptualization of the hybrid model is presented in theoretical terms. This is followed by a concise summary of its application to an online professional development course.

Online professional development programmes have a long tradition in adult education. However, in early childhood education, such programmes are only just beginning to be developed. Before online professional development courses can be made inclusive, accessible and widely available to early childhood educators, they must meet a few basic requirements. The present study provides insights into essential aspects that need to be considered when setting up online professional development programmes, a field which is still in its infancy in Austria. The results of a representative survey ( n = 317) demonstrated that early childhood educators' digital competencies are highly variable and cannot be taken for granted. The survey results also stress the need to provide educators with functional digital devices appropriate to their work environment. Early childhood educators' interest in online professional development programmes is very high, in recognition of the advantages afforded by flexible participation options independent of users' time constraints or location. The development of attractive, compelling and accessible online professional development courses can contribute to current professionalisation efforts in the field of early childhood education. Practitioner notes What is already known about this topic Online professional development has already a very long tradition in the field of adult vocational training but not in Early Childhood Education. The possibility of attending online professional development programmes independent of a participant's time constraints or location is viewed as a particularly beneficial advantage. Online professional development programmes positively affect the professionalisation of educators. For this reason, they must increasingly be integrated into the field of early childhood education. What this paper adds In the field of early childhood education in German‐speaking regions, online professional development training courses are only beginning to be developed. This paper examines the challenges and barriers for early childhood educators associated with implementing online professional development programmes for early childhood educators. The survey was conducted during the COVID‐19 pandemic and includes current data on the ongoing digitalisation boom. Implications for practise and/or policy Online professional development courses should not be understood as competition for conventional face‐to‐face programmes. Instead, they act as a useful supplement. Media competencies are a fundamental prerequisite for everyday professional life—early childhood educators need functional media devices, stable internet connections, and support structures in IT and computer literacy. Early childhood educators require effective instruction in using online professional development programmes to expand online professional development programmes in their field. They must also address compelling topics in early childhood education relevant to educators' practise.

This research study determined the extent of Teachers Participation in Online Professional Development Course, 21st century teaching skills and performance. The researcher utilized the descriptive and correlational design. The respondents of the study were 100 regular teachers of different elementary schools regardless of teaching experience. The researcher utilized the complete enumeration sampling. Mean and Pearson r moment correlation was used to analyze the data. The teachers Participation in online professional development course was rated high. The 21st century Skills and teaching performance were rated high. The instructional competence of the teachers online professional development described as High. Self-management obtained was described as high. Teachers joined the learning course in order to address their needs in relation to the technological advances and changing educational trends of the 21st century teaching. Most of the teachers have manifested the different 21st century skills needed to address the 21st century teaching. They have great performance such as enhancement of self-worth, maintaining their set goals and targets, engaging in a continuous learning process and improve the delivery of basic education

The main purpose of conducting this study was to determine the effects of online professional development courses on teachers’ computer access, teaching skills, and motivation in higher education. This was a quantitative study based on a descriptive research design that collected data through a questionnaire. The population of this study was consisted of teachers of public and private colleges of Narang Mandi city of Punjab, Pakistan. The sample of this study was obtained from four public and four private colleges of Narang Mandi. The sample size was 200 teachers. The researcher adopted the stratified sampling method to select a representative sample. Independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to investigate the effects of an online professional development course on teachers’ computer access, teaching skills, and motivation in higher education. Findings underscore the substantial benefits of online professional development courses in equipping educators with the necessary tools and skills to thrive in the dynamic landscape of higher education, ultimately contributing to the enhancement of their teaching effectiveness and motivation.

In 2011, the American Physiological Society (APS) offered an online professional development course entitled “Writing and Reviewing for Scientific Journals.” This 6‐week course was conducted exclusively online via the Blackboard Learn platform. Fifty percent of the students taking this course had previous online course experience and fifty percent did not. Therefore, this study sought to determine if students with previous online course experience found the online course easier, more useful, and more beneficial than students who did not have previous online course experience. To evaluate these questions, students were required to complete an anonymous post‐course survey consisting of Likert Scale questions and additional comment sections. Surprisingly, students without online course experience tended to find the online course more easy to use than students with online course experience. Additionally, although perceived usefulness of the course components tended to be the same between students from both groups, students with online course experience tended to rate their overall perceived skill strength after the course as higher than the students without online course experience. These finding suggests that prior online course experience may increase students’ perceived benefit of an online professional development course.