Learning design as a vehicle for developing TPACK in blended teacher training on technology enhanced learning

Kyparisia Papanikolaou,Katerina Makri,Petros Roussos

doi:10.1186/s41239-017-0072-z

Abstract

This paper presents a framework for constructivist pre-service teacher training in Technology Enhanced Learning, adopting a view of teachers as designers of innovative content, working individually and/or collaboratively, discussing and interacting with the instructor, technology and their peers. In such a context, a challenging issue is the content and structure of appropriate activities for cultivating various types of synthetic knowledge combining technology, pedagogy and content through asynchronous collaboration. In this paper, we elaborate on the social orchestration of a training course around collaborative design activities and on the emerging challenges from two successive cycles of implementation. We highlight the elements used to expand and augment online interaction, drawn from two known approaches in teacher training and online learning, the TPACK (Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge) framework and the CoI (Community of Inquiry) model. We specifically examine a) the impact of synthetic design activities to the development of pre-service teachers’ synthetic knowledge (of Technology, Pedagogy and Content) and b) the relationships among specific elements of TPACK and CoI. Findings drawn from the examination of pre-service teachers’ perspectives through two structured questionnaires reveal important potential of synthetic activities for teachers’ TPACK development and highlight specific connections among elements of the TPACK and CoI frameworks.

Highlights

Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) design by teachers is an inherently challenging task (Mor & Winters, 2008) addressing realistic workplace needs whilst simultaneously revealing several complex design preoccupations. Ruthven (2007) identifies key structuring features in TEL integration, requiring from teachers to shape their craft knowledge : working environment, resource system, activity format, curriculum script and time economy
Conclusions and future plans As regards the effect of design activities, it is interesting to point out that synthetic, intellectually provocative design activities seem to address, to a great degree, Technological and Pedagogical Knowledge as well as synthetic types of knowledge including technology (TCK, TPK, TPACK), a finding which confirms the need for viewing teacher digital literacy in an integrative way (Angeli & Valanides, 2005; Jang, 2008; Koehler et al, 2007; Wilson, 2003, Ruthven, 2009)
Pedagogical Content Knowledge and Content Knowledge are less affected, a finding pointing a) to the need to address audiences with no perceived gaps in these two types of knowledge and b) to the potential of this design for in-service teacher training, as in-service teachers are an audience in constant interaction with PCK and CK through their everyday teaching practice

Summary

Introduction

Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) design by teachers is an inherently challenging task (Mor & Winters, 2008) addressing realistic workplace needs whilst simultaneously revealing several complex design preoccupations. Ruthven (2007) identifies key structuring features in TEL integration, requiring from teachers to shape their craft knowledge : working environment, resource system, activity format, curriculum script and time economy. Research on the implementation and validation of the TPACK framework in higher education remains limited, while the challenge of sustaining meaningful collaboration online is an ongoing research pursuit (Brindley, Walti, & Blaschke, 2009) This is the focus of our work which proposes a course format organizing TEL training around learning design tasks gradually preparing pre-service teachers to face the challenges of combining technology, pedagogy and content, in a way that promotes the sense of community through online collaboration. TPACK provides a blueprint for designing activities (collaborative design tasks) to cultivate appropriate synthetic types of knowledge, whilst CoI functions as a mechanism for organising teacher-trainees’ interaction around design goals that incrementally lead them to develop their cognitive presence and jointly construct meaning This framework was tested in two successive cycles that provided adequate experience to evaluate and optimize the intersection of TPACK with CoI and the way both could support the design of a pre-service teacher training course with a collaborative design-centered perspective. The specific research questions addressed are: 1. What is the effect of synthetic design activities (individual/collaborative, f2f/on-line) both on simpler and more synthetic types of knowledge?

What relationships can be drawn among TPACK and CoI elements?

Final presentation

Conclusions and future plans