International Professional Development Research Articles

On the effects of Erasmus+ KA 1 mobilities for continuing professional development in teachers’ biographies: A qualitative research approach with teachers in Portugal

For several years, the European Commission has been investing in transnational mobility projects, namely Erasmus+, for the continuing professional development of teaching and non-teaching staff of schools for the sole purpose of improving the quality of education, as well as to establish networks of communications where teachers and schools can share their best practices and experiences. Although necessarily nestled in a proactive and positive school culture, these projects also have an impact on teachers professionally, but also on a personal level. This article therefore aims at studying how these international teacher professional development experiences change teachers’ biographies and their narrative expressions and possibly transform how they identify themselves personally, as European citizens, and professionally as European teachers. Empirical data collected through a multiple case study in Portugal appears to confirm that a considerable shift in professional and personal identity occurs through the participation of Erasmus+ KA1 projects for teacher professional development.

Developing critical consciousness for culturally responsive teaching: an international teacher exchange program

ABSTRACT The increasing diversity of the student population in classrooms across the United States demands the adoption of pedagogical principles based on the concept of culturally responsive teaching. This study adopts the notion that culturally responsive teaching only becomes possible when teachers implement self-reflection and critical consciousness. Using a qualitative approach, the authors aimed at examining the effects of an international professional development experience on a group of elementary teachers from the United States and Costa Rica with a focus on their perceptions about linguistic and cultural diversity in schools. The analysis of the interviews and reflective journal entries revealed that participation in an international teacher exchange program prompted participants to examine their personal beliefs about education and question, not only their own instructional practices, but also broader school systems and policies related to language, culture, and ethnicity.

Teacher Professional Development in Higher Education: Perspective of Non-Native Chinese Language Teachers in Nigeria

Through a qualitative design approach, this research explores the perceptions of Six Nigerian non-native Chinese language teachers (NNCLTs) regarding their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) activities, highlighting its accessibility, relevance, usefulness, and significance in enhancing teaching quality and professional growth. With Andragogy theory underpinning this study, various CPD activities of Nigerian NNCLTs were identified which includes workshops, seminars, and international exchanges. Findings reveal that while many Nigerian NNCLTs recognize the importance of CPD for their professional development, they face significant barriers such as financial constraints, inadequate logistical support, and a lack of tailored content that addresses their specific needs. Participants expressed mixed feelings about the usefulness of CPD programs, with some reporting positive impacts on their teaching practices, while others criticized the relevance and organization of the training. The study underscores the necessity for improved CPD frameworks that are responsive to the unique needs of NNCLTs, emphasizing the importance of consultation and collaboration in program design. Additionally, the research highlights the value of more international professional development opportunities, which were perceived as beneficial for networking and skill enhancement. Finally, the study offers recommendations for enhancing CPD initiatives, thereby contributing to the overall quality of Chinese language education in Nigeria.

Reflective Perspectives of Host and Guest Participants of an International Professional Development Experience

Reflective Perspectives of Host and Guest Participants of an International Professional Development Experience

EVOLUTION OF THE RESEARCH MANAGER AND ADMINISTRATOR JOB AS A STAND-ALONE / SELF-CONTAINED OCCUPATION IN THE US UNIVERSITIES

This study aimed to explore and analyse the evolution of research administration and management as a profession using exploratory and thematic analysis. The exploratory research methodology used some features of a narrative review to collect statistical data. The thematic analysis was used as a qualitative research method to identify and analyse patterns or themes in data. By reviewing primary and secondary sources dedicated to the occupation, the study found that research management and administration has evolved significantly over the past few decades in the USA universities as a self-contained occupation, requiring specialized knowledge and skills to perform the role effectively. The analysis found that during the growth, professionalization, and globalization phases of the job, the topic of research managers and administrators being seen as servant leaders was discussed in the literature, and the job was linked to the positions such as mediator/expediter, mediator/regulator, and project manager. Professional education and certification, as well as international professional development, were used to educate and train research managers and administrators during the phases. Research development and the introduction of technology-mediated tools into research administration were identified as contributors to occupation evolution. The analysis of the technical aspects of the RMA job revealed that the main theme for the publications was policy, procedures, and process compliance, with the focus on regulation interpretation and application, intellectual property legislation, technology transfer/patent rights legislation, accountability issues, institutional evaluation, contract legislation, etc. Further research is needed in exploring the impact of external factors, such as changes in funding and policy environments, on the role of research managers and administrators. Another issue for further investigation is how the job responsibilities of research managers and administrators is changing nowadays due to the increasing use of technology in research.

Procedure of recognizing the results of non-formal and informal education in the training of bachelors and masters of specialty 016 “Special Education”(based on the analysis of the experience of EU countries)

The article analyses the problem of recognition of the results of non-formal and informal education in the training of bachelors and masters of specialty 016 “Special Eduacation” based on the analysis of the experience of EU countries on the results of international advanced training of scientific and pedagogical staff “Use of informal education in the training of bachelors and masters: experience of the EU countries and Ukraine”. Non-formal education is considered as “education obtained under educational programs and does not provide the award of state – recognized educational qualifications at the levels of education, but may result in the assignment of professional and/or the award of partial educational qualifications”, while informal education is an independent activity of the individual, which is related to the profession, social or other activities, family or leisure. It is needed to take into account the results of non-formal and informal education of applicants as an innovative component ; the main results of international professional development are given. Characteristic aspects of the implementation of these types of education among applicants for higher degree of specialty 016 “Special Education” are given. The use of these types of education, as well as the mechanism of their validation and re-crediting of loans to applicants, as the result of the implementation of the experience gained in the subsequent training of applicants of specialty 016 “Special Education” in Kharkiv National Pedagogical University named after G.S. Skovoroda. It is emphasized that positive practice at Kharkiv National Pedagogical University named after G. S. Skovoroda is the existence of a procedure for recognizing the results of training of applicants obtained in non-formal and/or informal education, which are regulated by the relevant provision. The results of training obtained by applicants through informal and/or non-formal education are recognized in accordance with the established procedure in the formal education system.

Advancing Excellence in Transgender Health: An International Professional Development Conference on Affirming Care for Transgender and Gender Diverse People.

Increasing workforce capacity to provide knowledgeable, skilled, and affirming care for transgender and gender diverse people is critical to reduce health inequities; however, few clinicians receive sufficient training on this topic. This article describes Advancing Excellence in Transgender Health (AETH), an annual international conference that offers continuing professional development on evidence-based medical and behavioral healthcare for transgender and gender diverse people across the lifespan. Registration data and post-conference evaluation data were descriptively analyzed to assess conference reach, participant satisfaction, and participant intentions to change practice. Between 2015 and 2022, AETH trained 2677 participants from all US states and 24 countries. Based on post-conference evaluations, 2017-2022, participant satisfaction was high (mean ≥4.4 on a 5-point scale) on all measures, including meeting learning objectives, quality of presentations, and relevance to practice. Participants reported intentions to: implement new information or skills (86.7%); create or revise protocols, policies, and/or procedures (63.2%); and seek additional information (64.2%). To increase equity, the conference waives fees for transgender and gender diverse participants and offers free online sessions. The conference also holds sessions specifically for transgender and gender diverse participants to promote opportunities for community-building, self-care, and professional networking. The broad reach of AETH demonstrates a large demand for more continuing professional development on transgender and gender diverse healthcare. This conference has expanded the availability of training designed to increase and enhance clinical workforce capacity to meet the health needs of transgender and gender diverse communities in the US and across the world.

Negotiating the impact of international experiences on professional identity development: A case study of Chinese college English teachers.

This study traced changes in Chinese college English teachers’ professional identities as a result of participating in international professional development programs and examined how the teachers negotiated their professional identities upon return to China. Five college English teachers with at least 10 months of overseas professional development experience took part in the study. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and relevant documents. It was found that international experiences had a great impact on the teachers’ professional identity construction by empowering them to develop multiple identities as language teaching professionals, university academics, and change agents. The teachers’ reconstruction of professional identities upon return to China was not a linear and smooth process. It was a dynamic process of negotiating with the constraints of the personal and professional contexts to which the teachers returned. The study sheds light on the identity development of internationally trained language teachers and contributes to a deeper understanding of the impact of international experiences on the professional development of second language teachers in similar contexts. It has implications for study abroad programs and for home institutions about how to support the long-term professional development of returnee teachers.

The Current Situation and Problems of Teachers' professional Development from an International Perspective and Its Enlightenment to China: based on the results of TALIS 2018

The OECD released a survey report on the global professional development of teachers in June 2019. Through the analysis of the survey report and data information, it is found that the participation of international teachers' professional development is very high, and the content of professional development is diverse. The ways of international teachers' professional development mainly focus on the improvement of discipline knowledge and discipline teaching ability. However, international teachers also face problems such as the conflict between work and professional development, insufficient policy support and so on. The Enlightenment of the above research findings to the professional development of Chinese teachers are: paying attention to the needs of teachers, providing diversified development methods, providing on-site training, providing policy support, and improving the incentive mechanism

The design and impact of professional development activities in a diverse international education reform context

With its aggressive education reform, multinational teaching workforce, and increasing implementation of Western-based approaches, Abu Dhabi provides a rich site for learning more about international policy-borrowing in educational improvement initiatives. This article uses survey and interview data from n = 35 Abu Dhabi public school teachers who participated in a combined total of 297 professional development activities over an academic year. The study examined the design and impact of the professional development activities and the relationships between design and impact in the Abu Dhabi context. The study offers implications for international professional development practice and insights into international policy-borrowing in education.

The multiplicity and dynamics of the interpreter’s roles in mediating cultural differences: a qualitative inquiry based on an international collaborative teacher professional development programme

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the role of interpreters in addressing cultural differences in the context of a cross-cultural collaborative teacher professional development project. Based on positioning theory, this study employed interpreter-mediated interactions and interviews to reveal the complex roles that interpreters played when interpreting culture-related terms. Findings revealed that interpreters' roles were shifting between those of transmitters of information, cultural insiders and constructors of shared understandings between interlocutors. Notably, the lack of training in this specialised field obliged interpreters to rely mainly on their personal experiences to judge which role they should play in the face of cultural differences.

From micro to macro levels of practice: A showcase of a SoTL journey within and beyond classroom experiences

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is closely related to a teacher's journey of personal and professional growth, which initially occurs in the classroom. In higher education, where academics are recognised experts in their fields, SoTL activities are critical for translating educational principles into innovative practices that are consistent with the body of knowledge, thus significantly facilitating the learning process of students. When implemented consistently, two components of SoTL - reflective practice and practice dissemination - have the potential to accelerate growth not only at the micro (classroom) level, but also at the meso (institutional) and macro (national and international) levels. This article showcases a SoTL journey that began with a micro level practice in engineering classes and progressed into meso and macro level implementations. Beginning with student-centred learning approaches designed to assist students with classroom engagement, motivation enhancement and contextualised learning during a challenging course, the practice expanded into institutional-level experience-sharing sessions. This resulted in the development of structured training programmes and later, a centre of excellence. SoTL practice at the institutional level paved the way for national and international professional development training. This reflection showcases SoTL implementation at all three levels while demonstrating the potential for growth from one level to another leading to wide-ranging impacts both within and beyond the classroom.

International Professional Development Cooperation Study Tours for Environmental, Social and Sustainable Development for the Indian Mining Sector

The Key Centre for Mines International, University of New South Wales, Sydney Australia undertook professional development mining education and cooperation training study tours for overseas government fellows and groups as well as private mining companies from 1988 – 2010. During the technical environmental development short courses at the university and visits to Australian mines and government offices, the programs also covered important social and sustainable aspects as well as relevant briefings on government mining law and regulations, industry’s best practice and community engagement. Details are presented for two major successful international cooperation Indian projects, a World Bank mine environment program in 2004 for state government officials and a TATA Steel Limited coal and iron mine executives and managers training program in 2010.
 
 Received: 21 April 2022 / Accepted: 30 June 2022 / Published: 5 July 2022

‘This object really touched me’: using Le Guin’s carrier bag theory to explore stories of the self on an international professional doctorate development programme

ABSTRACT This piece reflects on an innovative introductory workshop for an international professional doctorate development project based on Ursula Le Guin’s ‘Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction’. In the session academic supervisors from four participating countries shared stories about their own experiences of doing a doctorate using a bag of everyday objects which reminded them of their time as students. The exercise gave the group an opportunity to begin to get to know each other and to appreciate the complexity and challenge that completing a doctorate whilst working and balancing other personal and family responsibilities entails. Drawing on humanist pedagogical approaches which value the inner world of the learner and taking inspiration from previous arts based approaches to identity work for education students and practitioners the piece argues for the importance of making space for story-telling about the self from the outset of professional doctorate programmes.

An International Professional Development Collaboration: Supporting Teachers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through an Immersion Program in the United States

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) recently initiated multiple, one-year, school immersion programs to help 25,000 KSA teachers better support KSA students and the KSA education system after spending time abroad in teacher education programs throughout the United States (US). This study explored the effects of one such program, aimed at helping KSA teachers become agents of change. The authors examined how the 46 KSA teachers involved in this program changed. Survey-research and English language tests were used to show that the immersion program yielded its desired effects: the program increased teachers’ sense of efficacy; improved teachers’ pedagogical, content, technical, and English language skills; and enhanced teachers’ understandings of education across nations and cultures, with emphasis on the transfer of features of the US educational system back to the KSA (although teachers were uncertain about the extent to which the transference desired might actually occur). Via supplemental interviews, the authors also identified self-reported influential sources of change. The article examines how these sources of change impacted KSA teachers’ mindsets regarding their teaching. The study confirms that the program influenced participants through their school immersion experiences, given that the program offered KSA teachers chances to learn more about student-centered learning approaches and more customized and individualized care for students.

Design an international blended professional development model for gifted education: An evaluation study

The purpose of this study is to develop and evaluate an international professional development program with a blended learning design in gifted education (i.e., The RITHA program), which is applied globally. By using Design-Based Research, the prototype of this program was examined before it was launched. That process is reported in this study. The main research focus of this study is the blended learning design. Based on the evaluation surveys of training participants, the results showed that participants were highly satisfied with their overall learning in the blended learning model. What was appreciated most was a well-designed course with an instructor to provide good instruction, positive interaction, and quality feedback. The findings show that online courses participants expect synchronous and asynchronous online activities and feedback. The two most mentioned benefits of blended learning seem to be flexibility and the use of asynchronous discussion boards. Implications were also reported.

Changing teachers’ self-efficacy, beliefs and practices through STEAM teacher professional development (Cambios en la autoeficacia, creencias y prácticas docentes en la formación STEAM de profesorado)

ABSTRACT This article presents a STEAM education model based on the use of meaningful contexts for the integrated acquisition of key learning outcomes related to different subjects. The model combines inquiry and the use of socio-scientific issues to promote mathematics and science learning along with the development of critical thinking and the integration of cultural and fundamental values. The evaluation of an international teacher professional development programme using a pre/post-test research design shows the programme’s impact on secondary school teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs, and teaching practices related to the implemented pedagogical model. The qualitative analysis of the teachers’ reflections shows that the most appreciated aspects of the programme are transferability to practice, the pedagogical resources offered, the benefits of the model on students’ learning, the methodological transformation involved, as well as the opportunity to exchange ideas and practices with colleagues in a professional learning community. These results are of great interest since they reveal a powerful way to promote transformational teacher professional development in the STEAM environment.

Experiencing and experimenting: An exploration of teacher agency in an international collaborative teacher professional development programme using experiential learning

This paper investigated Chinese teachers' professional development in an experiential learning programme situated in a cross-cultural context and focused particularly on the role of teacher agency in the learning and localisation of foreign pedagogies. Analysis of interviews and classroom observations revealed the influence of experiential learning on deepening participants’ understanding of foreign experiences. It also highlighted the role of teachers as active agents in recontextualising overseas pedagogical practices in China, either by showing ambivalence towards changes or by developing transcultural pedagogies. The construction of their agency was related to their previous teaching experiences and learning of international perspectives on pedagogy.

International communities of practice: what makes them successful vehicles for teachers’ professional development?

ABSTRACT This study examines teachers’ perceptions of the specific factors and conditions which shape international communities of practice as successful vehicles for their professional development. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with thirteen teachers in Poland who have extensive experience working in a wide range of international professional development settings. The findings indicate that teachers perceived international communities to be a unique platform for their professional development because they offered multi-layered topographies for professional growth; created space for the collective organisation of development activities in diverse, autonomous teams working on challenging topics; and allowed for sharing teaching stories, reflecting on practice, as well as feeling affirmed/affirming others. Based on the results, recommendations are made for future research and policies which enrich communities within and across schools by providing teachers with the flexibility to discover and build international communities.

Leveraging Virtual Experiences for International Professional Development Opportunities during the Pandemic and Beyond.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all spheres of life, including the world of education. Within no time, once-bustling university classrooms were compelled to move online, leaving educators to rely on virtual engagement tools. This in turn heightened the impact of virtual professional development in higher education, not just nationally but also internationally. As we look toward finding means to engage students in effective classroom instruction, there remain parts of the globe that are making this transition to online instruction without cutting-edge technologies. This article highlights the importance of engaging educators in virtual professional development activities as part of international outreach and details one author’s experience using the Avida-ED platform for a novel international teaching partnership. Traditionally, international outreach activities have been pursued through distinct platforms, like Fulbright programs, sabbaticals, and other international collaborations. The ongoing pandemic presents a unique opportunity to propagate professional development activities on a virtual platform by emphasizing scientific teaching practices as they relate to the STEM fields. If undertaken, these endeavors ultimately benefit educators across the globe by not only equipping them with various pedagogical tools and resources for their online instruction but also by establishing international partnerships and collaborations.