Online Professional Development Research Articles

Navigating the Online Classroom: Developing Online Teaching Skills in Graduate Public Health & Health Professions Education

The absence of targeted online teaching development opportunities in graduate education may hamper faculty readiness to ensure engagement, learning, and student success in the online learning environment. Faculty are often hired for their subject matter expertise rather than their proficiency in teaching online. Student and faculty success in the online environment requires foundational teaching knowledge and an understanding of the differences between traditional and online teaching. A 4-week asynchronous course was designed to mirror a real-world online course aimed at educating educators. The course consisted of foundational learning theories and practices, curriculum and course design, engagement and presence, and course delivery methods. The course was offered 10 times over 3 years and completed by 258 public health and health profession faculty, teaching and postdoctoral staff, and doctoral students. End-of-course evaluations indicated that participants found it valuable to be in an online course in the student role and felt more prepared to teach online. The teaching online professional development course has highlighted the importance of new or continuing faculty development in asynchronous learning.

Exploring the adaptability of TeachABI as an online professional development module for high school educators

ObjectiveEducators often lack the knowledge and resources to assist students with acquired brain injury (ABI). TeachABI, an education module, was created to help elementary school teachers support students with ABI in classrooms. This study examined the adaptability of TeachABI for high school educators. MethodsA qualitative descriptive study explored high school educators' (n = 9) experiences reviewing TeachABI and its adaptability for high school through semi-structured interviews. The interview guide was informed by implementation and adaptation frameworks. Transcripts were examined using directed content analysis. ResultsTeachers felt TeachABI was a good foundation for creating a high school-based education module. Adaptations were highlighted, such as streamlining content (e.g., mental health) and strategies (e.g., supporting test taking), to better meet educator needs. ConclusionsUsing implementation science and adaptation frameworks provided a structured approach to explore the adaptive elements of TeachABI. The module was perceived as a suitable platform for teaching high school educators about ABI. InnovationTeachABI is an innovative, user informed education module, providing a multi-modal (e.g., case study, videos) and replicable approach to learning about ABI. Applying frameworks from different fields provides concepts to consider when tailoring resources to align with educator needs (e.g., grade, class environment) and facilitate innovation uptake.

Studying efficacy of particular design elements in online teacher professional development courses: The case of systematizing videos for enhancing teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge

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.

How Do Teachers Collaborate in Informal Professional Learning Activities? An Epistemic Network Analysis

Teachers turn to many sources for support and professional learning, including social media-based communities that have shown promise to help teachers access resources and facilitate productive exchanges. Although such online communities show promise, questions about their quality for providing a suitable learning environment remain insufficiently answered. In this study, we examine how teachers’ engagement on Twitter (now known as “X”) may adhere to characteristics of high-quality professional development (PD) activities. In that, we employ advanced conversational analysis techniques that extend the primarily descriptive methods used in prior research. Specifically, we collected data from three Twitter communities related to Advanced Placement Biology (N = 2,040 tweets, N = 93 teachers). Qualitative two-cycle content analyses derived both tweet content and sentiment. Using epistemic network analyses, we examined the collaborative structures to examine how participation patterns can identify characteristics of high-quality online PD. Results indicate that some teachers use Twitter with a content focus and coherent to their individual contexts and prior knowledge. Notably, differences in collaboration and participation patterns by teachers’ overall activity level hint at the existence of an online community of practice. More active teachers communicated more about how their individual contexts relate to instruction, whereas less active teachers exhibited more targeted engagement, for instance, related to sharing teaching resources and organizing learning opportunities. Overall, this study illustrates how Twitter may provide a meaningful learning environment to teachers so that it can serve as a relevant avenue for their professional learning.

In search of time: Higher education teachers' experience of an online professional development course

AbstractThis 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.

Teachers’ trajectories of technology integration during participation in an online professional development program

Technology-related professional development (PD) is a crucial strategy to prepare and encourage teachers to integrate technology into their teaching in a high-quality way. During teachers’ participation in technology-related PD, change processes occur from a current to a desired status of technology-enhanced teaching (TET). A higher probability of disruption of TET can be assumed during these change processes. However, previous research on PD is mainly based on cross-sectional data that does not provide insight into such change processes (especially during PD participation). In this study, we examined teachers’ trajectories closely during their participation in a 3-month technology-related online PD (OPD). We conducted a concurrent explanatory mixed-methods approach to analyze longitudinal data from the first four weeks of the OPD, focusing on 23 teachers who completed weekly reflection diaries. Findings from a multilevel framework revealed that most of the variances in the development of teachers’ technology integration (i.e., frequency and quality) and motivation to use technology for teaching (i.e., self-efficacy and utility value) was due to contextual factors. Using linear mixed-effects models, we found a statistically significant decrease in teachers’ quality of TET over time. Analyses of reflections on TET of extreme cases allowed us to identify possible relevant contextual characteristics related to smoother TET: 1) the use of one generic technology across lessons and 2) the use of ready-to-use domain-specific technology. Implications for practice are discussed, such as attention to unintended side effects of teachers’ TET during instructional phases of technology-related OPD.

Navigating the online learning journey by self-regulation: Teachers as learners

Self-regulated learning (SRL) can be defined as the ability of learners to act independently and actively manage their own learning process. This skill becomes especially important in online environments, which allow learners to decide where and how to study. Most research on SRL has focused on students; few studies have addressed teachers' SRL as learners, and only a handful has done so in the context of online learning. A better understanding of teachers' SRL is essential since teachers are expected to support the development of their students' SRL abilities. This study contributes to bridging this gap by examining how online learning patterns reflect the self-regulated learning of teachers as learners in an online professional development (PD) course on nanotechnology. The study applies a mixed methods approach that combines the qualitative analysis of interviews with teacher learners and a personal summary of their learning process represented in four vignettes as well as quantitative log-file analysis to identify teachers' learning patterns. The patterns identified are interval learning, on-track learning, skipping difficult parts, concentrated learning toward the end of the course (i.e., “bingeing”), and watching together. These patterns indirectly shed light on teachers' SRL skills, especially their time management and task strategies, demonstrating that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to learning. The study highlights the need for a holistic approach, provides deeper insights into teachers’ learning experiences, and helps design future online PD courses.

Comparing quality and engagement in face‐to‐face and online teacher professional development

AbstractIn order for teachers to successfully gain new knowledge during professional development (PD), courses must be of high quality and stimulate active involvement from participants. More and more PD courses are taking place online, without clear evidence of whether face‐to‐face and online courses differ in terms of their quality or level of participants' engagement. The present study investigates differences between face‐to‐face and online PD with respect to certain quality characteristics: clarity and structure, cognitive activation, collaboration and practical relevance, as well as participants' behavioural, cognitive and affective engagement. The study is based on 2210 teachers from Germany who participated in 1 of 137 face‐to‐face or 54 online PD courses. Although participants rated face‐to‐face and online courses very positively regarding all quality characteristics and engagement dimensions, they evaluated online courses slightly less favourably compared to face‐to‐face courses. Implications for practice and research are derived to help ensure high‐quality PD offerings in the future. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Face‐to‐face and online PD have the potential to be similarly effective. PD quality and participants' engagement can be assumed to be predictors of PD effectiveness. PD quality contains clarity and structure, cognitive activation, collaboration and practical relevance. Engagement is a three‐dimensional construct composed of behavioural, cognitive and affective components. What this paper adds PD quality was rated very positively for online and face‐to‐face courses. Participants rated the quality of online PD lower compared to face‐to‐face PD. Participants rated their engagement in online PD lower compared to face‐to‐face PD. Implications for practice and/or policy PD format should always be chosen with which a higher benefit can be achieved. Quality assurance should take place before PD is conducted.

Mobile learning and speech technology for language teachers’ professional development

This study aims to investigate the use of mobile learning to provide pronunciation training for lecturers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) from Vietnamese provincial universities. Mobile learning offers a potential solution for the delivery of professional development to lecturers based outside major cities thanks to its capacity to enable learning anytime, anywhere. Mobile learning and speech technology are expected to facilitate lecturers’ self-direct learning to fulfil their professional development needs using their own devices. This paper reports results from a pilot study which serves as the first phase of an ongoing design-based research project. The pilot study was carried out to explore the feasibility of an online pronunciation course and identify potential problems for future course iterations in the context of participants living outside major cities in a developing country. The objectives of the project are to establish and test a set of fundamental principles for mobile learning to be an effective way of providing online professional development for lecturers based outside major cities and to shed light on the necessary adjustments in course design to make it a scalable model for future education planning. In this study, both qualitative and quantitative data were collected during two iterations of an online pronunciation professional development course for EFL lecturers from Vietnamese provincial universities.

CLIL teacher online professional development in translanguaging and trans-semiotizing: a pedagogy of multiliteracies

ABSTRACT Theories of translanguaging and trans-semiotizing have gained relevance in the design of learning in CLIL classrooms. However, while many studies have shown the benefits of these pedagogies, scarce research has explored CLIL teacher professional development (PD) in this field. In this paper, I intend to measure the effectiveness of an online pedagogy of multiliteracies, which embraces translanguaging and trans-semiotizing, to enhance CLIL teachers’ semiotic awareness to design learning experiences that improve students’ comprehension. The study was conducted on a multicultural group of 200 CLIL teachers from Spain, Colombia and Ecuador. They worked with primary and secondary students in multilingual contexts where a Spanish dialect, or a co-official, an indigenous or a Creole language was the L1, and English the L2. The data were collected from two sources, an initial survey and a final essay. The content analysis of the dataset revealed that the learning intervention positively influenced teachers’ pre-existing beliefs and PD. They showed a more accurate conceptualisation of translanguaging and trans-semiotizing, were more aware of their multimodal literacy practices to make new content comprehensible in CLIL classrooms, and identified potential improvements in their communication processes related to the two concepts.

Teachers’ engagement in online professional development—The interplay of online professional development quality and teacher motivation

Effective online teacher professional development (OPD) is crucial to support teachers. The effectiveness of OPD depends on teachers’ engagement. According to offer-use models, teachers’ engagement in OPD relates to the OPD quality and teachers’ motivation to learn. However, whereas OPD activities have increased in recent years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, findings on the importance of OPD quality and teachers’ motivation to learn for teachers’ engagement in OPD are scarce. We analyzed data from N = 593 teachers participating in 61 OPD courses. The predictive power of perceived OPD quality (i.e., clarity and structure, practical relevance, cognitive activation, and collaboration) and teachers’ motivation to learn for their behavioral, affective, and cognitive engagement during OPD were examined using structural equation modeling. We used latent moderated structural equations to gain insights into the interaction effects between OPD quality and teachers’ motivation. Our findings indicate that OPD quality positively predicted teachers’ OPD engagement. When controlling for OPD quality, teachers’ motivation to learn also predicted teachers’ behavioral and cognitive engagement but not their affective engagement. The findings on the interactions between OPD quality and teachers’ motivation demonstrated that for the different facets of teachers’ OPD engagement, different OPD quality characteristics could compensate for low teacher motivation to learn. For instance, for behavioral engagement, opportunities for collaboration can compensate for low motivation. Implications for practice (e.g., ensuring high-quality OPD) and future directions in research (e.g., conducting longitudinal studies) in the field of OPD are discussed.

Beyond Learning by Videoconference: Findings from a Capacity-Building Study of Kosovan Teachers in the Post-Covid-19 Era

During the Covid-19 pandemic, teachers were exposed to technology-enhanced learning as an emergency measure, yet despite decades of advancement in educational technology, the online learning experiences lacked deliberate design. Recent research highlights a gap concerning the design elements of online professional development and teachers’ needs for professional development in online education. Through this Design-Based Research, we therefore sought to offer an intervention in the form of a professional development programme built on the specific needs of teachers. In the present study, we report on the findings from this two-cycle, five-phase online professional development, taken by 90 practising high school teachers across Kosova. The study sheds light on teachers’ experiences and attitudes, as well as their readiness to take hands-on approaches to integrate, when available, complex technologies while leveraging the power of instructional design concepts in the post-Covid-19 era. The evidence indicates that, in order to develop effective teaching capacity in this environment, online professional development programmes must go beyond simple off-the-shelf technology (i.e., videoconferencing) applications. Similarly, our data shows that the inclusion of prior needs assessment in online and blended teacher development instruction positively impacts the development of teachers’ attitudes towards online education. The present paper provides specific recommendations for any innovative education system leader, teacher or scholar hoping to leverage new online learning knowledge to strengthen teacher practice.

Supporting interdisciplinary mental health professionals through online professional development: eleven years of the MHPN webinar program in Australia

ABSTRACT Objective The Mental Health Professionals’ Network (MHPN) has been delivering webinars for professionals working in primary mental health care in Australia since 2010. This study aimed to investigate changes in engagement in and outcomes of MHPN webinars over 11 years from 2010 to 2020. Method Over 11-years, 75 webinars were delivered by a multi-disciplinary panel of mental health professionals, using a case-study format to stimulate discussion of collaborative care. Attendees were invited to complete a post-webinar online questionnaire to assess webinar effectiveness and impacts on work practice. Change over time was assessed using chi-square tests and analysis of variance. Results From 53,468 webinar attendances, 30,617 (57.3%) questionnaires were collated and analysed. There was a steady and significant increase in webinar attendance over time. The degree to which learning needs were met increased significantly over time, as did the relevance of the webinars and their anticipated impacts on improving work practice. Discussion The findings indicate that practitioner engagement in MHPN webinars and the associated positive impacts on work practice have both increased over the past decade. By improving the knowledge, attitudes and practice of mental health professionals, MHPN plays an important role in improving mental health promotion, prevention, early detection and treatment in Australia.

How Does Online Professional Development Program Enriched with Collaborative Discussion Develop Teachers’ Noticing Skills?

How Does Online Professional Development Program Enriched with Collaborative Discussion Develop Teachers’ Noticing Skills?

Role of learning-related emotions, emotion regulation and technology acceptance in learner engagement with online professional development

People have different attitudes toward taking professional training courses online despite the post-pandemic movement towards e-learning in adult education. Limited studies have linked adult learners’ emotions with their attitudes towards technology (i.e., technology acceptance) and investigated their impacts on adult learners’ engagement in online professional development. This study aims to fulfil this gap by testing the mediating effect of technology acceptance between learning-related emotions and online learning engagement in professional development, and the moderating effect of emotion regulations therein. The study draws on the theoretical grounding from Control-Value Theory, Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), and the Process Model of Emotion Regulation. After collecting data from 254 higher education faculty through an online questionnaire, the study applied a partial least squares structural equation model (PLS-SEM) for its results. The findings show that learning-related emotions are associated with technology acceptance and emotion regulation moderates those associations. Furthermore, the results suggest that technology acceptance mediates between learning-related emotions and online learning engagement. These findings strengthen the need to attend to affect in adults’ online learning and stress the importance of emotion in embracing technology for enhancing learning engagement among adult learners.

Teachers’ perceptions of media literacy competence during an online professional development

Teachers’ perceptions of media literacy competence during an online professional development

Leading Schools During a Global Crisis: Kazakhstani School Leaders’ Perspectives and Practices

This paper comprehensively examines how school leaders in Kazakhstan managed schools during the COVID-19 school closures. An online survey was conducted with 1,298 school leaders, representing 17.5% of all Kazakhstani schools. Anchored in the concept of crisis leadership, the instrument measured school leaders’ views regarding teachers’ digital competence, their support toward teachers in digital pedagogy, as well as their practices in communicating with parents and teacher autonomy and monitoring. The results of bivariate tests indicate that a significant proportion of schools offered teachers online professional development opportunities to improve their digital instruction, with school location and size influencing the level of training in digital pedagogy received by teachers. Notably, school leaders’ confidence in their teachers’ ability to teach effectively online increased significantly after receiving training in digital pedagogy. School leaders also maintained regular communication with parents, but this increased their workload, particularly for women and urban school leaders. Most school leaders allowed teachers to choose online platforms and revise curriculum content, while also monitoring teachers’ attendance and observing online lessons. These practices varied based on the school’s medium of instruction. This study significantly contributes to crisis leadership by examining practices during school closures in addressing teachers’ digital competence, communication challenges, and teacher autonomy, with insights on variations by school type, location, and leaders’ gender. The study’s findings have significant implications for post-pandemic school leadership, emphasizing equity in professional development opportunities for teachers, effective communication with stakeholders, and striking the right balance between teacher autonomy and monitoring.

Evaluating the effectiveness and implementation of an online professional development program for health professional educators: The case of Jimma University

The usage of virtual platforms for reforming teachers' continuous professional development (CPD) is becoming more and more necessary in contemporary higher education (HE) settings. For a comprehensive understanding of the implications of this strategy for CPD, research studies from various contexts are required. This study evaluated the effectiveness and implementation of a pilot online professional development (PD) package called the ‘higher diploma program (HDP)’ for health professional educators (HPEs) in the Ethiopian HE context. We used mixed methods in a Hybrid II design. Additionally, a comprehensive e-learning quality framework guided the overall research and integration of the qualitative and quantitative data. The qualitative component includes a key-informant interview (KII) with facilitators, a program coordinator, and a single focus group discussion with HPEs. Additionally, the quantitative component includes a cross-sectional survey of the (HPEs’) responses to a self-report questionnaire. The findings show that this pilot project was feasible and well accepted by the HPEs, facilitators, and coordinators of the project. These participants also perceived several implementation challenges as weaknesses of the pilot project. Mitigating the prevailing challenges requires sustained and collaborative efforts by universities, the education and health sector, and other partner institutions. Our interpretations imply that customizing online PD in HE is, ultimately, a local phenomenon that results from individual motivation and interest, institutional capacity, and contextual factors like access to technology, the quality of online PD resources, and program management.

Real needs, tailored solutions: Developing customized online professional development programs for teachers—A case study

This instrumental case study explored 10 English as a foreign language (EFL) instructors’ perceptions and experiences of participating in an asynchronous online professional development (OPD) program. The study aimed to explore instructors’ professional development (PD) needs, the factors influencing their participation in OPD, and the perceived effective characteristics of the OPD program. Data gathered through individual interviews, reflective reports, and a focus group were analyzed using a reflective thematic analysis approach. The study revealed that the EFL instructors’ limited engagement in reflective practice and continuous PD could potentially result in overconfidence and a lack of awareness regarding their PD needs. Furthermore, the article highlights perceived effective characteristics of the OPD program: flexibility, collaboration, facilitation and organization, reflection, relevance, and practicality. Findings suggest that these characteristics not only contributed to its effectiveness but also promoted instructors’ participation and engagement in the OPD.

The Viability of Topic Modeling to Identify Participant Motivations for Enrolling in Online Professional Development

Identifying motivation for enrollment in MOOCs has been an important way to predict participant success rates. But themes for motivation have largely centered around themes for enrolling in any MOOC, and not ones specific to the course being studied. In this study, qualitatively coding discussion forums was combined with topic modeling to identify participants’ motivation for enrolling in two successive statistics education professional development online courses. Computational text mining, such as topic modeling, is a learning analytics field that has proven effective in analyzing large volumes of text to automatically identify topics or themes. This contrasts with traditional qualitative approaches, in which researchers manually apply labels (or codes) to parts of text to identify common themes. Combining topic modeling and qualitative research may prove useful to education researchers and practitioners in better understanding and improving online learning contexts that feature asynchronous discussion. Three topic modeling approaches were used in this study, including both unsupervised and semi-supervised modeling techniques. The three topic modeling approaches were validated and compared to determine which participants were assigned motivation themes that most closely aligned to their posts made in an introductory discussion forum. A discussion of how each technique can be useful for identifying topical themes within discussion forum data is included. Though the three techniques have varying success rates in identifying motivation for enrolling in the MOOCs, they do all identify similar themes for motivation that are specific to statistics education.