Quality Professional Development Research Articles

Expatriate Teachers’ Experiences with Organizational Factors in International Schools: A Case Study

The purpose of this qualitative, exploratory case study was to examine the personal and professional experiences of expatriate international teachers at international schools to develop a deeper, more heuristic understanding of the international teaching experience, particularly how the experiences might affect their decision to remain at a school past their initial contract period. International teachers are more likely to renew contracts when there is a reciprocity of trust and respect between faculty and administration, authentic appreciation, strong community and access to quality professional development. Participants value strong, student-centered leadership and philosophical approaches rooted in diversity, equity, and inclusion. More research surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion in international schools is required, specifically surrounding administrators and the lack of diversity within international school leadership.

Investigating the motivating factors that influence the adoption of blended learning for teachers’ professional development

Blended learning (BL), a teaching method merging online and face-to-face learning, is lauded for its potential to enrich educational outcomes and tackle challenges entrenched in conventional teaching practices. In countries like Pakistan, where equitable access to quality professional development remains an obstacle, BL is a promising avenue to surmount training barriers. While BL adoption has evolved swiftly, research into its integration within teacher training remains limited. Notably, no comprehensive model exists describing the motivational factors influencing teachers' perceptions and intentions regarding the blended mode of teacher training. This study aims to identify the motivational elements that motivate schoolteachers in teacher training institutions in Pakistan to incorporate blended learning into their programs. The motivational factors identified in BL literature have been employed to craft a motivation model grounded in their causal relationship. This quantitative study examines the interplay between multiple motivational factors and their impact on BL adoption within teacher training and the BL environment. Surveying 350 schoolteachers (participants) from teacher training institutions, we employed Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) techniques with Smart PLS 4.0 for data analysis. Results reveal that extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors significantly influence teachers' motivation to adopt BL for training. Notably, "overall training quality" and "educational environment" were non-influential. Overall, the findings underscore that considering a blend of extrinsic and intrinsic factors can wield a 65 % influence on BL adoption. The study's results provide practical guidance for educational leaders, curriculum designers, and faculty members aiming to cultivate a unified blended learning environment for teacher professional development. These insights also underscore the importance of incorporating essential motivational factors into forthcoming blended learning training programs.

Identifying Teaching and Laboratory Instruction Concerns of Illinois Agriculture Teachers

Concerns of teachers must be identified to provide quality teacher education programs and professional development. The theoretical framework of this study was the Teacher Career Cycle (Fessler & Christensen, 1992). The theory explains that as teachers move through the cycle, their characteristics and professional needs change. The purpose of this study was to identify the concerns of Illinois agriculture teachers of different experience levels. A multi-part instrument of demographic information, two teacher concern statements, and a Likert-type scale of concerns was administered. The sample was divided into three experience groups: early career, mid-career, and late career. The results indicate that certain concerns do change with the level of experience and that mid-career teachers in this sample have the most concerns. We recommend that these results be shared with the Illinois Association of Vocational Agriculture Teachers, universities, state agricultural education staff, and other stakeholders. Those leading professional development should consider years of experience when planning for workshops. Professional development topics on student motivation, funding for supplies, and student safety should be explored.

Cultivating young minds: Exploring the relationship between child socio-emotional competence, early childhood education and care quality, creativity and self-directed learning

Creativity and self-directed learning (SDL) have been identified as two key skills that children need to develop for success in the 21st century. As such, developing such skills has become a priority. High quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) can play a pivotal role in supporting a myriad of children's developmental outcomes. This study uses multi-level modeling on 484 children between 30 and 75 months of age (Mean age = 48) across 87 ECEC classrooms in Toronto. We tested associations between two skills (creativity and SDL), children's social and emotional competence (hyperactivity, prosocial behaviour, and emotional problems) and ECEC quality (professional development, ratios and emotional support). We found significant relationships between children's social and emotional outcomes and their creativity skills, but not their SDL. In addition, the proportion of professional development opportunities conducted onsite was positively associated with children's creativity. Implications for future research, policy and practice are discussed. Educational relevance statementThis study contributes to the understanding of how to support two skills needed in the wake of the fourth industrial revolution. First, we examine the relationship between children's social and emotional development and their creativity and self-directed learning. We then examine the role played by the quality of their early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings as contexts to learn these important skills when accounting for their children's social and emotional development. Finally, we test the robustness of these associations by controlling for important contextual factors (age, months in the program, family income, and maternal education).

NEW APPROACHES TO THE TEACHING OF THEORETICAL DISCIPLINES OF THE "FOREIGN LANGUAGES" CYCLE IN THE CONTEXT OF INFORMATIZATION OF THE EDUCATIONAL PROCESS

The article studies peculiarities of organization of teaching of theoretical linguistic disciplines in the context of informatization of education. It emphasizes the importance of using internet technologies in the system of higher education, reveals main theoretical groundings of their implementation into the educational process and training teachers of English as a foreign language. The author analyses didactic parameters of using web-resources in the process of teaching linguistic theoretical academic subjects, taking as an example Theoretical grammar of the English language. The article gives an overview and brief analysis of some on-line linguistic databases, resources, free language theory courses which are widely available. The author demonstrates various possibilities of using specialized on-line resources for teaching the theory of the English language and organizing research work of undergraduate and graduate students. Reform of higher education in Ukraine is caused the needs of today society due to the building of information society and integration in the global intellectual space dimension. Modification of the requirements of educational process in higher education, its quality and semantic parties should ensure the quality of training to world standards. That is one of the main vectors and targets of the improvement of higher education in Ukraine should create a system of quality assurance and professional development aimed at forming professional independence and acquire new knowledge and skills in the conditions of intensive informational society. In this context particularly urgent search for new and upgrade existing forms of educational process appears. Thus, approaches to teaching theoretical subjects in a foreign language must be updated in view of the need for a informative professional competence. The systematic use of the Internet for relevant practical, research, creative tasks will improve professional skills improvement, skills will form the search, selection and analysis of scientific material. Further research prospects seen in a detailed study of the experience of using online technology in teaching linguistic disciplines at leading universities abroad.

Positive behaviour support under the National Disability Insurance Scheme in Australia: Barriers, enablers and support needs from the perspective of practitioners

AbstractThis paper examines the experiences of behaviour support practitioners providing positive behaviour support (PBS) under the Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), including perceived barriers and enablers of practice, and ongoing support needs. It reports on data provided by NDIS PBS practitioners (n = 392) in a cross‐sectional mixed methods survey employed to examine the characteristics and experiences of behaviour support practitioners working across Australia. Qualitative data from open‐ended questions were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. The key barriers to practice included “the current service systems,” “engaging and collaborating with stakeholders” and “limited PBS expertise across the sector.” Enablers of good practice related to “organisation systems and practice supports/tools,” “practice supervision” and “quality training and professional development opportunities.” Ongoing support needs identified included the need for “further PBS training,” “improved service systems” and “access to clinical supports and practice guidance.” Findings suggest that whilst some practitioners report positive experiences, a large majority experience significant barriers to their PBS practice. They describe potential supports to overcome these barriers, which emphasise the need for further PBS training, clinical supervision/oversight and more efficient service systems. Findings have implications for PBS practice, policy and research in Australia.

Continuing Professional Development for Physical Education Teachers in China: Basis for Teaching Enhancement Program

In pursuit of life-long learning, the teaching profession requires continuing education for institutional promotion, salary increase, and administrative position. Supportive academic institutions increase their teacher’s professional learning in the 21st century to increase their students’ further education and work as well. China consistently invested in their teachers’ professional development but empirical evidence on these programs’ effectivity is limited. Specifically, there is a demand for more quality professional development (PD) opportunities for PE teachers focused on the following reasons: (a) the education standards movement, (b) professional organizations, and (c) a call for research on teaching. Apparently, in China, most of them have not recognized their leading role and undervalued their educational career. Thus, this study revisited the impact of the PD programs in China focusing focus its lens on the continuing professional development (CPD) of physical education teachers to address the urgent call to improve the PE-CPD. Guided by the global Continuing Professional Development (CPD) framework, this study investigated the continuing professional development provided to physical education teachers in China and the results of this investigation would be the basis for their teaching enhancement program. The findings revealed that most of the PE teachers in China were male, middle aged with relative bachelor’s degree and permanent position, and developing teachers with 1-10 years teaching experience. They partly considered their involvement in skill development opportunities and interaction and collaboration, but highly considered their involvement in personal growth and reflection in their continuing professional development. Their level of involvement in continuing professional development were significantly different considering their age, sex, educational attainment, and years of teaching. Moreover, the found professional development about classroom management very effective and impactful but teaching practices about ICT skills has minimal effectiveness. However, there is a significant difference in the evaluation of PE teachers on the effectivity of the professional development when they are grouped according to their age, educational attainment, and years of teaching. Nevertheless, the significant relationship found between the their involvement in professional development (PD) and evaluation on the effectivity of the professional development became the basis for the strategic factors to be integrated in the teaching enhancement program for the CPD of PE teachers in the new normal.

A promising approach to scaling up professional development: intelligent, interactive, virtual professional development with just-in-time feedback

AbstractThe scalability and accessibility of quality professional development (PD) is an ongoing concern in the teacher education community, yet little research has been conducted on potential solutions. We aimed to address this gap by developing an interactive, virtual PD program that uses intelligent tutoring systems and provides instant feedback to teachers. We then explored the role of this program in developing teachers’ content and pedagogical content knowledge of mathematics. We collected data from 60 teachers located across the USA and found that those who completed the program increased their content and pedagogical content knowledge.

Misconceptions Towards Department of Education Advisory: A Challenge in the Philippine Education System

To ensure teachers can provide quality education, it is essential to continuously enhance their knowledge and skills through professional development opportunities, including seminars and training programs. However, ensuring that teachers only attend quality professional development events is critical to preventing incompetence and promoting actual learning. In the Philippines, the Department of Education (DepEd) provides information about professional development opportunities through DepEd Advisories. Unfortunately, many educators misconstrue these as endorsements for events, publications, and other opportunities, although it is just information dissemination, leading to their vulnerability to predatory practices and the exploitation of the document. Issuance of a DepEd Advisory does not necessarily assure the legitimacy of an event or opportunity, and because of this, educators may invest in activities that are not beneficial to their students or careers. The purpose of this study is to shed more light on this problem; the study has aimed to determine the knowledge and attitudes of Filipino educators towards DepEd Advisories and provide recommendations to address the misconceptions. It is crucial to correct these misconceptions and ensure that teachers can access quality professional development opportunities to provide the best education possible. Methodology. The researchers’ employed descriptive research design and a quantitative research approach, involving 200 Filipino educators in various specializations who were randomly selected nationwide. A questionnaire was used as a data gathering tool, while to analyze and interpret data collected, frequencies, percentages, mean scores, T-Test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), and Pearson R were computed. Results. The results highlight the lack of understanding among educators regarding DepEd Advisories. Data indicate that teachers often rely on the presence of DepEd Advisories when deciding to participate in professional development opportunities, considering the document as indicator of legitimacy and quality. However, this reliance exposes teachers to potential risks, as they may fall victim to predatory practices, including fraudulent research conferences, contentious awarding ceremonies, and fake publication opportunities, with the researchers’ observation that DepEd Advisories are also getting issued to questionable events or activities. Conclusion. This research provides information towards the low level of knowledge among educators regarding DepEd Advisories and the misconceptions they hold about its issuance and purpose, which serves as a basis for policy planning and development to ensure that teachers are not deceived and will only access quality learning and development opportunities in the future.

Development, Implementation, and Assessment of a Quality, Research, Education, and Wellness (QREW) Professional Development Lecture Series for Radiology Faculty

Professional development is important to academic radiologists. We developed, implemented, and assessed an internal professional development lecture series focusing on the non-interpretative themes of Quality, Research, Education, and Wellness (QREW). The faculty of a 29-member abdominal radiology division at an academic hospital were invited to deliver 1-hour virtual lectures on noninterpretative topics to division colleagues. Topics were curated by division leadership based on the perceived needs of faculty. Anonymous feedback was collected from attendees for quality improvement purposes and analyzed using descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test. Over 17 months, 13 QREW lectures were delivered. In total, 91 feedback forms were completed by faculty (mean 7 forms, range 2-12 per session). Of these, 57 responses (63%) were by those <7 years post training ("junior faculty"), 34 responses (37%) by those ≥ 7 years from training ("senior faculty"). Most respondents reported low levels of prior instruction (80/90, 89%) and personal knowledge (49/91, 54%) on topics. Compared to senior faculty, a greater proportion of junior faculty reported less prior instruction (73% vs 98%, P < 0.001) and less personal knowledge (32% vs 65%, P < 0.01). Most respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the topics were important to their clinical practice (87/90, 97%), professional development (86/90, 96%), and personal well-being (82/91, 90%). Faculty identified the QREW program as a major contributor to their professional development. A noninterpretative professional development lecture series delivered by radiology faculty in a virtual, interactive format is feasible and effective, particularly for junior faculty.

A 2-Year Evaluation of Professional Development Workshops Focused on Physical Education and School Physical Activity

Purpose: This study evaluated the impact of 1-day workshops on teachers’ knowledge, practices, and dispositions using known characteristics of quality professional development and Guskey’s five levels of professional development evaluation. Method: Eight workshops were evaluated over a 2-year period using pre/post surveys, end-of-workshop surveys, observations, interviews, and artifacts. Results: Participants reported high levels of satisfaction and trainer effectiveness scores at the end of workshops. Statistical analyses revealed improvements in four of six outcome variables 4 weeks after workshop completion: self-reported knowledge, utilization of implementation strategies, presence of a community of continued learning, and teacher efficacy. Qualitative data corroborated these results but offered mixed evidence of teacher implementation and improved student outcomes. Discussion/Conclusion: Findings confirm that 1-day workshops aligned with characteristics of quality professional development are highly valued by participants and can improve teachers’ knowledge and efficacy, but teacher practice and student learning may be more difficult to influence and document.

Macro-Level Social Work Interventions in Schools: Poverty Simulation Programs as Professional Development Opportunities for K–12 Educators

AbstractPoverty continues to be a significant public health crisis across the United States, and its impact is particularly prevalent among school-aged youth and their families. Many K–12 educators do not fully understand the realities associated with living in poverty. Such a lack of understanding impacts teachers’ ability to meet the unique educational needs of students experiencing poverty and develop positive teacher–student relationships. This article sets the stage for further discussion on the lack of quality training, education, and professional development for teachers on poverty. The authors propose a model for professional development aimed at increasing empathy and understanding among K–12 educators through experiential learning tools such as the Community Action Poverty Simulation. The article concludes with an in-depth discussion on implications for future practice and a call to action for school social workers to bring innovative solutions to their campuses that pull from their educational background in advocacy and social justice to enhance teacher training through an interdisciplinary approach.

‘Each person’s experience is different’: speech-language pathologists’ perspectives regarding their pathway to the Australian rural workforce

ABSTRACT In Australia, difficulty recruiting speech-language pathologists (SLPs) into the rural health workforce contributes to reduced accessibility of services and inequitable communication and swallowing outcomes in rural communities. This research explored the experiences and perspectives of speech-language pathology graduates from a regional university regarding their pathway to the rural health workforce. Using a qualitative research design involving semi-structured focus groups, the role and interaction of factors that influenced their rural pathway were examined. The study also investigated how the pathways of speech-language pathology graduates reflected and/or deviated from those identified within other health professions. Participants included eight graduates from a regional university. All participants were female, grew up in rural areas and worked rurally. Reflexive thematic analysis with an inductive approach was conducted to identify and analyze recurring patterns of meaning. Three key themes were identified: returning home and coming ‘full circle back’, ‘having [… the] opportunity’, and working in a team is ‘very important’. A key finding of this study was that connectedness to family, friends, partners, rural communities, supervisors, and other health professionals was strongly influential in participants’ pathway to the rural health workforce. This study also revealed individualized, unique interactions between factors and variations across life stages. The findings of this study suggest that providing accessible speech-language pathology education to rural students and providing quality support and professional development in workplaces may be beneficial in addressing current workforce shortages.

Supporting Responsive Caregiving for the Youngest Children: Psychometric Evidence of the Quality of Care for Infants and Toddlers (QCIT) Observational Measure

ABSTRACT Research Findings: The Quality of Care for Infants and Toddlers (QCIT) observational measure was designed to address the need for a valid and reliable measure of the quality of caregiver-child interactions that could be used in both center-based and family child care (FCC) settings, and with diverse populations. Results from a psychometric field test of 400 classrooms indicated that the QCIT demonstrated strong evidence of reliability and validity. The QCIT was used to capture the quality of caregiver-child interactions for the professional development system We Grow Together. Average scores improved in the QCIT Support for Social-Emotional Development domain. Findings support using this measure to assess quality and focus professional development. Additional research could use the QCIT with other interventions focused on caregiver-child interactions. Practice or Policy: The QCIT provides the field with a reliable and valid measure for examining the quality of caregiver-child interaction in licensed child care settings, both centers and FCCs, serving infants and toddlers. It also provides an evidence-based framework for selecting professional development goals that support the development of infants and toddlers.

Transferring and sustaining technological innovations after professional development: Insights from school leaders and teachers in Sub-Saharan Africa

Desiring technology-related change promotes reform-oriented technology integration to create a lasting impact on education. Nonetheless, most technology projects in Sub-Saharan Africa least achieved this target. Research points to quality professional development (PD) as a significant influence in achieving this. This follow-up study is on a cohort of 6,351 school leaders and teachers from six Sub-Saharan African countries who participated in a digital instructional PD targeted at building their capacity to embed ICT into school organisation and curriculum practices. The study sought to evaluate the impact of the PD programme in relation to the quality and the extent of the participants’ transfer of the programme’s ideas from capacity building to school organisation and classroom practices. A semi-structured survey instrument and diaries, kept to maintain records of activities and events during the period of implementation, were data channels. Findings revealed that stakeholder groups expressed general satisfaction with content and processes of the training programme; however, essential conditions to support transfer of the training’s ideas to school level seemed inadequate during the period of implementation. Implications of the study for effective technology-related PD that have sustainable impact on educational practices particularly in Sub-Saharan regions and similar contexts are discussed in this article.

Professional Development Needs Reported by General Education Teachers at Inclusive Private Christian Schools

As Christian schools offer inclusive education programs for students with significant cognitive disabilities, it is crucial that teachers have access to quality professional development (PD). The purpose of this study was to survey teachers at three inclusive Christian schools about their attitudes and beliefs toward inclusive education, as well as their reported PD needs through the framework of High Leverage Practices (HLPs). Findings suggest that teachers report the most PD needs in the HLP areas of teaching, behavior, scaffolding, resources, comprehension, and progress monitoring. Implications for practitioners and suggestions for future research are included.

Assessing the Impact of Mobile-Based Training on Teachers’ Achievement and Usage Attitude

Teachers' professional development plays a key role in imparting quality education. However, the design and delivery of quality professional development programs is a challenging problem due to numerous issues such as inadequate policies, lack of skilled personnel and training, politically influenced appointments, and dependency on the traditional modes of training. The COVID-19 pandemic has further escalated the situation and severely affected trainers’ and trainees' interest, motivation, and engagement. Due to its ubiquitous, flexible, and cost-effective nature, technology has played a key role in carrying out educational activities even in the pandemic situation. However, little emphasis has been provided on the use of technology for the professional development of teachers. This study investigates the effects of mobile-based training app on teachers learning outcomes and attitudes towards its usage. The training app is based on our enhanced CPD model for teachers' professional development. For the study, 308 in-service elementary school teachers of division shaheed Benazirabad are selected for the training and assessment purposes. To perform the experiments, teachers were divided into two groups: experimental and control. The experimental group contained 158 teachers which were provided training through the mobile app. The remaining 150 teachers of the control group were provided training using the traditional physical appearance. Pre and post-test were designed to examine the effects of mobile-based training on the teachers’ learning outcomes before and after the training intervention. Besides assessing the learning outcomes, the attitude towards the use of the training app was also assessed using the attitude scale. The analysis of results determined that the training through a mobile app has a significant effect on teachers learning outcomes in terms of knowledge, skills, and dispositions. Furthermore, teachers showed a positive attitude towards the use of training app. The experimental group had significantly high attitude scores in post-test toward mobile-based training systems. Teachers’ experience using the mobile app has been perceived as an approach that has significantly increased teaching proficiency. Experimental results suggest that mobile-based professional development modes positively impact teachers' professional and academic achievement and performance to produce a rising number of certified teachers irrespective of time, space, and financial constraints.

Teaching mathematics in post-Apartheid South Africa: the perspectives of teachers of black students

ABSTRACT Using a critical race theoretical lens, we examine how South African secondary mathematics teachers of Black students characterised their preparation in the post-apartheid era, how they portrayed good mathematics instruction, and what challenges they identified as barriers to becoming a good mathematics instructor. We found that teachers characterised their preparation in terms of their students’ achievement, often talked about the importance of teaching their students mathematical skills and procedures, identified challenges associated with using English as the language of instruction, and engaged in student blaming. Implications from this study include prioritising quality professional development for mathematics teachers of Black students that focuses on developing teachers specialised mathematical knowledge. Professional development should also strengthen South African mathematics teachers’ abilities to teach the mathematics register in English and support teachers to examine the detrimental effects of student blaming.

Optimizing the future of language teaching with technology in Japan.

Pandemic-era teaching has taken many forms: online, face-to-face, hybrid, and hyflex, among others. In this article, I make four predictions for the future of language teaching with technology in Japan and provide my recommendations for optimizing this future. First, I predict that online instruction will quickly fall back to pre-pandemic levels without interventions to prevent this. One area ripe for change is in virtual international experiences, such as online study abroad. Second, most institutions will adopt bring-your-own-device policies. Teachers will need more tech literacy to take full advantage of these devices. Third, institutions will recognize a growing variety of learning differences among students and rely on teachers to accommodate them. To support all learners, universal design will become standard. Fourth, although most instruction will return to the physical classroom, teachers will need to be constantly prepared to shift instruction online again. Emergency remote teaching will be inadequate. To prepare to meet these challenges and optimize the outcomes, teachers need quality professional development. Although current offerings from our institutions are inadequate, CALL experts can help to fill some of the unmet needs. I encourage CALL experts to push for the future of technology in education that they would like to see.

Using professional development workshops to support school professionals' capacities to promote students' social, emotional, and behavioral health

AbstractThe objective of this study was to evaluate an innovative model for providing high quality professional development workshops (PDWs) in the context of a Learning Collaborative (LC) based intervention to build the capacities of school professionals to promote the social, emotional, and behavioral health of students. Eleven PDWs totaling 27.5 h were facilitated with 10 school‐based teams. Matched pre‐ and post‐surveys were completed by a total of 177 participants across the 10 teams. Results demonstrate significant increases in participants' self‐reported knowledge, skills, and self‐efficacy from pre‐ to post‐participation in each workshop, as well as high ratings of overall satisfaction. LC‐based PDWs, facilitated by school‐based behavioral health (BH) providers, hold promise for enhancing school professionals' capacities to address the critical social, emotional, and behavioral health needs of their students. Implications for administrators, school‐based BH providers, partnering community‐based agencies, and policymakers in sustainably replicating this promising, data‐driven model in schools are discussed.