Online Professional Development for Teachers

 

Introduction: What is Professional Development?

 

The article “Factors Driving Learner Success in Online Professional Development” defines professional development as “the process of learning and keeping up-to-date in one’s area of expertise both for personal development and for career advancement. (Phu et. al, 2014)”.

 

Most states have professional development (PD) as a requirement that is written into teachers’ credentials (specially standard 6). As a result, districts and individual teachers seek out PD in order to adhere to the requirements and to improve a teacher’s practice. Also, as stated by Phu, “those who engage in professional development are interested in increasing their own skills/knowledge, enhancing their ability to do their work, and lifelong learning (Phu et. al, 2014).” Thus, participating in PD is extremely beneficial and crucial to being an effective teacher.

 

Ca Standards for Teaching Profession:

 

 

Professional development  can be delivered in multiple forms. The most common form is in-service workshops where the district hires a consultant to come in and teach the teachers new strategies, concepts, and curriculum. The other types of PD include school visits, coaching, research, peer observation, and online content (Darling-Hammond et al., 2009).

 

A quick Google search of “online professional development for teachers” yields pages upon pages of results. All the results are courses that can be taken with a single click. This is a drastic changed when compared to Linda Darlings-Hammond’s definition of how professional development is normally carried out:

 

Today, as in previous decades, most professional development for teachers comes in the form of occasional workshops, typically lasting less than a day, each one focusing on discrete topics (such as classroom management, computer-based instruction, student motivation, assessment, the teaching of phonics, and so on), with their connection to the classroom left to teachers’ imaginations (Darling-Hammond et al., 2009).

 

Due to this ineffective type of professional development (PD), there has been a change in the way professional development for teachers is delivered. Although face to face professional development (PD) is still the norm, the amount of online PD is growing daily. This new form of PD is allowing teachers to access through the internet,  “new sets of experiences, skills, resources, and knowledge that will support them as they implement the ideas they have studied in the field (Holmes et al., 2011).”

 

Why Online?

 

There are many benefits to completing professional development online. According to Chris Dede’s article “A Research Agenda for Online Teacher Professional Development”:    

 

Online teacher professional development (oTPD) is popular due to the need for professional development that can fit teachers’ busy schedules and that provides access, as well as ongoing support, to important resources not otherwise affordable or even available locally (Dede et. al, 2009).

 

Teachers are busy. Plain and simple. Online professional development (OPD) allows teachers the flexibility to access and acquire information on their own schedules. Accessibility is not the only benefit, however. There are a myriad of benefits that are gained from OPD.

 

The Benefits for Teachers:

 

Cost: Online professional development can be very affordable compared to single or multiple day conferences, or live workshops. Whereas districts may need to pay for lodging, food, transportation, and sub costs for teachers to attend a multiple day conference, registering for an OPD may eliminate some or all of those costs. This is an immediate financial gain for a district. The reason this is appealing to teachers is because teachers often incur the costs of their own professional developments (Darling-Hammond et al., 2009). As a result, online professional development provides an economical alternative.

 

Convenience:  The online environment incorporates a level of convenience for the participant, as it can eliminate the need for travel, childcare, and scheduled class sessions (Holmes et al., 2011). Also, teachers may be pulled out from class less as a result of attending fewer in-service days (Richardson, 2015), which can only benefit students.

 

Learner Centered experience and content: Whether synchronous or asynchronous, the online approach to professional development focuses directly on the learner (Holmes et al., 2011). Also, the amount of material that is available through online courses often dwarfs many in-person options. This allows the participant to really research and choose which topic best fits his/her needs.

 

Multiple options:

 

As stated above, there are many types of options available to educators when it comes to OPD. Below are a few examples:

 

Webinars: Live meetings that are broadcast online and accessible to participants. The webinars are often archived to allow participants to review the information at anytime.

 

Online synchronous course: Course where all participants follow the same timeline for activities and assignments.

 

Asynchronous Course: Course that is participant centered and allows students to complete activities and tasks on flexible time schedules.

 

Online lecture: Audio or video lecture that is posted online.  

 

Online tutorial: Video Tutorial that is posted online.  are all types of professional developments that are available for the learner.

Current focuses of Online Professional Development:

 

As stated before, there are a myriad of online courses available to teachers on various topics. Because education is a constantly changing field due to various factors, the topics available to potential participants vary greatly. The current focus of education is the switch the Common Core Standards and topics that are closely related to the Common Core.

 

21st century skills: This content focuses on three types of skills to teach students: Learning and Innovation skills, Information, Media, and Technology Skills, Life and Career Skills.

 

Technology: This content focuses on training teachers and/or students in different types and uses of technology.

 

Special Education: This content focuses on training teachers to better meet the needs of students with special needs.

 

ESL: This content focuses on training teachers on how better to serve students whose first language is not English.

 

Classroom Management: This content focuses on training teachers on various forms of classroom management techniques.

 

Flipped Classroom Pedagogy: This course focuses on training teachers how to effectively flip their instruction. (See the video below for more info)

 

 

Overall, there is a large amount of online professional development content available to educators.

 

Administrative Criticism and Fears:

 

Joan Richardson of aasa.org states that, “educators are grappling with many issues related to online learning. One concern that cuts deep on both sides is whether online learning can be as effective as face-to-face learning (Richardson, 2015).” The issues that Richardson states are as followed (Richardson, 2015):

 

     Lack of technical and logistical readiness

     Cost (for those who are not able to already support the technology)

     Standards

     Fit for districts and learners

     effectiveness of teaching practice

     effectiveness of students achievement

 

The concerns are valid. However, some of the concerns could be said of traditional forms of professional development. If these concerns are to be addressed, it would require both administrators and teachers to evaluate the content beforehand to see if it meets the needs of both. Thus, quelling those fears and allowing both parties to get the most out of the online professional development opportunity. 

 

There is no clear-cut, universally accepted and successful form of professional development. There are, however, multiple forms of professional development available to teachers that are convenient, cost-effective, and learned-centered. Online development is one of these mediums and it provides teachers with a vast amount of opportunities that normally would not be available to them. 

 

References:

 

Darling-Hammond, L., Chung Wei, R., Andree, A., & Richardson, N. (2009). Professional                

learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Oxford, OH: National Staff Development Council. http://learningforward.org/docs/pdf/nsdcstudy2009.pdf

 

Dede, C., Ketelhut, D. J., Whitehouse, P., Breit, L., & McCloskey, E. (2009). A research

agenda for online teacher professional development. Journal of Teacher Education,

60(1), 8-19.

 

Holmes, A., Signer, B., & MacLeod, A. (2011). Professional development at a distance: A

mixed-method study exploring inservice teachers' views on presence online. Journal of Digital

Learning in Teacher Education, 27(2), 76-85. Retrieved from

http://search.proquest.com/docview/822506354?accountid=10357

 

Phu, V., Vien, C., Lan, V., & Cepero, J. (2014). Factors Driving Learner Success in Online Professional

Development. International Review Of Research In Open & Distance Learning, 15(3), 120-139.

 

Richardson, J. (n.d.). Online Professional Development. Retrieved April 17, 2015, from http://www.aasa.org/SchoolAdministratorArticle.aspx?id=10710&terms=joan richardson

 

Videos and Images:

 

Docstoc. "CALIFORNIA STANDARDS FOR THE TEACHING PROFESSION_2_ by hcj,"  Docstoc. 2010. JPEG. 4 16 2015.

 

Edvation.  [edvation]. (2013, 02 25). Online Professional Development for 21st Century Teachers: pd21. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rGqSi3io5o

 

Knowledge Delivery Systems. (2014, Sept 19). The flipped classroom: Personalized learning for students everyday  [Video file]. Retrieved

     from https://youtu.be/UB-FICOiQNk

 

Lepi, Katie. "9 Places To Find High-Quality Online Professional Development." Edudemic. 2013. JPEG. 4 16 2015.

 

Pelochino, Melissa. [Melissa Pelochine]. (2014, 02 07). 2 Minute PD Mental Set 3 #2minPD. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZcGnO6BWVc

 

p21. "FRAMEWORK FOR 21ST CENTURY LEARNING." (n.d.) P21. JPEG. 4 16 2015.

 

Toppo, Greg. [Tedx]. (2012, 11 21). A different way to think about technology in education: Greg Toppo at TEDxAshburn. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D17P3kqB3_0.