Browsing by Subject "Professional development."
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Item The acquisition of electronic portfolio support staff expertise : a theoretical model.(2011-01-05T19:39:02Z) Filkins, Daniel Treadgold.; Johnsen, Susan K.; Educational Psychology.; Baylor University. Dept. of Educational Psychology.The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate the different methods in which electronic portfolio support staff acquired their expertise. In this study, five electronic portfolio support staff members served as a purposeful sample for analysis. Data were gathered over the course of one semester using individual and group observations, interviews with each study participants, demographic information, narrative prompts, and concept maps. Data were collected from each of the data sources and analyzed using NVIVO 8. Data were then categorized into thirteen different behavioral categories of expertise taken based on the literature. Further analysis revealed four predominant themes of expertise that were observed from each research participant: (a) domain knowledge, (b) performance, (c) problem solving, (d) deliberate practice in the domain over time, and (e) participation in a learning community. Next, a cross-case analysis was used to study the similarities and differences in the experience of each study participant in their journey to acquire electronic portfolio expertise and knowledge. Findings from the within and across case studies indicated that direct experience with the electronic portfolio was a major contributor of acquisition of expertise for each of the research participants. Domain performance tended to improve as the electronic portfolio support staff member acquired more domain experience through deliberate practice over time. Findings also indicated that problem solving skills improved through direct interaction with the electronic portfolio and through observation of more advanced electronic portfolio support staff members. Within the context of a learning community, the factors of domain knowledge, performance, problem solving, deliberate practice over time, and preservice teacher relationships interacted with one another in producing electronic portfolio expertise.Item Case studies of teachers participating in differentiated professional development for the purpose of student-centered technology integration.(2014-09-05) Montgomery, Mark S., 1973-; Cooper, Sandra Bennett.; Curriculum and Instruction.; Baylor University. Dept. of Curriculum and Instruction.School districts are quickly adopting various technologies in hopes that students can be taught in the same way their technological world works. Common reasons given to justify these expensive purchases include increasing student motivation and appealing to the "digital native." Teachers, however, tend to use technology in more of a teacher assistive role, which includes daily tasks like taking attendance or creating a worksheet. If teachers used more student-centered technology, students would have opportunities to use technology to explore for knowledge, expand their understanding of a topic based on interest, differentiate their own learning by allowing them to spend more time in areas they may not understand, and move along when the topic has been mastered. Students would also have opportunities to create and present their newly found understanding of a topic to the teacher, class, community or other interested individuals. Numerous barriers affect whether a teacher will use technology in roles that are more than just teacher assistive. These barriers differ for each teacher and, therefore, cannot necessarily be overcome by the typical professional development opportunities that currently exist in schools. Typical professional development most often model technology as teacher assistive. PowerPoint presentations or a speaker sharing an idea while an audience passively sits and listens has not been successful, or student-centered technology use would be rampant in schools. This study utilized a differentiated professional development model to try to impact student-centered technology use in classrooms of participating teachers. A differentiated model provides training based on teacher need, interest, and ability. The professional development plans were written by the teacher and trainer and then implemented together throughout the study. Utilizing a case study methodology, this study follows three teachers as they participate in the differentiated professional development model. Each case study was written to explain each teacher's progress through his or her entire experience. Each individual case was analyzed to search for themes that emerged from the data. Finally, all three cases were analyzed together to look for overall themes and findings that might have implications for professional development and/or technology integration.Item Examination of the effect of professional development on the attitudes of pre-service teachers regarding inclusion of students with autism.(2012-11-29) Ward, Angela Kristine.; Ivey-Hatz, Julie K., 1971-; Educational Psychology.; Baylor University. Dept. of Educational Psychology.An experimental design was conducted to examine the change in mean scores of pre-service teachers after targeted professional development. A two-factor repeated measures design was used with professional development as the independent variable and raw scores on The Teacher Attitudes Toward Inclusion Scale (TATIS) as the dependent variable. A total of 65 participants responded to four administrations of the TATIS. Professional development targeting the characteristics of autism spectrum disorders and teaching strategies demonstrated to be effective in the literature was provided to a random sample of the participants. Results demonstrate a change in raw scores of participants in the experimental group following professional development. The scores of the participants in the control group remained constant across administrations of the TATIS. Significant differences were noted when comparing groups of participants specifically between participants majoring in secondary education and those majoring in special education.