The challenge of self-regulated learning in mathematics teachers' professional training

This study investigated mathematics teachers' professional knowledge among elementary school teachers exposed to a professional training program that either supported self-regulated learning (SRL) or offered no SRL support (no-SRL). The SRL support was based on the IMPROVE metacognitive self-questioning method that directs students' attention to understanding when, why, and how to solve problems (Kramarski and Mevarech, Am Educ Res J 40:281–310, 2003). Sixty-four Israeli elementary teachers participated in a month-long professional development program to enhance mathematical and pedagogical knowledge. The course was part of a 3-year professional development program sponsored by the Israeli Ministry of Education. This mixed-method study included quantitative assessments of teachers' professional knowledge in mathematical problem solving for an authentic task based on Program for International Student Assessment's framework (Program for International Student Assessment, 2003) and in lesson planning, as well as qualitative interviews and videotaped observations of two teachers. Results indicated that teachers in the SRL program outperformed those in the no-SRL program on various problem solving skills (e.g., reflection and conceptual mathematical explanations) and lesson planning (e.g., task demands and teaching approach). Videotaped observations of actual teaching indicated that the SRL-trained teacher demonstrated more teaching practices that aimed to promote students' understanding and better supported students' regulation of their own learning, compared to the no-SRL-trained teacher. We discuss educational and practical implications.     

Spatial thinking in science,technology, engineering,and mathematics: Elementary teachers' beliefs,perceptions, and self-efficacy

Fostering students' spatial thinking skills holds great promise for improving Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Recent efforts have focused on the development of classroom interventions to build students' spatial skills, yet these interventions will be implemented by teachers, and their beliefs and perceptions about spatial thinking influence the effectiveness of such interventions. However, our understanding of elementary school teachers' beliefs and perceptions around spatial thinking and STEM is in its infancy. Thus, we created novel measures to survey elementary teachers' anxiety in solving spatial problems, beliefs in the importance of spatial thinking skills for students' academic success, and self-efficacy in cultivating students' spatial skills during science instruction. All measures exhibited high internal consistency and showed that elementary teachers experience low anxiety when solving spatial problems and feel strongly that their skills can improve with practice. Teachers were able to identify educational problems that rely on spatial problem-solving and believed that spatial skills are more important for older compared to younger students. Despite reporting high efficacy in their general teaching and science teaching, teachers reported significantly lower efficacy in their capacities to cultivate students' spatial skills during science instruction. Results were fairly consistent across teacher characteristics (e.g., years of experience and teaching role as generalist or specialist) with the exception that only years of teaching science was related to teachers' efficacy in cultivating students' spatial thinking skills during science instruction. Results are discussed within the broader context of teacher beliefs, self-efficacy, and implications for professional development research.     

"互联网+"教师专业发展的实践路径初探

"互联网+"时代的到来引发了教师思维方式、认知方式和行为方式的变革,并驱使教师在专业思维能力、专业认知方式和专业能力方面的变革与发展. "互联网+"教师专业发展具体包括从权威、封闭、近享、共存的实体思维向平等、开放、共享、协同的互联网思维转变;有效利用互联网"知识生产-互联-分享"特性,促成教师专业知识增长和实践性知识分享;积极开展网络校本教研和教师网络学习,进而形成教师专业洞见力等实践路径.     

Fostering a community of practice through a professional development program to improve elementary teachers' views of nature of science and teaching practice

This study explored the development of a community of learners through a professional development program to improve teachers' views of nature of science (NOS) and teaching practice. The Views of Nature of Science questionnaire and interviews were used to assess teachers' conceptions of NOS three times over the course of the study. Notes and videotapes taken during workshops and classroom observations were used to track influence of the community of learners on classroom practice. The community of practice (CoP) was fostered through an intensive summer workshop, monthly school site workshops, and classroom support to aid teachers in incorporating new techniques and reflecting upon their learning and practice. We found that teachers became aware of their changes in views about NOS once they struggled with the concepts in their own teaching and discussed their struggles within the professional development community. The CoP on its own was not sufficient to change teacher's practice or knowledge, but it created a well‐supported environment that facilitated teacher change when paired with NOS modeling and explicit reflection. Cases of three teachers are used to illustrate changes in views and teaching practice common to the teachers in this study. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 46: 1090–1113, 2009     

The Impact of a Professional Development Program on Teachers' Understandings about Watersheds,Water Quality,and Stream Monitoring

Abstract

Professional development programs should provide teachers with experiences that develop their knowledge and skills to integrate environmental field studies into their school curriculum. This article reports on a professional development model that engaged teachers in designing and conducting local environmental science research projects. An overview of the professional development model is provided and evaluation data are reported, detailing the impact of the professional development model on teachers' understandings about watersheds, water quality, and stream monitoring.     

Teachers' technological readiness for online professional development: evidence from the US e-Learning for Educators initiative

Although online professional development (OPD) is recognised as a viable alternative to face-to-face professional development, there are some obstacles to the delivery of effective OPD. This study examines one such obstacle, teachers' technological readiness for OPD participation. In particular, this study examines six research questions regarding the technological readiness of US elementary and secondary educators who participate in OPD. The data source was ‘e-Learning for Educators', a large-scale OPD initiative implemented between 2006 and 2011 in the US. The data show that this population of teachers, in general, report that they believe online professional development is as effective as face-to-face professional development; have easy access to the required technology; possess the required computer/technical skills; and perceive some of these skills to improve with course participation. Though these findings are largely favourable from the perspective of OPD stakeholders, this study also finds some variability among teachers that might warrant possible mitigation strategies.     

The Impact of a Professional Development Program on Teachers' Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching,Instruction, and Student Achievement

In this paper, we describe findings from a three-year evaluation of a well-developed mathematics professional development program that is commercially available on a wide scale. The professional development is designed to improve teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching and to enable them to elicit more student thinking and reasoning during mathematics lessons. Specifically, it focused on helping teachers (a) learn more mathematics, (b) understand how children learn math, (c) use formative assessment to develop insight into what specific students know and do not know, and (d) develop effective classroom instructional strategies that enable student problem solving. Participants included 105 fourth- and fifth-grade teachers teaching in 19 low-income schools within a single district. Teachers were randomly assigned within schools either to a “business as usual” control group or to receive the professional development. The training consisted of a week-long summer institute and four to six in-service days during the school year. The training was run by full-time trained associates. We find some limited evidence of positive impacts on teachers' mathematical knowledge for teaching, but no effects on instructional practice or student outcomes.     

Professional knowledge affects action-related skills: The development of preservice physics teachers' explaining skills during a field experience

Professional knowledge is an important source of science teachers' actions in the classroom (e.g., personal professional content knowledge [pedagogical content knowledge, PCK] is the source of enacted PCK in the refined consensus model [RCM] for PCK). However, the evidence for this claim is ambiguous at best. This study applied a cross-lagged panel design to examine the relationship between professional knowledge and actions in one particular instructional situation: explaining physics. Pre- and post a field experience (one semester), 47 preservice physics teachers from four different universities were tested for their content knowledge (CK), PCK, pedagogical knowledge (PK), and action-related skills in explaining physics. The study showed that joint professional knowledge (the weighted sum of CK, PCK, and PK scores) at the beginning of the field experience impacted the development of explaining skills during the field experience (β = .38**). We interpret this as a particular relationship between professional knowledge and science teachers' action-related skills (enacted PCK): professional knowledge is necessary for the development of explaining skills. That is evidence that personal PCK affects enacted PCK. In addition, field experiences are often supposed to bridge the theory-practice gap by transforming professional knowledge into instructional practice. Our results suggest that for field experiences to be effective, preservice teachers should start with profound professional knowledge.     

Culture wars in the classroom: Prospective teachers question science

Does studying about the nature(s) of science contribute to a prospective teachers' effectiveness as a science teacher? This research grew out of a course created by a science educator and historian of science who believed prospective teachers needed more complex understandings of the cultural wars surrounding science. The research team consisted of five prospective teachers who participated in the course as well as the two instructors. This paper describes the experience of participating in the course from both perspectives. We argue that studying the cultural wars over science contributes to prospective teachers' professional growth as much because the course elicits tacit beliefs about school science as it introduces more complex understandings of science. We found that prospective teachers' tacit beliefs about school science were their greatest barrier to developing more complex understandings about the nature(s) of science. We contend that willingness to grapple with complexity and developing a professional identity by locating oneself in the conversations about the nature(s) of science are better criteria for determining the professional growth of prospective teachers than knowledge measures. Finally, we argue that prospective teachers should be viewed as professionals who are responsible for finding their own voice, making their own decisions, and considering the consequences of their beliefs on their practice. This study raises questions critical to teacher education programs for prospective teachers and teacher‐educators alike. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 37: 895–915, 2000     

Promoting elementary school students' autonomous reading motivation: Effects of a teacher professional development workshop

Responding to the declining trend in reading motivation in and beyond the elementary school years, the authors aimed to enhance late-elementary school students' autonomous reading motivation. Toward this end, the authors evaluated the influence of a teacher professional development grounded in self-determination theory on fifth-grade students' (n = 664) autonomous motivation for in-school and leisure-time reading. A quasi-experimental repeated measures design was set up with experimental and control conditions. The experimental condition consisted of teachers participating in a professional development workshop aimed at providing the knowledge and skills necessary to implement an autonomy-supportive and structuring teaching style, whereas the control condition included teachers who continued with their current teaching repertoire. Multilevel piece-wise growth analyses corroborated that students in the experimental group reported increased recreational autonomous reading motivation from pretest to posttest relative to the control group. Additional analyses made clear that boys in particular benefitted from their teachers' professional development.     

An Evolution of Mathematical Beliefs: A Case Study of Three Pre-K Teachers

This case study involved examination of the evolution of mathematical beliefs of three prekindergarten teachers. The researcher followed three teachers at one school in west Alabama over the course of 6 months as they implemented a new mathematics curriculum in their pre-K classrooms. Interviews were conducted prior to implementation and at the end of the school year. Classroom observations were done throughout the implementation process. Three themes emerged from the data (a) math resources for the pre-K classroom, (b) pushing beyond—thinking mathematically, and (c) instructional strategies used the pre-K classroom. These themes revealed how all of the teachers' perceptions of early childhood mathematics curriculum and instruction evolved during the course of the study. These findings have implications for early childhood teacher education programs and professional development.     

Supporting New Teachers Through Consultee-Centered Group Consultation

New teachers are often unprepared for the emotional, physical, social, and psychological demands of teaching. Traditional staff development models may not be well suited to meet the needs of these teachers. However, school psychologists and counselors are in an excellent position to facilitate the professional and problem-solving skills of new teachers, using Caplan's consultee-centered group consultation model. In this project, 5 beginning elementary school teachers participated in a biweekly consultation group for 8 months. We found that the new teachers' emphasis on 'self as teacher' was evident throughout the year and that the consultation groups provided the teachers with a forum for engaging in meaningful professional dialogue with colleagues. The findings presented include an example of the consultative problem-solving process, a content analysis of the problems presented, and the teachers' impressions of the impact of the group. Finally, suggestions are provided for school consultants.     

Learning to teach science as inquiry in the rough and tumble of practice

This study examined the knowledge, beliefs and efforts of five prospective teachers to enact teaching science as inquiry, over the course of a one‐year high school fieldwork experience. Data sources included interviews, field notes, and artifacts, as these prospective teachers engaged in learning how to teach science. Research questions included 1) What were these prospective teachers' beliefs of teaching science? 2) To what extent did these prospective teachers articulate understandings of teaching science as inquiry? 3) In what ways, if any, did these prospective teachers endeavor to teach science as inquiry in their classrooms? 4) In what ways did the mentor teachers' views of teaching science appear to support or constrain these prospective teachers' intentions and abilities to teach science as inquiry? Despite support from a professional development school setting, the Interns' teaching strategies represented an entire spectrum of practice—from traditional, lecture‐driven lessons, to innovative, open, full‐inquiry projects. Evidence suggests one of the critical factors influencing a prospective teacher's intentions and abilities to teach science as inquiry, is the teacher's complex set of personal beliefs about teaching and of science. This paper explores the methodological issues in examining teachers' beliefs and knowledge in actual classroom practice. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 613–642, 2007.     

Elementary school teachers' knowledge and beliefs regarding non-routine problems

This study focuses on the knowledge exhibited by 30 elementary school in-service and pre-service teachers in solving non-routine mathematical problems and on their beliefs regarding these kinds of problems. Interviews were used to reveal teachers' knowledge and beliefs. The findings indicated that these teachers had difficulty in solving non-routine problems and that their ability to solve these problems was influenced by their professional backgrounds. Most of the teachers, although failing to solve the given problems, expressed their willingness to give such problems to their students in class, explaining that such problems are important for students to learn how to solve as they help develop mathematical thinking and the skill of solving problems in everyday life. However, the teachers were unwilling to include such problems in examinations.     

普通民办中学教师专业发展意识的调查与述评

通过对淮安市两所规模较大的民办中学教师的专业发展意识现状的调查,发现了以下几个问题：大多数民办中学教师当教师的动机不纯正;教师工作满意度与所教学科密切;担任班主任的教师比没有担任班主任的专业技能好;民办中学教师参与校外培训进修活动时间少;民办中学教师专业发展自我感觉良好,多数教师选择维持现状。在此基础上提出了可行性建议。     

Examining the Role of Professional Development in a Large School District's iPad Initiative

This study examined 342 teachers' views of professional development (PD) provided by a large school district to support its iPad initiative. We were interested in investigating teachers' perceptions of this district-provided PD, any change in teachers' views, and how they used iPads in their instruction while/after receiving PD. The findings, using a mixed-methods design, showed although teachers held overall positive views regarding PD, their perceptions did not change over the 1-year implementation. Rather, certain teacher characteristics such as teachers' beliefs, technology self-efficacy, and school levels influenced their views. This study also provided an in-depth analysis of teachers' use of iPad to support their instruction. Findings revealed teachers used the iPad for a variety of purposes. From mid-year to end-year, there was a decrease in using iPads for class management and basic uses, but an increase in using the iPad to create instructional materials by the teachers and creating artifacts by their students. Such findings suggested a connection between the PD teachers received and their practices, indicating a shift to more interactive uses during the second half of the year. The findings highlighted the importance of providing situated PD and considering teacher characteristics when designing PD. (Keywords: professional development, mobile teaching and learning, iPad use, K–12 education, large suburban schools, technology integration)     

Teachers' learning while constructing technology‐based instructional resources

Grounded in a constructionist paradigm, this study examined elementary school teachers' learning while creating technology‐rich instructional materials. Sixteen teachers at an elementary school were interviewed about their experience. Using the components of Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge as an analytical framework, inductive qualitative analysis indicated that these professional learning activities led to teachers' growth primarily in technological knowledge, technological pedagogical knowledge and content knowledge. These findings as well as implications for designing professional learning activities for teachers are also shared.     

Contextual Factors Influencing Access to Teaching Computational Thinking

This study attempts to determine whether teachers' access to computational thinking (CT) and CT technologies varies by rurality (rural versus urban) of the school county and grade level taught (primary versus secondary). A total of 81 teachers from West Virginia, Georgia, and Oklahoma participated in this survey study. Overall, teachers found CT and CT tools useful and relevant to their teaching and had access to an essential level of technology in schools supporting computational thinking. However, teachers' CT skills and their teaching of CT were limited and varied depending on rurality and grade level. For instance, primary school teachers in rural settings reported significantly lower levels of CT skills than those in urban settings. Findings and implications are discussed.