Browsing by Subject "Professional development"

Now showing 1 - 12 of 12

Open Access
Assessing teachers’ systems thinking skills during a professional development program in Turkey
(Elsevier, 2018) Ateşkan, Armağan; Lane, Jennie F.
Through effective professional development in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), teachers can help students gain knowledge, skills, and dispositions to build and support sustainable communities. This paper shares how a university in Turkey developed, implemented, and evaluated an ESD professional development program (PDP) for in-service teachers. The evaluation focused on how the program enhanced participants’ awareness of thinking in systems. Thirty-nine teachers from different parts of the country participated. The PDP took place over eight months and was launched by a five-day summer workshop that included presentations, hands-on activities, and field trips. The theme of energy was used throughout the workshop to emphasize how the environment, society, and economy are connected and interdependent. Teachers’ systems thinking skills were analyzed through a pre- and post-workshop questionnaire and concept maps. Results of the questionnaire showed statistically significant differences between teachers’ systems thinking scale scores before and after the workshop. Concept map analysis, however, identified that participants need more support relating concepts such as social justice to the environment and economy.
Open Access
Burrowing into the reciprocal learning collaboration of two instructors in an English-medium university in Turkey
(Routledge, 2012) Mitton-Kűkner, J.; Akyüz, Ç.
This paper explores the authors' experiences as an early career teacher educator and English-language instructor in an English-medium university in Turkey. The theoretical framework shaping their collaboration draws upon a narrative view of teacher knowledge as an embodiment of teachers' experiences in schools in close relationship with their identities. Inquiring into moments that disrupted what the authors knew as instructors, they demonstrate how thinking narratively was vital to their professional development and understanding of the complexities shaping the backdrop of their higher educational context. They situate their learning in the field of professional development at the university level and propose that thinking narratively enables instructors across the career phases and disciplines to draw upon their range of experiences in ways that offer potential opportunities for support, reflection and self-growth. This interactive process, the authors suggest, suits the aim of professional teacher development and emphasizes reciprocal learning possibilities for early career and experienced instructors working collaboratively. © 2012 Copyright Teacher Development.
Open Access
The contribution of personal epistemological beliefs to uptake in in-service professional development: a case-study
(Routledge, 2021-04-22) Atlı, Hilal Handan; O’Dwyer, John
Formal in-service professional development programmes may help novice teachers or those new to a school adapt to targeted teaching approaches in their new workplace. However, the extent to which their practice changes in response to in-service learning may depend on prior beliefs. This longitudinal case study explored in-depth the personal epistemological beliefs of four pre-sessional English language teachers, international and national, in an English-medium university context in Turkey during a year-long, formal in-service teacher education course, and for 6 months after the course. It investigated changes in classroom practice and beliefs about knowledge and knowing, teaching and learning, and professional learning as a result of in-service learning. Interviews, classroom observations and reflective journals underpinned a hermeneutic analysis which compared informants’ beliefs and classroom practice over time using an existing theoretical model. Underlying patterns of change in epistemological beliefs show belief type, depth, and sophistication, as well as context, as major factors in the uptake and sustainability of targeted teaching approaches in this context. In-service educators’ knowledge of a teacher’s epistemological beliefs profile can lead to more effective and sustainable uptake in formal in-service professional learning through differentiated, practice-based interventions.
Open Access
Designing resilient energy education programs for a sustainable future
(Prescott College, 2015) Lane, J. F.
Effective teacher professional development in energy education is essential to creating a sustainable future. This article highlights and describes three key components of the Wisconsin K-12 Energy Education Program (KEEP) that have led to two decades of increased statewide energy literacy. The success of the program can be attributed to supportive partnerships that guide staff, the development of an adaptive conceptual framework, and a professional development network for teachers. We offer these components as a guide for other energy education programs to promote future successes in teacher professional development in energy education.
Open Access
EFL teachers’ engagement in reflective practice via team teaching for professional development
(2017-05) Özsoy, Kadir
This study aimed to investigate Turkish EFL teachers’ engagement in reflective practices that were identified as reflection-on-action, reflection-in-action, and reflection-for-action via their team teaching experiences for professional development purposes. In this respect, the study explored the experiences of five local English teachers who volunteered to team teach as a professional development activity in the course of four months at their institutions. The data were collected via two different instruments: reflective journals and interviews. All the qualitative data collected from reflective journals and interview transcriptions were analysed according to Boyatzis’ (1998) thematic analysis. After the printed copies were examined to define the codes and then colour-code the themes that emerged, the NVivo software programme was utilised to reread and recategorise the codes and themes, which were finally listed under the concepts of reflection-on, in, and foraction reflective types. The findings of the study revealed that through team teaching participants engaged in a) reflection-on-action by investigating their teacher identities and the dynamics of their teaching; b) reflection-in-action by exploring teaching practices, beliefs, and self; and c) reflection-for-action by probing ways to move towards a professional growth. Considering these results, this study supports the existing literature in that a) providing a collaborative and shared teaching experience adds a meaningful and productive dimension to reflective practice that ultimately entails a critical analysis of understandings and practices in teaching; and b) team teaching could serve its purpose best when it is undertaken as a voluntary, flexible, and periodical reflective professional development activity.
Open Access
Impact of sustained professional development in STEM on outcome measures in a diverse urban district
(Routledge, 2016) Capraro, R. M.; Capraro, M. M.; Scheurich, J. J.; Jones, M.; Morgan, J.; Huggins, K. S.; Corlu, M. S.; Younes, R.; Han S.
Sustained professional development can support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) reform. The authors describe a 3-year study of sustained professional development for 3 diverse urban schools across the salient factors of fidelity of implementation of project-based learning, development of professional learning communities, and student achievement. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected. The students who experienced the greatest fidelity of implementation exhibited the greatest gains (d = 1.41-2.03) on standardized test scores, while those with the lowest fidelity of implementation exhibited negative gains (d = -0.16 to -0.08). Qualitative data indicated teachers perceived there were multiple benefits from the implementation of project-based learning.
Open Access
Pre-service teachers’ cultural and teaching experiences abroad
(Routledge, 2016) Ateşkan, A.
This study investigates Turkish pre-service teachers’ experiences related to a two-month international teaching and cultural experience in the United States of America. In total, 289 graduate students from Turkey participated in a collaborative project from 2001 to 2010. The experience included an orientation week, six weeks of student teaching in a high school, seminars and projects at Iowa State University and cultural visits. The data were collected through a pre-service teacher questionnaire and their reflective journals. The results showed that pre-service teachers perceived the international teaching experience helped them develop professionally and personally. Through cross-cultural exchanges with their mentors along with other students and their community, the pre-service teachers expanded their knowledge of a new culture and adapted to a new working environment.
Open Access
Stakeholder perceptions on an institutional classroom observation system in an English language preparatory program of a foundation university in Turkey
(2021-03) Arslan, Zeynep
This case study investigated the perceptions of the main stakeholders on an institutional classroom observation system in the English language preparatory program of a foundation university in Ankara. In this regard, it explored how the stakeholders perceive the relationship between the institutional classroom observation system and English as a foreign language teachers’ professional development in terms of teaching quality and teacher reflectivity. To this end, 44 EFL instructors, eight classroom observers, and three administrators took part in the study. The data were derived through a questionnaire with open-ended questions, semi-structured interviews, and the document regarding the system was utilized as another data source. The results of the content analysis revealed that each stakeholder group has their own perception on the observation system, and its relation to teaching quality and teacher reflectivity.
Open Access
A study of in-service teacher educator roles, with implications for a curriculum for their professional development
(Routledge, 2015) O’Dwyer, J. B.; Atlı, H. H.
In-service educators have a crucial role to play in meeting the professional learning needs of teachers of the future, according to the Council of Europe’s ‘ET 2020’, although it is less clear what that role entails. This empirical study, undertaken in a university school of English language in Turkey, explores the everyday experience of a team of wholly school-based in-service educators and develops a model of their role based on an analysis of questionnaire, interview and focus group data. The results attest to the complexities of the in-service educator’s role, revealing them to be more than simply effective teachers. Catering for affective needs, coaching a broad range of clients, interpreting contextual variables and providing appropriate feedback represent some of the challenges in-service educators are facing in the research context, which set them apart and suggest important lessons for the development of an in-service educator training curriculum. © 2014, © 2014 Association for Teacher Education in Europe.
Open Access
Teaching for breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge: learning from explicit and implicit instruction and the storybook texts
(Elsevier, 2019) Dickinson, D. K.; Nesbitt, K.; Collins, M.; Hadley, E.; Newman, K.; Rivera, B.; Ilgaz, Hande; Nicolopoulou, A.; Golinkoff, R.; Hirsh-Pasek, K.
This paper reports results from two studies conducted to examine word learning among preschool children in group book reading while we developed a scalable method ofteaching words during book reading. We sought to identify factors that fostered both depth and breadth of learning by varying the type of information children heard about words while holding exposures constant. We also asked whether prior word knowledge affects children’s learning across our different instructional approaches. In Study 1 we evaluated pre-post gains from two types of explicit instruction (Didactic and Conceptual), an implicit instructional approach (Review), and repeated Exposure. For all three instructed conditions growth in receptive knowledge (our measure of breadth) was statistically equivalent when compared to control (d = 0.43) and exposure words (d = 0.41). In Study 2, words were taught using an augmented explicit approach and through repeated exposure. Moderate and statistically significant growth in receptive knowledge was found when comparing instructed to control words (d = 0.48) and large effects were found with an expressive task measure of depth of knowledge (d = 1.19). There also was evidence of learning from exposure. Children’s vocabulary knowledge moderated learning gains. In Study 1 children with limited knowledge of vocabulary (0.75 SD below the group mean) learned fewer words than others. In Study 2, pre-test vocabulary knowledge moderated gains on the expressive measure for directly taught words and gains on the receptive measure for words taught through exposure. Thus, when words were intentionally taught, all children except those with the weakest initial knowledge acquired the initial lexical representations captured by the receptive measure at a similar rate. Those with stronger vocabulary more quickly acquired initial representations from exposure alone and deeper knowledge when they received intentional instruction. We conclude that teachers can build depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge by combining intentional instruction of target words with repeated use of varied words by reading books multiple times and instructional comments that include use of novel words.
Open Access
Tertiary level Turkish EFL teachers’ perceptions and experiences about self-initiated professional development
(2023-07) Hamamcıoğlu, Tuğçe
This study aimed to explore the perceptions and experiences of tertiary level Turkish ELF teachers regarding self-initiated professional development, and to find out if their perceptions differed according to their demographics. For this mixed-methods study, the quantitative data was collected from 67 Turkish EFL teachers through surveys, and one-on-one interviews were conducted with 14 of them. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data, and for the analysis of the qualitative data, content analysis was used. The results showed that teachers valued collaboration greatly and thought professional development should be context-specific, address their needs, provide practical information and help them be up-to-date. They also asserted teachers should have more autonomy about their own professional development and receive financial, attitudinal, and time-related support from their institutions. The results also indicated that teachers having an undergraduate or graduate degree in teaching English as a foreign language put greater emphasis on the duration of professional development compared to the teachers who graduated from a non-TEFL program, did not have a master’s degree or had a master’s degree in a non-TEFL program. Moreover, sharing experiences and problems with colleagues was the most experienced professional development activity by the participants, whereas attending article discussion club sessions was the least experienced one. Moreover, teachers found attending certificate/diploma programs to gain teaching qualifications the most beneficial, but preparing portfolios was found to be the least useful professional development activity for them.
Open Access
Webinars for teaching English as a foreign language and for professional development: teacher perceptions
(2019-06) Emre, Selen
The aim of this study was to investigate the perceptions of English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers on the use of webinars in teaching EFL and for professional development purposes. This quantitative study was conducted with 78 participants at an English language school at a foundation university in Ankara, Turkey. The items of the online questionnaire were adapted from Venkatesh, Morris, Davis, and Davis (2003) and Gasket (2002). Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. The results indicated that prior webinar experiences, having more years of teaching experience, older age, and being a native or non-native English speaker significantly affected teachers’ perceptions. The implications of this study indicate that EFL teachers need more input and experience in using webinars. Further research is needed to lend more support to the literature to generalize the findings.