Jeffrey Keese

This study employed a crossover randomized-controlled mixed-methods design to compare the experiences of a diverse group of in-service teachers preparing to be instructional coaches engaged in virtual simulation activities and a standard online module of materials. Quantitative data (n = 22) was analyzed using t-tests and qualitative data using open coding and thematic approaches. Quantitative analyses showed no statistically significant differences in self-reported measures of preparedness to coach or in the helpfulness of the activities. Qualitative analyses showed both conditions were seen as beneficial and identified how the virtual simulation activities could be more impactful on their learning.

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the early months of 2020 was incredibly disruptive to schooling around the world, and the effects continue to be felt. While schools had previously shut down c...

Using the Teacher Leadership Inventory, a validated instrument, responses from teachers and school administrators were collected from across the state of Georgia (USA) regarding perceived teacher leadership opportunities measured across four sub-scales: Sharing Expertise, Sharing Leadership, Supra-Practitioner, and Principal Selection. As one of the few U.S. states that have formalized teacher leadership with both standards and credentialling, Georgia is an important setting within which to measure opportunities to utilize this domain of practitioner expertise. One-way ANOVAs and non-parametric equivalent tests using response data to the survey revealed statistically significant differences between how teachers and their supervising administrators perceived opportunities for teacher leadership with teachers perceiving significantly less opportunity than did school administrators. Additionally, sub-scale survey responses reveal that school administrators perceive that campus principals are less influential at making room for teacher leadership than the teachers report. Subgroups of teachers created using the attainment of teacher leadership credentials as well as individual and campus demographic variables were also examined but significant differences were largely not present. The exception to these null results concerned the Principal Selection sub-scale with male teachers and those without a master’s or lower degree believing that principals exerted less influence in creating teacher leadership opportunities than their female and more highly educated counterparts.

As university faculty must continually grow in their instructional skills and proficiencies with new tools to remain relevant to the educational needs of their students, effective models of professional learning and development are important areas of need and topics for research. However, many outdated professional development models do not create the desired results of technology integration into university teaching. More responsive and innovative models of faculty learning could be the answer. The purpose of the current research study was to explore the impact individualized professional development had on faculty’s understanding, experience, and use of a technological tool. A qualitative research design was implemented to analyze data from interviews and surveys. The participants were a convenience sample of six faculty members across five different programs within one university located in the southeastern United States. Data were analyzed using a hybrid coding method and the results revealed that the procedures facilitated implementation of a technological tool within the specific contexts of their courses. Participating faculty appreciated the utility of the provided training and how closely the designed resources mirrored those they would encounter in their instruction of students. Based on study findings and other relevant research, a new model for individualized professional development using a technological tool is proposed which can help to guide future faculty learning.

This qualitative research study explores the experiences of teachers in the spring semester of 2020 as they remotely instructed their students owing to COVID-19 campus closures. Fourteen teachers from a variety of school contexts were interviewed twice individually and once in a focus group setting to relay their thoughts regarding this unprecedented event. Emergent coding of interview transcripts revealed teachers’ concerns for their students and their learning, the barriers presented owing to the disconnect between them and their students, and how their competencies changed as their time with remote instruction increased. Recommendations for practice and further research are discussed.