Examining the Contribution of a Professional Development Program to Elementary Classroom Teachers’ Content Knowledge and Student Achievement: The Case of Basketball

Author(s):  
Lambros Stefanou ◽  
Niki Tsangaridou ◽  
Charalambos Y. Charalambous ◽  
Leonidas Kyriakides

Purpose: Teacher content knowledge (CK) and its contribution to student achievement (SA) are understudied in physical education, especially concerning the examination of the effectiveness of professional development (PD) programs using direct measures of teachers’ CK and SA. To make progress in this research area, this study investigated the contribution of a content-focused PD program to teachers’ CK and SA in basketball, using direct measures thereof. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was utilized to examine the contribution of a PD program. The authors measured the CK of 52 elementary classroom teachers and their fifth or sixth grade students’ (n = 913) achievement in basketball before and after the PD program. The data were analyzed using unilevel and multilevel regression analyses. Results: Teachers who participated in the PD program exhibited higher learning gains in their CK; their students also exhibited higher learning gains. Discussion and Conclusion: The study findings suggest that PD programs focused on enhancing teachers’ CK might also support SA.

2005 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 353-365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Swan ◽  
Annette Kratcoski ◽  
Pat Mazzer ◽  
Jason Schenker

This article describes an ongoing situated professional development program in which teachers bring their intact classes for an extended stay in a ubiquitous computing environment equipped with a variety of state-of-the-art computing devices. The experience is unique in that it not only situates teacher learning about technology integration in their regular practice, but also gives them the opportunity to explore the full possibilities afforded by a variety of technologies and 1:1 computing opportunities. The program provides an important alternative model for professional development that has been highly successful, not only in increasing teachers' knowledge and confidence in technology integration but also in changing the ways in which teachers think about and use a variety of technologies in their classrooms. Findings also suggest that ubiquitous computing environments afford unique teaching and learning opportunities upon which ordinary classroom teachers can capitalize to a greater or lesser degree.


Author(s):  
Jennifer Chauvot ◽  
Stephen J. Pape ◽  
Sherri K. Prosser ◽  
Kimberly Hicks

In this chapter, the authors describe two online programs that sought to impact teachers' content knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge, and instructional practices in K-12 classrooms. One program was a master's program for middle grades science and mathematics teachers, and the other was a yearlong professional development program for third- through fifth-grade general and special education teachers. They share the theoretical perspectives that informed the design and implementation of the programs and outcomes from each program. Examples of learning activities from each of the programs are provided. The authors contend that deliberate, theoretically-based design and implementation of online professional development programs with science and mathematics teachers is not only viable but also vital in supporting teachers' ongoing knowledge growth of learner-centered instruction.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Evrim Erbilgin ◽  
Baki Şahin

This study examined technological pedagogical content knowledge change of middle school mathematics teachers who participated in a professional development program designed to integrate technology into teaching algebra. Twenty-eight middle school teachers from 20 different schools participated in the study. The data collection tools were technological pedagogical content knowledge survey, reflective journals, lesson plans, and program evaluation forms. The data analysis showed that the participants’ technological pedagogical content knowledge increased significantly. In addition, participants wrote lesson plans that included effective use of technology to teach algebra contents. The positive effects of the professional development program seem to be related to the following components of the program: the usability of the program activities in middle school classrooms, program’s focus on using technology in teaching algebra, the introduction of new technological tools and software related to mathematics, and the interactive nature of the program.


2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynn A. Bryan ◽  
David Sederberg ◽  
Shanna Daly ◽  
David Sears ◽  
Nicholas Giordano

AbstractAs nanoscale science, engineering, and technology (NSET) becomes more integrated into precollege science curricula, it is crucial for teachers to develop coherent understandings of science principles (e.g., the structure of matter, size and scale, forces and interactions, and size-dependent properties) that allow them to coordinate these understandings from the macro- to the nanoscale. Furthermore, as teachers acquire new NSET content knowledge through professional learning opportunities, it is incumbent upon NSET educators to understand their developing content knowledge. To this end, we report results from a study in which we used a pre-/post-/delayed-posttest design to examine the change in 24 secondary (grades 7–12) science teachers’ NSET content knowledge as a result of their participation in a year-long professional development program that consisted of a 2-week intensive course and academic year follow-up activities. Participants showed significant gains from pretest to posttest and significant gains on the delayed test compared to the pretest. We also present trends that emerged in teachers’ open-ended responses that provided deeper insight into teachers’ NSET content knowledge. Finally, we discuss issues related to the assessment of teachers’ NSET content knowledge as well as the design of NSET professional development for teachers.


Author(s):  
Insook Kim ◽  
Phillip Ward

Purpose: This study examined the effects of a specialized content knowledge workshop on developing teachers’ content development and adaptive competence in teaching badminton. Method: A quasi-experimental design was employed with three middle school physical education teachers who taught five or six badminton lessons before and after the content knowledge workshop (n = 66). Descriptive statistics and univariate analysis of variance were conducted to analyze the data of content development index scores and intratask adaptations. Frequency data across lessons by teachers and treatment conditions were employed for content development patterns. Results: There were statistically significant effects of the workshop in developing the teachers’ use of content development (p = .049) and adaptations (p = .000), but their effects varied by teacher. While the most used content development pattern by the teachers in comparison classes was an informing applying pattern, the teachers used a variety of content development patterns that included more task progressions in the experimental classes. Conclusion: It can be concluded that teachers’ instructional tasks and task adaptations could be improved through a well-designed professional development program. The findings can guide the direction of teacher education and professional development in ways to enhance teachers’ content development and adaptations.


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