scholarly journals HOW ENGLISH TEACHERS LEARN IN INDONESIA: TENSION BETWEEN POLICY-DRIVEN AND SELF-DRIVEN PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 245
Author(s):  
I. G. A. Lokita Purnamika Utami ◽  
Sarah Prestridge
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Online Networks ◽  
School Based ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
Formal School

Professional Development (PD) and Professional Learning (PL) are established terms which are used interchangeably but theoretically have notable differences. The former is formally and externally designed while the latter is more informal and self-directed. These differing characteristics have not been observed in the context where PD is normally governed by government policy. As such, there is little to no research on Indonesian English teachers’ practice, preferences and dispositions for PD or PL. A qualitative study was conducted involving four English teachers from Indonesia who demonstrated active participation in professional development and professional learning activities. Developmental interviews were the main source of data. The study showed distinct variance in these teachers’ preference and action for PL through online networks, self-chosen PD and knowledge-sharing interactions with their colleagues. The study observed compliant dispositions and indifferent dispositions towards school PD policy. The study suggests the need to shift compliancy and policy measures from formal school based professional development to include online professional learning opportunities that the teachers initiate, with the integration of both approaches needing further research and development.

scholarly journals Blog-based professional development of English teachers in Mumbai: The potential of innovative practice under scrutiny

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atiya Khan
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teacher Collaboration ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
Information And Communications Technology ◽  
Learning Networks ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Interactive Workshop

The professional development of teachers in India is still, by and large, based on formal and outdated professional learning traditions, often characterised by crash courses and one-off workshops. In education, blogs have proven to be an effective means of establishing and maintaining collaborative learning networks and helping members reflect on their professional practices. Information and communications technology (ICT) enabled practices of teacher professional development is still in its infancy in India. Moreover, there is limited research in India to secure foundational understanding of how and in what ways teachers of English in India use blogs for their professional development. This study explores the use of teacher reflective practice, teacher networking, and teacher collaboration, beyond formal ICT training, through blog-based professional development of English teachers in the Mumbai region of India. Using data collected from 32 teachers from three private schools in Mumbai, through ICT interactive workshop observations, questionnaires, interviews, and blog comments, this action case study explains whether and why blogging, as a learning community, has the potential to add significant value to existing professional development of English teachers in Mumbai.

scholarly journals Meaning of professional development for stakeholders in rural Pakistan

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Nawab
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Work Place ◽  
Shared Understanding ◽  
Education Department ◽  
Rural Pakistan ◽  
School Based ◽  
Ongoing Development ◽  
External Learning

<p><i>Professional Development (PD) has generally been associated with the learning opportunities teachers avail externally. However, the latest trends propagate grounding PD activities in the work place with the assumption that such shift will not only enable teachers to be engaged in ongoing learning but also help them to find contextual solutions for their specific issues. For other academics, however, PD refers to all the planned and unplanned activities which teachers avail to improve their practices. In this background, this research explored how relevant stakeholders in rural Pakistan perceive PD. Using a survey method and questionnaire tool, data were collected from teachers, school leaders, education department officials and representatives of PD providers. The outcomes showed that majority of stakeholders associate PD to external learning opportunities provided to the teachers. In addition, there is a lack of shared understanding among different stakeholders with regard to the meaning of PD. These conclusions have implications for PD providers and educational reformers. Teachers should be oriented on latest trends in PD as well as supported to use the latest school-based PD models for their ongoing development.</i></p>

scholarly journals A social-cognitive study of Indonesian Google educator groups

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Pratiwi Artati
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Educational Technology ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Social Cognitive ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Technological Environment ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Case Study Methodology ◽  
Education Groups

<p>Self-directed professional learning is distinct from the traditional approach of directed professional development. The introduction of the Internet into Indonesian society provides the opportunity for teachers to use digital tools for their teaching and to access professional learning without attending mandated professional development. An emerging phenomenon in Indonesia is the establishment and use of Google Education Groups (GEGs) for professional learning about the use of educational technology (ed-tech) in the schooling sector. Two research questions guided the examination of Indonesian educators’ experiences of GEGs: (1) how do Indonesian educators participate in the GEGs for ed-tech professional learning? and (2) how do the GEGs function to enable Indonesian educators’ ed-tech professional learning? Collective case study methodology was applied, and three Google Education Groups were examined, one from a metropolitan area, one from an urban area and the third from a rural context. In each case study, the leader of the group and three group members with varying levels of online engagement were interviewed and online forum conversations were examined. Data were analysed using Stake’s method of categorical aggregation leading to within-case assertions and cross-case analysis. A social cognitive perspective was used as a framework to analyse and interpret findings. It was found that the Indonesian educators had an agentic approach to professional learning, which was context-dependent with three major interrelated aspects: the regional-technological environment as context, the individuals as agentic learners, and the connectedness as social learners enabled meaningful learning experiences. The regional-technological environment influenced how the GEGs functioned. The Metropolitan group was innovative and collaborative, focusing on the use of web-based tools to improve productivity of ed-tech practices. The Urban group aimed to explore how they could use web-based tools to improve efficiency through paperless classroom practices and school administration. The Rural group sought to use of web-based tools for simple teaching and learning practices within a context of low bandwidth and limited ICT infrastructure. In addition, certain conditions that support online collaboration and factors that can minimise and optimise ed-tech learning opportunities are identified. Participants overcame limitations and constraints by enacting agency and developing social connectedness in learning through the groups. The group leadership positions were voluntary and found to be driven by a desire to share expertise and practices that support, inspire, and empower others rather than about gaining positional authority. Participation in online informal groups such as Google Education Groups appears to be a supportive method of professional learning that facilitates agentic and experiential learning about the use of educational technology in Indonesia. This model can enhance professional learning opportunities for Indonesian educators. It can also be implemented into the design of government-supported ed-tech PD programmes, to create an empowering and safe learning environment that can optimise their potential in learning and improve practice.</p>

On Leadership: Planning for equity

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 60-61
Author(s):  
Joshua P. Starr
Keyword(s):  
Student Achievement ◽  
Curriculum Development ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
School System ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Hiring Practices ◽  
School Based ◽  
Improvement Planning ◽  
System Leaders

Every year, school-based teams all over the country engage in the ritual known as improvement planning. In theory, the process is designed to identify low-performing students and specify plans for raising their achievement. In practice, though, improvement planning tends to be an empty exercise in compliance, in which school teams aim to do little more than fill out the required paperwork. If school system leaders are truly committed to providing all students with equitable learning opportunities, argues Joshua Starr, they need to focus the improvement planning process on things that actually matter to student achievement, such as budgeting decisions, hiring practices, curriculum development, professional learning, discipline reform, and community engagement.

School-Based Professional Development Programs for Beginning Teachers

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Madalińska-Michalak
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Professional Education ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Learning And Development ◽  
Quality Teachers ◽  
High Quality ◽  
School Based

School-based professional development for beginning teachers must be seen as a dynamic identity and decision-making process. Teachers as lifelong learners from the beginning of their career should be able to engage in different forms of teacher education that enable them to progress their learning and development in ways that are relevant to their own individual needs and the needs of their schools and pupils. Teacher individual professional learning is necessary but not sufficient for sustainable change within groups in school and within school as an organization. It is helpful to consider three elements. First, note the importance to schools of recruiting and developing high-quality teachers. Teachers are among the most significant factors in children’s learning and the quality school education, and the questions why and how teachers matter and how teacher quality and quality teacher education should be perceived require serious considerations from academics, policymakers, and practitioners. Second, understand teacher education as career-long education, and problematize the issue of teachers and coherent professional development within schools, asking key questions including the following: “how do schools create effective opportunities for teachers to learn and develop?” Third, focus on the particular journey and the needs of beginning teachers because their early career learning and development will have an impact on retention of high-quality teachers. It is important that coherent lifelong professional education for teachers is planned and implemented at the level of education systems, individual schools, teaching teams, and individual teachers.

scholarly journals Problem-Based Learning for Responsive and Transformative Teacher Professional Development

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-25
Author(s):  
Tom J. McConnell ◽  
Joyce M. Parker ◽  
Jan Eberhardt
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Content Knowledge ◽  
Teacher Professional Development ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Problem Based Learning ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Teacher Professional

Educational reform should include teacher professional development (PD) to help educators learn how to implement new programs. This article shares a research-tested model of PD that uses the analytic framework of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) to support professional learning. Evidence suggests that PBL is effective in changing content knowledge and pedagogical practice. To teach content, facilitators engage teachers in learning activities designed using common PBL structures. Stories about authentic phenomena present problems associated with specific concepts. Learners work in groups to analyze problems, seek additional information, and construct plausible solutions. This same approach can support Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) to help teachers examine and revise their own teaching. In this model, teachers collaborate to identify “problems of teaching.” The group uses PBL to analyze information and solutions. Teachers research teaching strategies, test a proposed strategy, and analyze evidence to build new understandings of teaching.

Which Learning Activities Enhance Physical Therapist Practice? Part 2: Systematic Review of Qualitative Studies and Thematic Synthesis

2020 ◽  
Vol 100 (9) ◽  
pp. 1484-1501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edmund Leahy ◽  
Lucy Chipchase ◽  
Marlena Calo ◽  
Felicity C Blackstock
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Physical Therapists ◽  
Physical Therapist ◽  
Qualitative Studies ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Thematic Synthesis ◽  
Insight Into

Abstract Objective Post-professional physical therapy expertise requires career-long participation in learning activities. Understanding physical therapists’ lived experience of learning activities provides novel insight into how best to enhance physical therapist practice from the perspective of the learner. The purpose of this study was to explore qualified physical therapists’ experiences, beliefs, and perspectives with regard to learning activities and professional development. Methods Eight databases were searched for studies published from inception through December 2018. Study selection included mixed-methods and qualitative studies exploring physical therapists’ experiences, perspectives, beliefs, and attitudes. Thematic synthesis was performed, and the GRADE-Confidence in the Evidence from Reviews of Qualitative research was used to assess the level of confidence in the findings. A total 41 studies with 719 participants were included. Results The key findings include physical therapists’ perceptions that worthwhile post-professional learning requires more than attendance at professional development courses. Physical therapists perceived that worthwhile learning requires connection with others and being “taken out of one’s comfort zone.” Sufficient time and accessible, trustworthy resources were also valued. Conclusions Moderate- to low-level evidence suggests that the choice of professional development activities and education design for qualified physical therapists should consider the inclusion of connected activities, activities that take participants out of comfort zones, time to practice, and trustworthy resources that are easily accessible. Future research should evaluate the effectiveness of learning activities encompassing these factors, prioritizing those that minimize the barriers of time and distance. Impact This study adds to the profession’s understanding of physical therapists’ lived experience of learning activities, providing novel insight into how best to enhance physical therapist practice from the perspective of the learner.

scholarly journals Perceptions of the Key Stakeholders on Professional Development of Teachers in Rural Pakistan

SAGE Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 215824402098261
Author(s):  
Ali Nawab
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Work Place ◽  
Education Department ◽  
Rural Pakistan ◽  
School Based ◽  
Key Stakeholders ◽  
Ongoing Development ◽  
External Learning

Professional development (PD) has generally been associated with the learning opportunities teachers avail externally. However, the latest trends propagate grounding PD activities in the work place with the assumption that such shift will not only enable teachers to be engaged in ongoing learning but also help them to find contextual solutions for their specific issues. For other academics, however, PD refers to all the planned and unplanned activities which teachers avail to improve their practices. In this background, this research explored how relevant stakeholders in rural Pakistan perceive PD. Using a survey method and questionnaire tool, data were collected from teachers, school leaders, education department officials, and representatives of PD providers. The outcomes showed that majority of stakeholders associate PD to external learning opportunities provided to the teachers. In addition, there is a lack of shared understanding among different stakeholders with regard to the meaning of PD. These conclusions have implications for PD providers and educational reformers. Teachers should be oriented on latest trends in PD as well as supported to use the latest school-based PD models for their ongoing development.

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