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- All Subjects: Professional learning communities
- Creators: Bostick, Bradley Alan
Description
Teacher attrition and the migration between schools and districts can have a negative impact on quality of education and teacher performance. Novice teachers leave the profession because they are overwhelmed by the workload and responsibilities of the job. In a previous action research cycle, I found that novice teachers' perceptions of isolation and lack of opportunities to share experiences had a negative effect on teacher perceptions of efficacy. This action research project examines the effect of leveraging social media and professional learning communities to provide opportunities for a group of novice teachers to share experiences and seek advice. By addressing the challenges that novice teachers face and providing solutions for common problems, it is the hope of this researcher that highly effective teachers will remain in the classroom. The results of the study indicate that the combined use of Twitter and YouTube in collaboration with professional learning communities will improve teacher perceptions of efficacy. Teachers who participated in the social media based professional learning communities are also more likely to remain in the classroom.
ContributorsBostick, Bradley Alan (Author) / Zambo, Ronald (Thesis advisor) / Heck, Thomas (Committee member) / Isai, Shelley (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
This action research study explored what would happen if a principal network was created to provide time for collaboration about critical case studies of practice. The participants in this study were novice and experienced principals in an elementary school district in Arizona. Based on the underpinnings of the Wallace Foundation principal support programs, the study was designed to combat the limited professional development offerings for in-service principals. Modeling the use of cases from the legal and medical professions, this study utilized case studies as the base for peer collaboration to extend the principals' critical thinking skills of relevance, breadth, and depth.
The study design aligned with adult learning theory and focused on authentic problem solving. Participants read case studies, completed individual case analysis, collaborated, and wrote reflections. The cases were intentionally selected to match current problems of practice for the participants. This mixed methods study followed a sequential analysis process beginning with qualitative analysis using a grounded theory approach and moving to quantitative analysis.
The results of this study indicated that the participants' ability to think critically about the problem (relevance) and its complexity (breadth and depth) increased over time. The data also showed that the principals gained an increased awareness and appreciation for multiple perspectives. Lastly, the participants valued the time to collaborate together, gain insight from one another and reduce feelings of isolation in their role as administrators. Future research should continue to explore the use of critical case studies of practice as a in participatory action research with in-service principals.
The study design aligned with adult learning theory and focused on authentic problem solving. Participants read case studies, completed individual case analysis, collaborated, and wrote reflections. The cases were intentionally selected to match current problems of practice for the participants. This mixed methods study followed a sequential analysis process beginning with qualitative analysis using a grounded theory approach and moving to quantitative analysis.
The results of this study indicated that the participants' ability to think critically about the problem (relevance) and its complexity (breadth and depth) increased over time. The data also showed that the principals gained an increased awareness and appreciation for multiple perspectives. Lastly, the participants valued the time to collaborate together, gain insight from one another and reduce feelings of isolation in their role as administrators. Future research should continue to explore the use of critical case studies of practice as a in participatory action research with in-service principals.
ContributorsKubasko, Wendy Lynn (Author) / Rotheram-Fuller, Erin (Thesis advisor) / Dinn-You Liou, Daniel (Committee member) / Diaz, Rene (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015