Is There a Platform for That? Exploring Online Platforms to Deliver Formal Transformative Professional Development

• In Event: Technology in Teaching

Abstract

Curriculum designers and online developers implement research-informed design/development principles grounded in adult learning principles across various platforms. Do these same principles apply when the content of a formal professional development (PD) curriculum includes the potential to fundamentally change personal perspective, daily interactions, and ultimately, the profession’s best practices? This study explores the usability of two online platforms to deliver a mindfulness curriculum including meditative awareness practices (MAPs). The objectives include determining a usability instrument, mapping the functionality of two online platforms to the curricular objectives, moving the content to both platforms, and using the usability instrument to analyze the results. The findings provide an initial framework to compare/contrast future migrations of transformative PD from traditional face-to-face to online delivery.

Authors

• Deb Carter, The University of British Columbia - Okanagan

• Susan E. Crichton, The University of British Columbia