Analyzing What Teachers Learn and Take Up From Participating in Professional Development Overtime

• In Event: The Impact of Professional Development: Then and Now

Abstract

The Taking a Deep Dive (TaDD project) will present a cross case analysis of six participants from three different NSF funded PD projects that fall along different points along the continuum from specified to adaptive (Borko et al., 2011). Although randomized control design studies typically show small and incremental change in teachers’ content knowledge, instructional practice and sometimes students’ learning, this project contends that teachers learn more than results from these studies show. We wanted to combine rigorous case study methodology to better understand what teachers take up and use in their classroom practice related to content, pedagogy and resources acquired from a PD four tofive years after their participation. These case study participants videotaped their classroom practice monthly from January to June 2021. The research team conducted semi structured interviews and Think Aloud protocols which consisted of videos that were time stamped by participants. We will share two case studies from each project. Each case study narrative demonstrates a variety of contextual factors that may play a role in what teachers take up from PD and the similarities and differences across the adaptive/specified continuum.

Survey results showed that all participants perceived that they learned from attending the PD and continue to use content, strategies and resources from that PD in their teaching. Preliminary analyses from the interviews also show that most participants are using a lot from their respective PD experiences. It appears that in their understanding of the topics and how they make sense of what they learn may be related to their content knowledge and their beliefs about teaching mathematics. This can result in varying levels of uptake and conceptual understanding. Teachers across projects talked about not only the NSF PD they previously attended but also other PD experiences over the past four to five years and how the goals of the PDs often shared common intentions such as using ambitious and equitable teaching practices in which they could build and integrate their knowledge. This consistent continuation of professional learning and opportunities for reflection we contend supported their ongoing learning.

We found that learning communities and colleagues (e.g., friends, administration, coaches and mostly other math teachers) play an important role in ongoing teacher learning. Colleagues from the same school that attended PD together seemed to play an important role in learning, implementation, and reflection about the new ideas they learned from the PD. In fact, most of our case study teachers shared that they appreciate the TaDD project because it also provided opportunities for them to reflect on their practice while reviewing their videos and interviewing with the research team about their PD experiences. The case study narratives are powerful examples of teacher learning that illustrate what teachers took up, how they modified what they learned for their context, and why, in many instances. Studying teacher learning over time is important, our case study narratives shed great insight into PD and the many ways it can impact a teacher at any point in their career.

Authors

• Karen A. Koellner, Arizona State University

• Nanette M. Seago, WestEd

• Nicora Placa, Hunter College - CUNY

• Amanda K. Riske, Arizona Department of Education

• David Carlson, Arizona State University - Tempe