Hybrid Communities in Virtual Maker-centered Professional Development: Teacher Participation and Community Formation

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Wednesday 9:45am
  In Poster Session: AERA Division K Section 6 In-Service Educators - Poster Session 1

Abstract

This study examines teacher participation and community formation in a maker-centered virtual professional development (PD) program designed to integrate computer science (CS) and Indian Education for All (IEFA) standards into K–12 curricula. Guided by Henri and Pudelko’s (2003) virtual community framework, we investigated how eight teachers from diverse content areas formed professional communities while learning maker technologies through deductive coding of post-PD interviews. Findings show the broader cohort functioned as a facilitator-dependent learners’ community, with individual learning and troubleshooting support from facilitators. However, teachers from the same schools created hybrid spaces combining virtual and in-person collaboration. We discuss implications for virtual maker PD design, including scaffolds that leverage existing social ties and balance technical learning with collaborative community building.

Authors

• Mengying Jiang, Utah State University

• Kristin A. Searle, Utah State University