In this article, a massive open online course (MOOC) made by and for Swedish teachers will be presented and discussed in order to determine what possibilities and dilemmas are involved when creating and participating in a MOOC that is meant to be a community rather than a course. By analysing interviews of the organisers as well as blog posts and…

This article contains important messages for all those with an interest in enhancing the effectiveness of professional development supported by websites. It is informed by the findings of a Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) funded evaluation of the use and effectiveness of three websites whose development the TDA had supported.…

The Museum Education Association of New Zealand (MEANZ) and the National Services Te Paerangi (NSTP) set up a pilot mentoring programme for museum educators in New Zealand. The overall goals for the programme were to: (1) facilitate professional relationships between museum educators who are in need of information and assistance and those who can…

EdCamp is a grassroots movement of do-it-yourself professional development "un-conferences" that originated in Philadelphia in November 2010. In just a little over a year and a half the phenomenon has gained serious momentum across the country and now around the globe. This teacher-driven, bottom-up approach to professional development…

Beginning in spring 2013, students in seven elementary schools throughout the Project LIFT zone in Charlotte, North Carolina began to receive XO laptops provided by the organization One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) for use both within their classroom and at home. This report details Research for Action's (RFA) mixed-method evaluation of the first year…

The aim of this study is to reveal how well online communities of practice (oCoPs) help teachers share explicit knowledge and bring their tacit knowledge to the surface. An Internet based oCoP platform called "The Professional Development Circle" (The PDC) was developed for this study. The study was conducted in two phases: 1) a…

Schools in Washington State had a smattering of computers that were used for instruction and were mostly disconnected from any network when the author joined the state's K-12 public education agency in 1989. It was clear that state educators needed to see beyond the dazzle of slide decks produced by seven-year-olds and reconceptualize the use of…

Social networking is changing the way children communicate. Most of this communication takes place outside of school, though countless Web 2.0 applications are emerging with educational potential. Students may benefit from exposure to the twenty-first century learning principles obtained through the use of emerging web applications. This article…

Introduction: To explore the relationship between self-directed learning (SDL) needs, patterns, barriers, and outcomes among nonacademic general surgeons. Methods: Participants dictated details of SDL episodes associated with cancer patient management from October 2007 to March 2008. Transcripts were coded thematically. Frequencies were calculated…

Within teacher education programs, the use of discussion forums offers potential for creating learning communities whereby participants can negotiate meaning and engage in knowledge construction (Lock, 2006; Murphy, 2000). To this end, the present article draws on the findings of a larger research project which focused on a discussion forum…

A decade of research studies document that while blended learning has experienced rapid growth on K-12 campuses, little is known about its diverse impacts on teachers in secondary schools. Narrowing this knowledge gap was the purpose of this study, as it addressed questions relating to the extent to which high school practitioners blended subject…

In the context of continuous innovations in information and communication technology (ICT) and its impact on higher education, this study explored the integration of instructional technology (IT) by university lecturers in pre-service secondary school teacher education programs in Zimbabwe. Specifically, the study examined how lecturers integrate…

The purpose of this study was to examine reasons for teacher participation in online communities of K-12 teachers. The authors interviewed 23 teachers from three self-generated online communities and analyzed more than 2,000 postings in those communities. The findings indicated five reasons for participation: (a) sharing emotions, (b) utilizing…

There has been vast evidence to support the potential of electronic portfolios (e-portfolio) as tools for enhancing reflective thinking and professional development of student teachers. However, no study has been carried out to specifically determine English as a Foreign Language (EFL) student teachers' perceptions on the role of e-portfolios in…

This study examines online messages in a discussion forum that a group of K-12 history teachers used to discuss curriculum implementations as part of their professional development. It has 3 main research foci. First, it focuses on identifying the types of assistances provided to the teachers in an online forum. Second, it examines teachers'…