Context: European policies describe the key role of teachers' Vocational Education and Training (VET) in improving students' learning outcomes. In order to improve teacher education, Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) policies identify competency models as the main framework for understanding teacher professionalism and…

The expertise and professionalism of teachers is vital in vocational education and training (VET), as it is in any other education sector. As 'dual professionals', VET teachers need to keep abreast of their industry or discipline area as well as maintaining and improving their pedagogical skills and knowledge. VET workplaces (colleges and…

The Next Generation Science Standards in the United States placed a special emphasis on engineering unlike previous national science education policy documents. Some studies attempted to examine students' and teachers' nature of engineering (NOE) views, but NOE views should be better conceptualized before further exploration of students' and…

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) started its operations in Egypt in 1975. Its work on education development included supporting access and gender equity, community participation, professional development, and also extended to policy reforms. Education Reform Program (ERP) was one of USAID's initiatives implemented…

This commentary reinterprets the findings of Macalalag, Johnson, and Lai's study in terms of the substantive content of and ways of initiating professional development for teaching socio-scientific issues. First, regarding professional development content, we introduce the concept of SSI-PCK, which refers to pedagogical content knowledge for…

Increasingly, policymakers, school and school system leaders are turning to Professional Learning Networks (PLNs) as a means to achieve bottom-up educational improvement at scale (Brown and Poortman, 2018). Likening the leadership challenges of establishing PLNs to conquering a labyrinth, this paper draws on extant literature to explore one key…

This chapter compares and contrasts the findings of the preceding empirical monograph chapters. The findings from these chapters are addressed in terms of how they illustrate the positives, negatives, and tensions that can be associated with social media use for professional development and learning. Across the various chapters, similarities in…

It has been suggested that the best way to improve student learning is to improve teacher practice. In order to do so, all levels of the educational system must accept accountability for teacher learning. Teachers have a responsibility to improve their practice, administrators have a responsibility to create an environment that fosters growth, and…

This article considers the role of trust in teacher professional learning as a form of policy enactment. Drawing upon an experienced teacher's understandings of an assessment policy, "Growing Success," in Ontario, Canada, we foreground the sociality of trust and how trust is an essential ingredient for teacher learning as policy…

Across the globe, preparing the next generation of teachers is one of the most important tasks for higher education. In this article, we discuss the Teacher Preparation Initiative (TPI), a successful professional development framework designed to support teacher candidates as they enter their classrooms and also the faculty members who are working…

The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte is helping to shape the futures of learning in diverse ways. In this paper, we describe a recently implemented micro-credential option for faculty and graduate students, the Essentials of Teaching and Learning Certificate Program. We also report findings…

Many institutions have adopted best practices in the design of online education programs. However, the literature indicates that there is a need for continued research in the area of evaluating and examining online faculty satisfaction levels and self-perceived barriers in relation to online education. This study extended research conducted by…

Technology is ever increasing in the world of education. Teachers and students alike have more access to technology, and through that comes the opportunity for teachers to change how they are presenting that information to students to impact on student learning. The problem addressed by the study is, if long term professional development of…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to measure the relationship between and among Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) professional development, AVID implementation, teacher perception, and the impact on student behavior. This study also examined the perceptions of teachers when implementing writing, collaboration, organization,…

From the perspective of host country education system and, in light of a normative view of academic development, school systems have too often viewed the academic profiles of newcomer students as deficient despite a curriculum in Ontario (Canada) that mandates culturally relevant and responsive pedagogy. In this project, we view the mobility of…