Characterization of Highly Active Teacher Learners’ Participation and TPACK Knowledge While Engaging in a Teaching Mathematics with Technology MOOC for Mathematics Educators
- UNCP Author/Contributor (non-UNCP co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- James Smiling Ph.D, Lecturer (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (UNCP )
- Web Site: http://www.uncp.edu/academics/library
Abstract: As the demand for integrating educational technologies within the mathematics teaching curriculum increases, there is a growing need for teachers to develop the competencies and skills required for effective technology integration into their teaching practices. Massive Open Online Courses for Educators (MOOC-Eds) offer teachers opportunities for professional development. Consequently, it is worthwhile to explore the impact of active participation in these professional learning courses. The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the distinct types of knowledge teachers gained from active participation in the Teaching Mathematics with Technology (TMT) MOOC-Ed using discussion forums as a space to assess teacher learning. A concurrent embedded mixed methods design (QUAN + QUAL) was employed for this study. Both quantitative and qualitative data was collected and analyzed separately then data was mixed for joint analysis. Two theoretical frameworks were employed to frame this study and support data collection, analysis, and interpreting results. The Productive Online Discussion Model served as an a priori coding frame employed to analyze the dispositions and learner actions of the discussion forum contributions of active teacher learners. A pre- and post- TPACK survey measuring technological knowledge (TK), pedagogical knowledge (PK), content knowledge (CK), and technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) was administered to evaluate active teacher learners change in knowledge before and after the MOOC-Ed experience. Qualitative results from the study indicated that overall, discussions to comprehend occurred most frequently in the discussion forums. Results also showed the frequency of forum contributions categorized as discussing to critique, construct knowledge, and share improved understanding increased during the MOOC-Ed while discussions to comprehend decreased. Quantitative results showed statistically significant growth with large effect size from pre- to post- survey in the TPACK domain for active and highly active teacher learners. Teachers reported the greatest effect on their professional learning experience was increased knowledge of combining pedagogical techniques with technological tools and their content knowledge to teach student-centered lessons. Integrated results indicated that there was a meaningful relationship between highly active teacher learners TPACK growth and their distinct forum contributions that sought to critique, construct knowledge, and share improved understanding. Implications for research emphasize the importance of understanding the different contexts in which teachers teach and designing online courses to meet their diverse learning needs using research-based principles. Additionally, teachers of online learning should consider implementing authentic tasks that contain relevant content, discussion forum questioning that elicits higher order thinking, and opportunities for reflection. Future research is suggested in the areas of employing language technologies (i.e., text mining tools) to explore online interactions and gain insight into user satisfaction and increasing learner engagement and examining to impact of duration of how duration affects participation and attrition rates in professional learning courses.
Characterization of Highly Active Teacher Learners’ Participation and TPACK Knowledge While Engaging in a Teaching Mathematics with Technology MOOC for Mathematics Educators
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Created on 6/22/2023
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Language: English
- Date: 2023
- Keywords
- Mathematics education, mathematics teaching, teacher learning, professional development, MOOCs, TPACK