Burke, L. S. (2012). Online professional development: Using data to evaluate program effectiveness in preparing faculty to teach online (Publication No. 3513726) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Southern California]. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

Abstract:

“This study investigated a sample of community college faculty who participated in an online professional development program. The purpose of the study was to determine the relationship between participating in an online professional development program and changes in participants’ self-assessed knowledge about tasks associated with effective online teaching. The study examined what professional development activities the participants found to be most useful in preparing them to teach in an online environment. The study also aimed to determine what professional development activities gave the participants the greatest knowledge gains.

An evaluation was accomplished by first ensuring that the professional development was well designed to meet the training goal of increasing faculty knowledge with respect to technology, pedagogy, and content, and the combination of each of these areas (TPACK). Second, the evaluation referred to principles of adult learning and Kirkpatrick’s evaluation model as a framework for guiding the data collection. The pre- and post-survey was conducted and quantitative methods utilized to collect and analyze the data. The analysis showed that there were statistically significant differences in learning gains. Participants who participated in the online professional development program improved their self-assessed knowledge about tasks associated with effective online teaching, indicating that they felt more confident about their technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge. Participants also demonstrated improvement in their attitudes of preparation relating to an online teaching experience and ranked certain activities as more useful than others.”