Wiggins, L. R. (2016). Successful district online teachers’ perspectives of professional development (Doctoral dissertation). Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global database. (UMI No. 10410574)

Abstract:

“The development of high quality online teachers within a Florida school district is critical given the exponential growth of virtual district programs, the lack of experienced online teachers, and the lack of infrastructure to develop online teachers transitioning from brick and mortar settings. The skills required for teaching in an online setting is significantly different than teaching in a physical classroom due to the fact that students are separated by time and space (Storandt, Dossin, & Lacher, 2012). Online teachers need to understand how to facilitate teaching and learning through the use of technology to engage and motivate learners that are separated by time and space.

My research examined the perspectives of six successful online teachers from a Florida district virtual instruction program about their development in becoming online teachers. The research questions guiding this study were: What professional learning experiences shaped the development of successful online instructors within a district virtual instruction program? What supports and professional learning experiences do successful online instructors within a district virtual instruction program believe that future novice online teachers need?

In this qualitative research study I conducted three semi-structured interviews with each of six successful virtual teachers. The term successful was defined in this context as high percentage of completion rates and highly effective rating on the teacher evaluation system. The participants articulated the importance of both the type professional learning and the content for improving their online practices. Participants’ recommendations for professional learning for novice online teachers differed slightly, but had the same large categories of online technology, online pedagogy, and online content knowledge, which align with Mirsha and Koehler’s (2006) Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) framework. Their insights will assist with understanding the needs of novice virtual teachers as they transition from a brick and mortar setting.”