Virtual professional development : transformation to tech-savvy teachers in class?

Abstract

This paper emerges from a study carried out to explore ways of how professional development can be conducted to help Home Economics (HE) teachers introduce technology effectively as a pedagogy. This research attempts to build a bridge between educational technology and Home Economics (HE) teachers. It will show how one can support teachers in integrating educational technologies effectively and give appropriate examples of how classroom practice can be improved for the 21st century learner. An online community was used with teachers of HE in order to diffuse this innovation and offer ongoing support. Rogers’ (2010) model provided a structure for this dissemination process. A questionnaire was used to achieve the overall interpretation of the impact of the CoP on the knowledge of teachers’ use of technology for HE and to identify how effective the Community of Practice (CoP) was. The discussion fora were analysed to bring out the teachers’ reactions. Interviews were then used to ensure validity and depth of interpretation. The main findings show that the CoP was effective in making the teachers aware of innovative pedagogies, and how to use technology effectively. They also developed favourable attitudes towards technology. However, the interaction was poor as the virtual activity progressed which shows that the participants preferred to receive information rather than share it, that time might be a barrier worth addressing and that the transformation to a tech-savvy teacher might not take place unless there is ongoing support.