ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY – MARIAN ROSENBERG1
Effectiveness of Professional Development to Support Teacher Engagement with Technology in the Classroom
Models of Professional Development for Technology Integration
Ehman, L., Bonk, C., & Yamagata-Lynch, L. (2005). A model of teacher professional development to support technology integration.AACE Journal, 13, 251-270. Retrieved from
This article describes the TICKIT (Teacher Institute for Curriculum Knowledge about Integration of Technology) model for professional development implemented from 1999-2003 at Indiana University, where two of the authors were faculty members. The yearlong program for in-service teachers educated 133 teachers in rural Indiana using classroom-based curriculum projects chosen by the teachers, systematic reflection, action research, and formal reports of results. The dual purpose of the article was to describe the program and share findings so that TICKIT could be replicated or adapted by future practitioners. The researchers mentioned the importance of teacher beliefs about technology integration (a recurring theme) and reiterated the advice of others to avoid a decontextualizedapproach to teaching computer skills. Discussions of benefits and valuable lessons learned throughout the program, such as making sure teachers have home access to computers and involving an administrator in workshops,were included.
Hughes, J., Kerr, S. P., & Ooms, A. (2005). Content-focused technology inquiry groups: Cases of teacher learning and technology integration. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 32, 367-379. doi:10.2190/2N87-8AGA-BJ3D-46Q8
This qualitative research examines the use of a content-focused technology inquiry group to help teachers integrate technology into their curriculum. The experiences of three middle school humanities teachers collaborating with university personnel in such a group are related and analyzed in these longitudinal case studies. Data were gathered by observation and interviews.Among the important findings was the need for peer-peer collaborations and the mistake of trying to integrate one-size-fits-all technology. The authors emphasize the situative perspective of the inquiry group. This seems related to the idea in other studies that isolated learning of technology skills is not optimal for effective integration. This approach to professional development for technology integration is interesting, but more research should be done as so few cases were studied here. Dr. Hughes, from the University of Minnesota, is the first author of two other research papers cited in this article.
Kopcha, T. J. (2010). A systems-based approach to technology integration using mentoring and communities of practice.Educational Technology Research and Development, 58, 175-190. doi:10.1007/s11423-008-9095-4
Dr. Kopcha, who is now at the University of Georgia, describes a model for integrating technology using a multi-stage recursive process facilitated by a mentor. After determining the teachers' needs and establishing goals, the approach addresses the areas of mechanics, systems, culture, and curriculum at each stage of technology integration (initial setup, teacher preparation, curricular focus, and communities of practice). This method seeks to help teachers overcome barriers (which are described) to technology integration and is flexible enough to accommodate all types of present and future technology initiatives. Some novel ideas include student mentors and a monthly newsletter highlighting ideas for technology use. Previous research supporting the development of the author's methodology is extensively cited and the bibliography is thorough. Future research possibilities, such as studying the implementation of the model in a real setting, are also outlined.
Effectiveness of Technology Integration
An, Y., & Reigeluth, C. (2012). Creating technology-enhanced, learner-centered classrooms: K-12 teachers' beliefs, perceptions, barriers, and support needs. Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 28, 54-62. Retrieved from
In this article, the authors focus on learner-centered technology integration as opposed to technology integration in general: investigating and describing "teachers' beliefs, perceptions, barriers, and support needs (p. 54)." They describe, in detail, the learner-centered classroom and research leading to the suggestion that professional development needs to move from building teacher's technical skills in isolation to preparing them to implement technology-enhanced, learner-centered classrooms. The primary purpose of the study was to help teacher educators and administrators better support teachers as they make this shift. The same 60 Likert-style survey questions could be used in a follow-on study to analyze professional development needs in different situations as suggested in the section on future research. The article includes other ideas for future research and a long bibliography listing several other important studies that warrant further examination. Dr. An is an assistant professor at West Georgia.
Marra, R. M. (2004). An online course to help teachers "use technology to enhance learning": Successes and limitations. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 12, 411-429. Retrieved from
The author, an associate professor at the University of Missouri, analyzes the effectiveness of an online course aimed at helping pre-service teachers integrate technology into their teaching using a constructivist approach. Data were collected using surveys and open-ended questions. Overall, the course was ineffective partly due to its online nature, which did not allow adequate modeling of technology use and did not create constructivist learning experiences which were project-based. In fact, some teachers seemed sidetracked by learning the mechanics of an online class. While this particular model of professional development for technology integration was not successful, the research looked at only one online course, and the study was conducted almost ten years ago. It was also limited to pre-service teachers who were self-reporting. Of most value in this report are the surveys and questions which could be adapted to aid in evaluating the effectiveness of other professional development efforts.
Russell, M., O'Dwyer, L. M., Bebell, D., & Tao, W. (2007). How teachers' uses of technology vary by tenure and longevity. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 37, 393-417. doi:10.2190/EC.37.4.d
Previous studies have indicated that newer teachers are generally more familiar with technology. In this study, the authors examined whether teachers’ use of technology is related not only to the number of years they have been teaching but also to how long they have been at their current school. Their purpose was to better understand the relationships between technology use, tenure, and longevity,ultimately using this information to improve pre-service and in-service training. The relationships between the variables were complex, and an important finding was that technology use needs to be broken down into specific types (preparation, instruction delivery, student-directed work, etc.) to understand what is really happening in the classroom. This group of researchers has published several papers on related topics based on the same data collected from 2001-2003. The age of the data combined with rapid changes in technology could make this research dated even though the article was published in 2007.
Watson, G. (2006). Technology professional development: Long-term effects on teacher self-efficacy. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 14, 151-166. Retrieved from
Unlike other studies, this quantitative research focused on the long-term effects of technology-related professional development. The value of follow-up training and the influence of external factors on teacher self-efficacy were additional research topics. Research was cited to show that teacher self-efficacy about technology has a residual effect on student attitudes and achievement and therefore is an important goal of professional development. The most important finding of this study, which used Likert-style survey questions, was that teacher self-efficacy towards Internet use in the classroom improved significantly after a summer workshop and was maintained seven years later. The optional year-long online follow-up training helped to increase teacher confidence to a high level that did not change significantly over time and was generally not affected by external factors such as additional courses or years of experience. This research was limited to 97 math and science teachers in West Virginia and focused on Internet use exclusively. Since the summer workshop took place in 1996 and technology has changed rapidly, more recent studies might show different results.
Barriers to Technology Use in the Classroom
Al-Bataineh, A., Anderson, S., Toledo, C., & Wellinski, S. (2008). A study of technology integration in the classroom.International Journal of Instructional Media, 35, 381-387. Retrieved from
This study surveyed 49 middle and high school teachers about their technology use, barriers to use, training, attitudes about technology, and predictions for future use. The authors found it interesting that the biggest barrier was lack of familiarity with technology rather than lack of financial resources. While all respondents used technology, it was mostly as a support tool, with email and electronic grade books listed as the most used. Only 2.7% used technology as an instructional device. At the same time, 88% of the respondents felt confident or very confident in the use of technology. Even though the first author is a professor at Illinois State University, the article was surprisingly poorly written and included many grammatical and typographical errors. The methods were simplistic, the discussion was unclear and lacked depth, and the reference list was inadequate. For these reasons, it may not be an appropriate reference even though it is closely related to the topic of interest.
Chen, C. (2008). Why do teachers not practice what they believe regarding technology integration? Journal of Educational Research, 102, 65-75.
doi:10.3200/JOER.102.1.65-75
Teachers' technology-related pedagogical beliefs are important in determining to what degree they will integrate technology into their classroom. But, research has shown that other contextual factors must be at work because their beliefs do not always align with their actual use of technology. This study focuses on the relationship between beliefs and contextual factors in determining teacher's use of technology in the classroom. Chen's qualitative research focused on 12 Taiwanese high school teachers, gathering data through surveys, interviews, classroom observations, and documents including syllabi, lesson plans, handouts, PowerPoints, and student work. The results showed that teachers held constructivist beliefs but did not integrate technology in ways consistent with those beliefs.Technology use was influenced by the relationship of beliefs and external factors (high-stakes testing), limited understanding of constructivist instruction, and other conflicting beliefs (teacher-centered instruction works better). Although the Taiwanese and U.S. educational systems are different, most of these results are transferable.
All of the Above
Vrasidas, C., & Glass, G. V. (Eds.). (2005). Preparing teachers to teach with technology. Greenwich, CT: Information Age.
This book, which received the AECT Teacher Education Division Outstanding Book of the Year Award in 2006, examines recent developments in the field of teacher preparation due to advances in technology. The preface indicates that the book dispels the assumption that teachers can be prepared to use technology well in the classroom just by being exposed to new technology and learning about new pedagogies. Instead, preparation is a "long process, akin to ideological conversion" (p. xvii)and requires first-hand experience and deep reflection. The first of three parts focuses on in-service teacher preparation; it is this part which will be most valuable to my research study. Each chapter has different authors and includes an abstract and references, making the book more like a collection of journal articles. Topics include wireless environments, technology coaching, strategies for fostering learning with technology, and teacher education benchmarks with respect to Information Communication Technologies. This book will be used for background information, descriptions of professional development models for a variety of situations, ideas for data collection, and to find additional sources.