Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2024, Educational Leadership

Globally, online professional development (OPD) for teachers has undergone significant evolution. More recently, after the COVID-19 pandemic, OPD has become an essential part of the Professional Development (PD) landscape. Teacher professional development (TPD) is crucial for improving teachers' skills, enhancing their knowledge, and changing their attitudes. Nonetheless, PD does not always result in professional learning, despite its intended purpose. In Saudi Arabia (SA), the National Center for Professional and Educational Development (NCPED) is responsible for providing teachers with professional development and training. This includes the summer Professional Education Development Programs Project. The focus of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the 2021 Summer Online Professional Education Development Programs Project (2021 OPD) from teachers' perceptions. This research contributed to filling a gap in knowledge regarding OPD, with significant gaps within Arab countries, including SA. This research also gains further relevance as it examines the 2021 summer OPD that has not been yet investigated. This period marked SA's comprehensive shift to virtual learning due to COVID-19 restrictions. The importance of such research has intensified with the continuous growth of OPD. The study was guided by research questions intended to evaluate to what extent certain features of the 2021 OPD are effective in improving teachers. It also examines to what extent the features of the 2021 OPD in SA align with the international recommendations for the effective features of PD. This study is a mixed-method case study grounded in a conceptual-theoretical framework that reflects how PD might affect students' achievement. The conceptual-theoretical framework of this dissertation is the features of an effective professional development program that was provided by Desimone (2009; 2011). The data include the 2021 OPD report document, 93 responses from a quantitative survey (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), University of Findlay, 2024, Education

This qualitative study examines the perspectives of K-12 school principals in urban settings on the strengths and weaknesses of various professional development program modalities. The research involved interviews with 10 urban K-12 school administrators to explore their views on in-person, online synchronous, and online asynchronous professional development formats. Thematic analysis of the interviews revealed the principals' preferences and challenges, with a notable preference for in-person sessions despite the rise of online formats. The findings indicate a need for professional development programs that are both flexible and specifically tailored to the needs of school leaders, supporting the integration of in-person and online methods. This study highlights the critical need of ongoing professional development in helping educational leaders address the changing demands of their positions. Recommendations for practice include maintaining or enhancing face-to-face components while adopting hybrid models. Policy recommendations focus on fostering the creation of professional development programs that are relevant and responsive. Future research should investigate the efficacy of hybrid models and their long-term effects on leadership effectiveness and student outcomes. Ultimately, this research contributes to improving professional development strategies for educational leaders in urban K-12 environments, addressing essential gaps in educational leadership development and practice.

MA, Kent State University, 2017, College of the Arts / School of Art

Teacher quality is a decisive factor in a student's educational experience. In turn, a teacher's continued professional development is crucial to his/her capacity for high quality instructional practice. Recent research indicates that school districts' heightened focus on standardized tests as a measure of student and teacher achievement has resulted in art teachers having fewer subject-relevant opportunities for high quality professional development within their schools and districts when compared with peers teaching “tested” subjects. Counter movements seeking to challenge the rise of “testing culture” in K-12 schools centralize the processes of student creativity, critical thinking, and other 21st century skills—along with the disciplines, subjects, and professional development experiences that are intrinsically predisposed to model and support them. A compelling example of such efforts is found in the work of the Columbus Museum of Art's education department staff, who successfully effected change first within the museum's institutional vision and framework, and next in issues of art education and schooling within their community. This case study of the museum's 2015 Teaching for Creativity Institute indicates that museums are uniquely situated to provide high quality professional development opportunities and create communities of support for art teachers and their non-art teaching colleagues. These professional development experiences also have the potential to serve as powerful advocacy tools for arts education and art museums.

Specialist in Education (Ed.S.), University of Dayton, 2013, School Psychology

Proposals for school reform and improvement almost always include a faculty professional development component that requires evaluation of effectiveness. Often these evaluations are of poor quality because they rely on questions related to participants' enjoyment or satisfaction and how a person feels about something does not necessarily translate to how they behave. The Learning Teaching Center (LTC) at the University of Dayton provides faculty professional development as one of its services. The LTC's mission is not just to provide participants with information or a "good time", but to transform or change participants through what they learn. The purpose of this study was to pilot a measure that addressed reported "levels of use" (how much they applied new knowledge and skills) from faculty and staff after attending faculty development programs at the LTC. Data were also used to gain a better understanding of which program types, duration, and demographic characteristics were associated with higher usage levels among participants at the LTC. Data analysis indicated no significant relationships between the demographics of participants (college affiliation, rank, gender, or years employed) and their reported change in level of use. There were also no significant differences between those who attended a single session professional development program and those who attended a program that consisted of multiple sessions in terms of amount of change; however, those who attended multiple sessions, on average, reported higher levels of use. In general, the majority of respondents reported an increase in their level of use after attending professional development at the LTC. Limitations of this mode of assessment and implications for future research are presented.

Doctor of Education (EdD), Ohio University, 2017, Educational Administration (Education)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of Ohio public high school principals regarding their roles as leaders of professional development and to identify the strategies they have undertaken to lead professional growth among their teachers. This study provides insights regarding the manner that principals perceive professional development in terms of the ways that they prioritize and execute these roles. Seven research objectives drove this study. The focus of these research objectives was to describe Ohio public school principals based upon their demographic characteristics, to identify the manner in which the decision-making of the principals regarding professional development was influenced, to determine the types and levels of influence on the implementation of professional development that was experienced by the participating principals, to ascertain the frequency with which the characteristics of professional development have occurred at the schools of the principals, to determine the perceptions of the principals regarding the efficacy of the professional development activities at their schools, to identify the leadership strategies that the principals used to foster professional development, and to identify the existence of statistically significant differences among the selected demographics emerging from this study. The study informs current practitioners about effective strategies for leading professional development and offers recommendations for policy makers. In regards to future research, the researcher offers recommendations for studies that would contribute to the relatively small existing body of research results regarding principals' perceptions of their role as leaders of professional development.

Master of Arts, Wittenberg University, 2023, Education

The present study investigated the effects teacher selection of professional development had on the implementation of the learned professional development. A group of 15 elementary school teachers participated in the study in which they were asked to complete surveys and participate in professional development. All teachers were assessed on their thoughts about professional development within the school, were given the opportunity to choose a professional development, and then ultimately implement the new professional development into their classrooms. The results showed that implementation of the professional development was not positively affected by teacher selection.

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 2013, Department of Teacher Education and Leadership Studies

Professional development is a common phrase used by public school educators to describe the training they participate in order to stay current and increase their knowledge and skills in their respective fields. School districts implement professional development for various purposes including but not limited to curriculum, pedagogy, mathematics and so forth. In various school districts professional development training has many formats. Some of these formats include attending conferences, hiring outside consultants, using existing staff, small group book studies, live sessions and online training. Often, the sessions vary from one single isolated training session to on-going multi-year training plans. Essentially, no professional development programs are identical. This dissertation analyzes current secondary data including published articles, journals, reports, dissertations, theses and studies to identify effective characteristics of professional development in traditional public schools grades K-12 since the inception the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 hereafter referred to as NCLB. The dependent variable of student test scores is analyzed to examine what characteristics/strategies are identified as effective and to what degree. Analysis revealed that the professional development of teachers had a moderate-to-large significant effect on student achievement.

EDD, Kent State University, 2024, College of Education, Health and Human Services / School of Foundations, Leadership and Administration

The purpose of this study was to explore teachers' reactions to and perceptions of an online professional learning (PL) experience within a microcredentialing program. Using a qualitative multiple case study design with cross case analysis, this study explored the experiences of five kindergarten through fourth grade (K-4) literacy teachers in a suburban public school district in Northeast Ohio, where the researcher works. This study informed the problem of practice associated with improving teachers' online literacy PL experiences. Guided by Guskey's Critical Levels of Evaluation, data included participants' PL experience artifacts including pre- and post-PL narratives, video recorded lessons/instructional coach notes, and semi-structured interviews. Deductive coding was initially utilized, aligned with Guskey's levels. This was followed by multiple rounds of inductive coding to identify and apply emergent codes to develop individual cases. Then cross case analysis was used to identify categories, overall themes, and assertions associated with Guskey's levels. These assertions will inform future programming for teacher PL in this district under study and may inform similar efforts in other districts.

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), University of Findlay, 2024, Education

This mixed-methods study explored the relationship between teacher academic optimism and personalized professional learning in a rural Appalachian elementary school in southeastern Ohio. Twenty K-5 educators participated, with pre/post-surveys utilizing the Teacher Academic Optimism Scale-Elementary (TAOS-E) yielding quantitative data. Six teachers engaged in personalized professional learning (treatment group), while fourteen formed the control group. One-on-one interviews with the treatment group added a qualitative dimension, enhancing overall validity and reliability through data triangulation. Results indicated positive changes in self-efficacy, trust, academic emphasis, and overall academic optimism for both groups. Unexpectedly, the control group experienced statistically significant gains in self-efficacy, trust, and overall academic optimism, prompting further investigation into external variables. As a practitioner in the elementary school, the researcher explores these influences in the discussion section. Qualitative analysis highlighted themes of personalized learning's value, appreciation for meaningful experiences, and varied learning format preferences. The study underscores the positive impact of a four-week personalized professional learning experience. Emphasis on job- embedded learning and collaboration enabled teachers to apply new skills in real-world situations. Interviews with the treatment group revealed positive changes in mindset and practices, emphasizing themes of positivity, reflection, engagement, relationship building, trust, effective communication, and a language shift. Overall, the teachers in the treatment group perceived the personalized professional learning approach as meaningful and positive even though the quantitative results were not significant and did not indicate a relationship between their overall levels of academic optimism.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), University of Dayton, 2023, Educational Leadership

The Ohio Principal Evaluation System 2.0 (OPES 2.0) serves as the primary tool for assessing principal effectiveness in Ohio. This research explores Ohio principals' experiences with OPES 2.0 and how OPES 2.0 influences professional growth. It also identifies factors that either support or hinder successful evaluation outcomes. Using a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach, the study analyzed principals' perceptions of OPES 2.0, the competency of evaluators, impact on professional habits and development, and the challenges faced in OPES 2.0 implementation. The findings reveal that principals have ambivalent views about OPES 2.0. In its inaugural year of mandated use, strong negative sentiments were prevalent. Furthermore, inconsistent implementation across districts—often missing key evaluation components—led to varied experiences for principals, obstructing their ability to leverage evaluation results for growth. While principals believed they understood the system and trusted their evaluators' capabilities, they were unsure about the flexibility permitted in implementing OPES 2.0. Notably, principals with less than five years of experience found OPES 2.0 less beneficial for their growth compared to their more experienced counterparts. Principals were evenly divided on whether OPES 2.0 positively affected their professional practices and development. The study underscores the need for enhancements at all principal evaluation stages—planning, monitoring, assessment, and appraisal—and across all structural levels, from state to individual principal. These findings offer a foundation for state agencies and school districts to gauge the effectiveness and perceived value of the new state principal evaluation model. Crucially, the study highlights that certain aspects of OPES 2.0 implementation in 2022-2023 impeded its main objectives to foster professional growth in principals and improve school outcomes.

Doctor of Education , University of Dayton, 2022, Educational Leadership

The purpose of this DiP is to explore existing fire service professional development programs, specifically identifying current program weaknesses and potential avenues for growth. The methods used for this action research included a document analysis of the selected sample departments and three interviews of command staff members of the selected population departments. The study was conducted using three different Ohio fire departments as the primary stage one population, with a secondary stage two survey to other Ohio fire departments. The result of this research supports earlier research that identified there is a direct relationship between participation in a structured professional development process program and success. The research established that to improve the likelihood for success, both for team members and departmentally, organizations must devote time and energy towards professional development. This research will add to the existing research foundation for future professional development research specific to the fire service. The quantitative data, specifically the results of survey data could be a baseline data set regarding any future research. This research could be utilized as a kickoff point for a future longitudinal long term studies regarding PLC impact on professional development.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2022, Curriculum and Instruction (Education)

Professional identity impacts the career choices, professional development, and wellbeing of the clinician educators (CEs) who are foundational to the evolving medical education and health care system. Physicians, who fulfill educator roles in an academic health center, can develop clinician educator identity (CEID) as they participate in longitudinal faculty development programs (LFDPs). It has also been demonstrated that after the program ends, professional identity salience depends on a participants' individual agency and ability to connect to supportive resources in the larger local context including regional and national educational societies. However, how CEID forms and what factors impact its salience remain unexplored. The central research question is, “How is an CEID formed and transformed in physicians?” In order to explore CEID formation, a collective case study was conducted of physicians with formal educational leadership roles. Data collection strategies included collecting documentary evidence, identity maps and curriculum vitae, as well as two interviews. Interview questions explored interpretations of experiences that influenced the formation of the participants' CEID as well as factors that influence CEID salience. The data were analyzed using qualitative methods informed by professional identity formation theory and literature. Participants in this collective 1) described their CEID as a profession, leveraging specialized competencies to serve others, 2) explored a unique career path in multiple communities of practice outside their local clinical departments, with guidance from mentors, role models and sponsors, and 3) associated the importance of their roles as a CE with its contribution to patient care as well as felt affirmed by recognition from import individuals in the medical education community. This study has implications for how professional developers imagine, implement, and evaluate the initiatives designed to encourage the developm (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2016, Curriculum and Instruction Mathematics Education (Education)

Math Teachers' Circles are content-focused professional development for K–12 mathematics teachers that engage teachers and mathematicians in intensive, collaborative problem solving. Typically, Math Teachers' Circles begin with a weeklong summer immersion workshop. This study explored the effects of participation in such professional development on elementary and middle school teachers' mathematical identities, their mathematics teaching identities, and the interaction of these identities. This investigation used an explanatory multiple-case study methodology. Extreme cases were identified from first-time participants at three Math Teachers' Circle sites across the United States. Shifts in these teachers' identities were explored through open-ended interviews, pre- and post-workshop surveys, and written reflections. Teachers' identities were understood as the extent to which the teachers' personal identities aligned with the normative identity of the Math Teachers' Circle. The teachers' mathematical identities evolved most significantly as a result of their participation. During the immersion workshop, the teachers found that perseverance and collaboration assisted in their success at solving challenging and open-ended mathematics problems, and their confidence and motivation increased over the week. As a result, teachers' sense of self, including mathematics self-concept and self-efficacy, became stronger, and their understanding of the nature of mathematics evolved to include patterns, connections, and open-ended problems. The immersion workshop also changed teachers' perceptions of effective mathematics pedagogy. The teachers in this study found that collaborating and struggling through nonroutine problems was useful to their understanding of the problems and of teaching and learning mathematics. The teachers intended to use similar problems and pedagogy in their classes. However, the teachers' perceptions of their teaching abilities remained relatively (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Education, Ashland University, 2015, College of Education

The purpose of this grounded theory study was to explore and conceptualize how teacher leaders are trained, developed, and supported both formally and informally to be effective in their roles. The study furthered examined teachers perceptions of the Ohio teacher leader endorsement and its' impact on them as teacher leaders. The study was conducted in an urban and suburban school district located in central Ohio. The eight teachers were selected to participate in the study because they held the Ohio teacher leader endorsement and work as teacher leaders in either a formal or informal role in their district. Five themes emerged from this study: (a) Formal training and support is essential for teacher leaders and can provide teachers with credibility among their colleagues, (b) Teacher leaders in both formal and informal roles are necessary to impact change in their organization, (c) Formal teacher leaders can lead from the classroom, (d) Informal support for teacher leaders, and (e) Stronger connections between statewide initiatives and the work of teacher leaders are necessary for educators to make sense out of the work of teacher leaders.

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2001, Education : Educational Foundations

A consortium of 10 school districts piloted the implementation of Local Professional Development Committees created by a state policy giving local districts control over the re-licensure of educators. These committees were charged with both accountability for re-licensure of educators in a given district and with monitoring educators' continued professional growth in relation to local plans for continuous improvement. The 10-district consortium organized to support each other in the creation of district policies translating state policy to local contexts, and to examine the application of principles of quality professional development to the creation of these local policies. The research set out to look at professional learning in this context of local policy development around the professional development principles. Little change in attitudes regarding the principles, expressed on a pre- and post-assessment were detected in the 16 months from the beginning to the end of the pilot. However, local policy documents produced by the pilot committees showed notable variation in the extent to which the individual districts' documents incorporated the professional development principles. These differences corresponded to variations in certain elements of the committees' processes and contexts. Two committees, whose processes had been closely observed over the course of the pilot, produced local policy documents at opposite ends of the continuum for the extent to which they embraced the professional development principles. The two committees also exemplified committee processes and contexts that were at opposite ends of the continuum. This finding was corroborated by differences in the two committees on 14 indicators of organizational learning. A final analysis of all 10 committees and their school districts according to 13 facilitators of organizational learning, again, found a pattern of variance that was similar to that shown by the local policy documents. The study con (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2005, Physical Activity and Educational Services

Professional development that underlies education reform efforts carries the implicit assumption of teacher change (Fullan, 1992). Butler, Lauscher, Jarvis-Selinger and Beckingham (2004) suggest that regardless of the demand for professional development, “questions remain concerning how to conceptualize teacher learning and, correspondingly, about how to construct professional development so as to foster meaningful change” (p. 436). Questions also remain about how to achieve meaningful change beyond the level of the teacher. Richardson and Placier (2001) suggest that although both organizational, individual and small group change have been studied separately, change at all levels is necessary if systemic change is to be successful. This study is significant in that it is uniquely positioned to study changes in teachers and their practices while at the same time studying recursive relationships between teacher change and district level change. The purpose of this study was to understand the long-term influences that resulted from teachers' involvement in a community of practice underlying a 15 month professional development program. Twenty seven semi-structured interviews were conducted, audiotaped and transcribed. These included two interviews with each teacher, at the beginning and end of the data collection period in addition to an interview regarding classroom observations; interviews with three district representatives and each participant's principal; and a focus interview with all six teachers. Data were also collected from 18 classroom observations, three questionnaires and documents related to the professional development intervention. Data were inductively analyzed from an interpretive practice perspective that considers both what and how reality is constructed (Gubrium & Holstein, 2000). The analysis was conducted with the assistance of the qualitative software Nud*ist. Findings revealed that teachers shed their positional identities as an isolated and mar (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Education, Ashland University, 2009, College of Education

This dissertation describes research designed to investigate the influence of select teacher and school characteristics on the perceived professional development needs of in-service physical educators in the state of Ohio. Data were collected using a self-report survey instrument comprised of the Professional Development Needs Questionnaire-Physical Education (Conkle, 1994), and the Teacher Concerns Questionnaire-Physical Education (McBride, 1993). Additional demographic data were collected and categorized according to grade level taught (elementary, middle school, high school, or some combination), and school setting/location (urban/inner city, suburban/small city, and rural). Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation coefficients were analyzed to determine the strength of the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. Multiple regression using stepwise method was further conducted to determine the degree to which a teachers' stage of concern, grade level taught and school setting influenced their perceived professional development needs. Results indicated that participants' perceived professional development needs were driven primarily by issues of concern rather than teaching situation (e.g. grade level taught; school setting/location).

Doctor of Education, Ashland University, 2005, College of Education

The purpose of this qualitative research study was to determine whether a Japanese professional development tool called lesson study could fit into teachers' existing work culture. In addition, data was collected concerning teachers' attitudes and beliefs about the lesson study process. After the release of the Third International Mathematics and Science Studies (TIMSS) in 1995 and the TIMSS-R in 1999 the Japanese model of lesson study gained attention as a professional development tool that built teachers' instructional skills. As a professional development tool, lesson study also put teachers in a leadership role for improving their classroom practices. Lesson study was specifically designed to standardize math and science lessons to focus the curricula in order to improve test scores of U.S. students compared to peak performing countries. However, educational researchers like Stigler and Lewis started professional development initiatives around the country that took lesson study to the next level in the teaching process. Instead of focusing on test scores, lesson study developed as a professional development tool to increase teachers' content knowledge and their research skills. In this research study nine teachers, three administrators, a professor and two focus groups, engaged at various stages in the lesson study process, were interviewed on their attitudes and beliefs. Six common themes and seventeen sub-themes emerged from the data collected. This research study concluded with predictions about the future of lesson study and whether it could be sustained in the U.S. teaching culture in order to change teaching strategies in American classrooms.

Doctor of Philosophy in Urban Education, Cleveland State University, 2013, College of Education and Human Services

Adult literacy educators enter into teaching positions where they are entrusted with the education of adult learners, often without any prior preparation, and with very little guidance on how to actually teach the learners in their classes. Many “happen upon” jobs teaching adult literacy education, without previously having education as a career goal. Typically, the formal educational training of adult literacy educators is not in adult literacy, nor in the content areas that these instructors are expected to teach. Internationally, there is concern about the quality of educators in adult literacy due to their lack of formal education in adult literacy content areas (reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies) and their lack of teacher qualifications (Lucas, et al, 2005). This study examined the current state of teacher preparation and professional development from the perspective of thirty-seven current teachers, twenty-four from within the federally and state-funded adult literacy education system in Ohio. The study also examined how well current hiring and professional development requirements prepare them for instructional practice and instructional decision-making with adult learners from various cultural and educational backgrounds. The study suggests a model of professional development that can potentially provide teachers with the knowledge and skills they need to feel prepared to deliver instruction to adult literacy students.

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 2025, Department of Teacher Education and Leadership Studies

This study investigated the effectiveness of systematic K-6 spelling instruction, exploring the historical context, instructional practices, and professional development necessary to support both novice and experienced teachers. Using qualitative methods, data were collected through surveys and interviews with 30 elementary teachers in a western Pennsylvania school district. Highlighting a reliance on informal strategies and digital tools, the findings reveal significant gaps in formalized spelling programs which often hinder the development of foundational spelling skills. Effective instructional practices, such as phonics-based and multisensory approaches, were identified as crucial for improving student outcomes. Challenges include differentiating instruction to meet diverse student needs and addressing systemic barriers, such as inconsistent resources and limited professional development opportunities. This study underscores the need for tailored professional development focused on explicit, systematic instruction to enhance teacher capacity and student learning. The implications of this research extend to designing robust training programs and standardized assessments to support effective spelling instruction. Future research could explore longitudinal impacts of these interventions across multiple districts and states.