Improving Middle School Professional Development by Examining Middle School Teachers' Application of Literacy Strategies and Instructional Design

Article describes a professional development project to increase teachers' understanding of proportional reasoning, the thinking patterns associated with proportional reasoning, and the applications of proportional reasoning across the middle-grades curriculum.

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Inservice Education/Professional Development for Middle School Teachers: A National Perspective

Middle School Research Selected Studies ◽

10.1080/08851700.1983.11670236 ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 23-32

Author(s):

Donald R. Steer

Keyword(s):

Professional Development ◽

Middle School ◽

Middle School Teachers ◽

School Teachers ◽

Inservice Education ◽

Education Professional ◽

Education Professional Development ◽

National Perspective

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Social Sustainability and Professional Development: Assessing a Training Course on Intercultural Education for In-Service Teachers

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11051238 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 1238 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Michele Biasutti ◽

Eleonora Concina ◽

Sara Frate

Keyword(s):

Professional Development ◽

Middle School ◽

Middle School Teachers ◽

Social Sustainability ◽

Intercultural Education ◽

School Teachers ◽

Training Course ◽

Mass Migration ◽

Professional Development Training ◽

Teachers Attitudes

Background: World-wide migration is one of the most important issues of the 21st century. One crucial problem that has arisen as a result of mass migration is how school teachers are taught to use methods and tools that both support intercultural education and the promotion of inclusion as a core pedagogical construct. For these reasons, it is unsurprising that there is an increased need for studies within the field of social sustainability that consider the effects of professional development for teachers. Methods: The current paper presents the assessment of a professional development training course on intercultural education addressed to Italian primary and middle school teachers. The course was framed within a sociocultural approach and had a learner-centered focus. The research methodology used within our research involved a qualitative method to assess the effects of the training course activities. The perceived professional development was analyzed through the administration of an open question survey addressed to the teachers that attended the training course. Results: The qualitative analysis revealed the following themes: Teachers’ attitudes, teaching methods and instruments, community of practice, positive features of the course, course weaknesses, and suggestions for improvement. The results of this analysis showed that the training course was an occasion for teachers to discuss different pedagogical approaches, teaching strategies, and practices in intercultural education. Conclusion: The findings suggest that the activities created an environment for teachers to reflect upon their teaching approaches and practices. Our research shows that professional development interventions of this kind may help to improve intercultural pedagogical abilities among primary and middle school teachers.

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