Online Professional Development Study: 7th ELA 8th Math

Posted by online on 5/08/07

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Boston College is conducting a research study as part of a
US Department of Education Ready to Teach grant, the e-
Learning for Educators Initiative. The primary goal of the
overall initiative is to establish an effective and
sustainable model of online professional development for
teachers. Part of the initiative involves conducting a
large-scale research study which will evaluate the effects
of online professional development on teacher knowledge,
teacher practices, and student achievement.

We invite all 7th grade ELA (English Language Arts) and 8th
grade Math teachers of traditional classrooms to
participate in this study! The study spans three school
semesters (Spring 2007, Fall 2007, and Spring 2008).
Participating teachers will be randomly assigned to either
the experimental group or the control group.
Some details are listed below and all details can be found
at our
website: http://www.bc.edu/efe

Teachers assigned to the experimental group will
participate in a series of three online professional
development workshops, free of charge. These workshops
were specifically designed for this study, focus on both
content knowledge and pedagogical practices, and offer
information and techniques that you can directly apply in
the classroom. The workshops are targeted towards subjects
where students tend to struggle and are based on state and
national standards. Teachers completing the workshops are
eligible for graduate credits. Teachers assigned to the
control group will also have access to these same courses,
free of charge, once the study completes (June 2008).

Teachers in both the experimental group and the control
group will also take a series of online surveys and
administer a series of online tests to their students.
Teachers receive instant feedback about student performance
from these tests, which can be used to inform future
instruction. Additionally, teachers will receive a $300
stipend upon completion of all surveys and tests.

We support your efforts to improve teacher quality and
student learning and strongly encourage you to
participate. The workshops begin in May and July, and the
first round of surveys and tests must be completed before
the workshops begin, so sign up now!

Please visit the research study website for more
information or to register for the study:
http://www.bc.edu/efe

You can also contact the researcher below with any
questions:

Jessica Masters
jessica.masters@bc.edu
(617) 552-3574

Thank you in advance for your consideration!

Sincerely,
Jessica Masters