Research Studies Overview

 

The Alabama Department of Education is proud to partner with Alabama Public Television Station in the e-Learning for Educators Initiative, a federally funded program involving eight states. The primary goal of this initiative is to establish an effective and sustainable model of online professional development that will address state-wide teacher quality needs and improve student achievement.  Part of this initiative involves partnering with Boston College to conduct a research study evaluating the effects of online professional development on teacher knowledge, teacher practices, and student achievement. 

 

We invite all 4th grade English Language Arts (ELA), 5th grade Math, 7th grade ELA, and 8th grade Math teachers to participate in this study!  Participating teachers will be randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group.

 

Teachers in the experimental group will participate in a series of three online professional development workshops in either ELA or Math, free of charge.  These workshops focus on both content knowledge and pedagogical practices, offering information and techniques that you can directly apply in your classroom!  The workshops are targeted towards subjects where students tend to struggle, and are based on state and national standards.  Teachers are eligible for 30 contact hours (3.0 CEUs) for these workshops.  Teachers are also eligible for 3 graduate credits per workshop from Plymouth State University in New Hampshire ($125 per credit hour plus $25 registration fee).

 

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 first workshops begin in April, so sign up now!  Please visit the research study website for more information or to register for the study. 

 

www.bc.edu/efe