Evidence/Projects

• Professional Development Research Paper
• Professional Development Survey

Context

For ED 690 (Research Methods) we were given the task of researching a topic of our choice within an assigned group.  I had the pleasure of working with Grace Reyes and Mario Jacquez. We developed a qualitative research design to measure motivational factors for teachers to attend and use professional development materials. Over the course of the summer our group performed the following:

• Performed a literature review about the topic of professional development
• Created an online survey using Survey Monkey
• Collected data from teachers who were participants of professional development
• Analyzed the data from the survey of teachers
• Formulated recommendations for motivating teachers to use professional development

Outcomes

This completed research paper demonstrates the Educational Technology Standard for cognitive.  The process of performing a literature review to analyze past studies of professional development helped us create the survey to qualitatively describe the motivational factors for teachers. 

Because this was a qualitative study we included open ended questions which required deep analysis to determine the correlation between statements made by each participant of the survey.  We were able to come up with a set of criteria from the responses and organize them into categories to gain a better understanding of the trends seen from the data.

After the analysis of the data we made recommendations to assist instructors planning to create professional development programs. We wanted to explain how toincrease the motivation of teachers to use the materials presented during professional development.

Problems

The most troubling problem with this research project was the lack of time to perform a well thought out procedure for collecting data.  We were also limited in the number of participants for the survey because it was at the end of the school year (summer time).

The analysis proved to be an extreme challenge because of the qualitative data.  Allowing the respondents to voice their opinions proved to be a difficult task to interpret.  Instead of a survey online I think it would have been best to interview participants. This would allow the interviewer to ask clarifying questions in response to the interviewee.

Results

These artifacts demonstrate my ability to work under an extreme time crunch to analyze qualitative data into categories and produce recommendations from the data collected.  I have also learned how to word questions for a survey to focus the content. I also recognize when to use programs such as Survey Monkey versus a one on one interview for data collection.

Growth

From this research project, I realize there are many different ways to view and analyze the data. However the most important piece of the puzzle is the use of data to inform. If you have great data collection devices and analysis skills you will be able to make very informed decisions to focus attention on the problem. This makes it easier to answer questions in research.