Teacher design teams are proposed as a strategy to better prepare teachers to integrate technology. The summary is: 1) Teacher design teams involve groups of two or more teachers collaborating regularly to (re)design and implement parts of their curriculum, with the goal of improving practice and facilitating teacher learning. 2) Preliminary evidence suggests strategies like field-based models and collaboration between preservice and mentor teachers may be more effective than traditional training. However, more research is needed to identify the most effective strategies. 3) The document proposes a series of studies to explore the roles of coaches in teacher design teams, the conditions needed for success, the quality of outputs, and using the approach in STEM education in primary

1. Teacher Design Teams
for technology integration
Jo Tondeur (FWO)
Natalie Pareja
Ghent University
Meeting ReleQuant
Artevelde
Ghent
March 31, 2014

2. Problem statement
Training can affect teachers’ adoption of technology (e.g. Drent &
Meelissen, 2008)
BUT: technology seems under-used by teacher (educators)
(e.g. Spector, 2010)
Possible explanations:
Traditional training arragements may not be not enough to
prepare teachers to successfully integrate technology

3. How to bridge the gap?
FromTK
…
to TPACK

4. So…
Some preliminary evidence:
From stand alone courses to field-based model
(cf. Mishra and Koehler , 2008)
Combination of strategies (cf. Kangro & Kango, 2005)
Collaboration between preservice and (mentor) teachers
(cf. Barton & Haydn, 2006)
“The jury is still out on which strategies work best (…).
There is a obvious mandate for more thorough analysis”
[Kay, 2006]

5. SQD-model
Tondeur, J., van Braak, J., Sang, G., Voogt, J., Fisser, P., & Ottenbreit-Leftwich, A.
(2012). Preparing pre-service teachers to integrate technology in education: A
synthesis of qualitative evidence. Computers & Education., 59(1), 134-144

6. Experiences from across the world sustain such viewpoints
while at the same time emphasising difficulties faced in the
implementation of such programmes
See:
h&ps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vwt-­‐f1cuMI&NR=1

8. Teacher design teams (TDT)
as a strategy for ICT integration
‘A group of at least two teachers, from the same or
related subjects, working together on a regular basis, with
the goal to (re)design and enact (a part of) their
common curriculum’
(Handelzalts, 2009, p. 7)

9. Goals
• Improve practice (and hence student
learning)
• Facilitate teacher learning
• Share / generate knowledge about practice
“Ongoing collaboration among educators
produces teacher learning, and this
ultimately improves teaching and
learning” (Levin, 2010, p. 110)

11. Generic activities of TDTs
IDENTIFY
A
PROBLEM
DESIGN
A
SOLUTION
IMPLEMENT
A
SOLUTION
REFLECTION
&
ANALYSIS
Ermeling,
B.
(2010).
Tracing
the
effects
of
teacher
inquiry
on
classroom
prac?ce.
Teaching
and
Teacher
Educa?on,
26,
377-­‐388

12. Activities of TDTs in SQD

13. Characteristics of TDTs
¤ Own practice as a starting point (authentic
problems)
¤ Design as a core activity
¤ Collaboration
¤ Reflection (design process and products)
¤ Individual and group learning
à TPACK development (Mishra& Koehler, 2003; Polly et al.,
2010; So & Kim, 2009)

14. But…
Little is know about the
relationship between
TDTs and the
development of
TPACK in teacher
education

15. Conditions
¤ Team level conditions
• Team characteristics: composition, size, type of participation
• Organization of team activities: structure, inspiration sources, development of
shared values and vision, monitoring of team activities
• …
¤ Organizational level conditions
• Time;
• External support (e.g. coach, expert, literature);
• Coordination mechanisms (between and within teams);
• Leadership support; etc.

16. Study 1:
Focus on the role of the coach
¤ Pilot with 3 TDTs to develop TPACK materials
• Teacher educators (School of Education Leuven)
¤ Goal
• Exploring the role of the coach
• Exploring the communication processes
¤ Method: exploratory case study
• Interviews with coaches
• focus groups with members of the TDTs

17. Study 2:
Focus on the conditions
¤ 4 TDTs in different teacher education institutions
• Teacher educators (School of Education Leuven)
¤ Goal
• Conditions for the success of TDTs
¤ Method: Delphi study
• 3 rounds; 30 experts

18. Study 3:
Focus on output
¤ 4 TDTs in different teacher education institutions
• Teacher educators (ENWAUgent)
¤ Goal
• Quality of the output
¤ Method
• Stimulated recall interviews with members of the
TDTs

19. Study 4:
Focus on STEM & classroom setting
¤ 4 primary schools
• STEM in education (FYXXI)
¤ Goal?
¤ Method: Design based research
• To discuss!

20.
Contact:
Jo.Tondeur@Ugent.be
I
ugent.academia.edu/jotondeur
Natalie.ParejaRoblin@UGent.be
From http://teacherstech.net