BUILDING TEACHER ONLINE BEST PRACTICES THROUGH EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH ANALYSIS

1. BUILDING TEACHER ONLINE BEST PRACTICES THROUGH EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH ANALYSIS DR. ROBERT IANACONE DR. MICHAEL CORRY JULIE STELLA

2. Overview of the Presentation • Background – About Us • Teacher Best Practices • About this project • Methodology • Findings • Analysis, interpretation, and application • Discussion and questions

3. About Us • The George Washington University Center for the Advancement of Research in Distance Education (CARDE) was chartered in March 2012 • CARDE serves as a platform to conduct research on online learning, disseminate results, and use the findings to both improve best practices and influence policy making. • The work of CARDE is supplemented by a extensive experience base in offering online programming in Higher Education and most recently in K12 settings with the development and administration of the George Washington University Online High School

4. About This Project • Research Questions: • According to the academic literature, what are best practices for online K-12 teachers? • What best practices should we import from brick-and-mortar schools to enhance online teacher best practices? • How can teachers use these best practices to enhance or verify their own practice?

5. The Academic Literature • Articles about teacher best practices are numerous. It is impossible to report exhaustively on them. • Articles about teacher best practices in peer-reviewed publication vary in methodology • Online teaching is a dynamic field—how can we be sure to capture the latest and greatest online teacher best practices? • Teacher best practices discovered through empirical research are often contextually specialized, which makes them difficult to apply.

6. Methodology • Research method • Thematic Analysis • Theoretical lens • HHS • Best Practices Research Methodology • Education Benchmark Methodology

7. Methodology • 2600+ texts selected from ERIC and Academic Search Premier using best practices, instructional practices, and education as search criteria. • 59 texts examine the subject of K-12 education • 6 texts were chosen for analysis using the STAC method

8. Findings and Analysis • Teacher flexibility • Clear communication • Relationship building • Personalized learning

9. Findings and Analysis Teacher flexibility • This emergent theme may reflect our current culture of innovation where teachers self-identify as innovators • Teacher innovators … • React to a learner’s progress, emotions, and motivation • Create and modify curriculum to suit their needs • Teacher flexibility must be managed with trust • Open relationships with administration are crucial • Teachers may see research-validated and field-tested parameters as guidance rather than limitations

10. Findings and Analysis Clear Communication • Provides stability, builds trust, makes transparency in decision-making possible • Among the school community members • Community at-large, Administration, Teachers, Parents, and Students • Among the teacher and students

11. Findings and Analysis Relationship building • This theme may reflect our increasingly global world where teachers need to prepare students to maintain virtual relationships with colleagues and collaborators. • Students know they can rely on the teacher for support, and they are not alone in their education. • Students are more accountable to someone they know and trust.

12. Findings and Analysis Personalized learning • This emergent theme may signal that the field of online education is nearing one of its most ambitious goals, which is personalized learning. • Made possible by synergy among other emergent TBP themes—teacher flexibility and managing relationships

13. Application in the Online Classroom • The empirically-based themes may provide guidance about online teacher best practices • They can provide empirical verification/justification for established online teacher best practices • They can provide a empirical foundation upon which teachers can build their own specialized practice

14. References • Moreland, N., Jawaid, A., & Dhillon, J. (2000). Quality improvement in the TESOL curriculum: a generic benchmarking approach. Quality Assurance in Education, 8 (2), 57-62. • Nazarko, J., Kuźmicz, K. A., Szubzda‐Prutis, E., & Urban, J. (2009). The general concept of benchmarking and its application in higher education in Europe. Higher Education in Europe, 34 (3-4). • US Department of Health and Human Services. (2012). Identifying and promoting promising practices. Department of Health and Human Services. Washington, DC: CompassionCapital Fund. • Vesely, A. (2011). Theory and methodology of best practice research: A critical review of the current state. Central European Journal of Public Policy, 2 (5), 99-117.

15. Questions? • Contact us: CARDE@gwu.edu • Our website: http://carde.gsehd.gwu.edu/ • Our blog: http://cardeblog.wordpress.com/ • Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/OnlineEdRsrch • Friend us on Facebook facebook.com/CARDE • Sign up for our contact list

16. Thank You