Teachers' Pedagogical and Content Knowledge After Participation in Virtual Professional Development

Abstract

Teachers and school district administrators, particularly in the United States, are increasingly turning to teacher virtual professional development (VPD) to stay current and learn new pedagogical knowledge and skills. With more English learners (ELs) entering public school classrooms, it is essential to find effective ways to prepare educators to meet the needs of these students. The authors examined the improvement of Texas in-service teachers' English as a second language (ESL) pedagogical and content knowledge after participating in a VPD program designed for developing teachers' ESL instructional capacity. Chi-square analyses were conducted with participant pre- and post-survey data (n=61). Results indicated a significant improvement in teacher knowledge after program completion. There was no difference in teachers' knowledge gains based on their school district location. These findings are in line with other researchers who have found improvement in terms of teacher knowledge and instructional practices after participation in VPD.