In authors or contributors

Can Facebook groups enhance continuing professional development of teachers? Lessons from Kenya

Resource type
Journal Article
Authors/contributors
Title
Can Facebook groups enhance continuing professional development of teachers? Lessons from Kenya
Abstract
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for teachers in Kenya suffers from challenges such as inadequate resources, poor planning, competing interests, among others. Besides being traditional in approach, most CPD sessions are far between to be meaningfully helpful. With increasing uptake of technology and number of social media users in Kenya, Facebook can be a potential platform to enhance teachers’ professional development. This exploratory cross-sectional survey focussed on discussions teachers had in the month of February 2015 on one Facebook Group named ‘Teachers of English’. A directed content analysis of the 647 posts following Shulman’s category of teacher knowledge base revealed that interactions on the group centred on the teaching of English and Literature, as well as on other education-related matters. This study concludes that that Facebook Groups can be fertile avenues for teachers’ ongoing professional development, especially in developing countries where such opportunities are scarce.
Publication
Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education
Volume
48
Issue
2
Pages
132-146
Date
March 14, 2020
Language
English
ISSN
1359-866X
Short Title
Can Facebook groups enhance continuing professional development of teachers?
Accessed
01/04/2021, 09:42
Loc. in Archive
2382044577
Library Catalogue
Taylor and Francis+NEJM
Extra
Publisher: Routledge _eprint: https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2018.1542662
Citation
Bett, H., & Makewa, L. (2020). Can Facebook groups enhance continuing professional development of teachers? Lessons from Kenya. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 48(2), 132–146. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866x.2018.1542662